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Less than a week since its release, and Diablo Immortal has already attracted a bevy of criticism from gamers.
Redditor PowerRaptor posted a summary of the significant issues with the game in a PC gaming subreddit discussing a recent review by Zizaran on YouTube. Most of the problems surround the game's explicit pay-to-win design, making it impossible for non-spending players to compete with those who pay for gems and gear. "You can play through the entire story without spending a cent - you cannot match the power of a paying player no matter how much you grind, though, as only paying players have access to "Awakened Items," PowerRaptor summarized.
Furthermore, according to a data mine, the way Diablo Immortal's gear works, it is impossible to get the best equipment without spending money. "Datamined stats show that all the best gear is effectively gated behind spending money - and earning it in game would take upwards of decades - provided the game receives zero updates adding better gear than the best at launch," PowerRaptor reported. Even then, it would cost players anywhere from $60,000-$110,000 to fully upgrade base gear.
Another spending complaint comes from the optional cost of $25 to upgrade loot won at the end of a 4-minute rift gameplay. One stream "showed running rifts lets anyone spend $25 (up to 10 legendary crests in one rift) per 4 minutes of gameplay to upgrade the loot at the end (for a chance at Legendary Gems)," said PowerRaptor. "So "splurging" on a little microtransaction here and there can set you back as much as $375 an hour - just for running rifts. Pay 4 Loot feature. I watched Twitch streamers expend more than my gaming PC costs in just a single day."
Diablo Immortal launched on PC and mobile on June 2 after being delayed by Blizzard last year to "add substantial improvements to the whole game." Previously planned as a mobile-only title to the derision of fans, Blizzard ultimately revealed Diablo Immortal would be available on PC as well when it unveiled its June 2 launch date. Since the beginning, the game has suffered poor fan reception, as many complained at the announcement of a mobile game in 2018 and blamed its bad reception for Blizzard's withholding a Diablo 4 reveal. News of the pay-to-win system has further sullied the game's reputation, with its system close enough to gambling for Belgium and Netherlands to ban the game outright for "illegal gambling."
Diablo Immortal is free-to-play on mobile devices and PC now.
Source: Reddit