Diablo 2 was one of the most anticipated games for 2000, and for good reason. This sequel to the very popular Diablo brings us everything missing in the original, plus more. This role playing game will keep you hooked for hours on end.
Installation:
The installation for Diablo 2 continues a trend set by blizzard. Instead of bringing up a normal installation window, they have created their own installer. Using this fairly easy to use, great looking installer, you can choose one of three installations. Single player (650 MB), Multiplayer (950 MB), or Full installation (1500 MB). No matter what you select, it will take quite a long time for this installation to complete.
Usage:
Diablo 2 sets you in a fantasy world, where you will battle hundreds of monsters, gather items, meet dozens of helpful people, and complete quests to make the world a better place. While the quests are normally the same every time you play it, everything else is randomly generated. This makes for a much extended longevity before you get bored with it.
Like many role playing games, there are two main landscapes, the safe-haven (towns), and the battle field (everything else). While in the towns, you can talk to people, trade items, receive quests, and all sorts of things. But the main advantage to entering a town is the safeness factor. If you are on your last ounce of energy, you don't have to to worry. No creatures can enter the town setting, therefore keeping you alive until you can heal.
But that's not where all the fun is. When you leave a town, you are automatically in harms way. Creatures can come from anywhere to attack you. Some use magic, some use hand to hand combat, others use long range weapons, and more. In the original Diablo, you never knew when you were going to defeat a creature. One of the greatest aspects built into Diablo 2 is the creature life meter. When you battle a creature, their name, amount of life, and special characteristics will be displayed at the top of the screen. This information is crucial to defeating some monsters.
While battling the run-of-the-mill creatures, you will come across bosses or special creatures. These special beings have much more life than their normal counterparts. They also usually have special skills or magic to accompany their quest for evil. Although it can take a much greater effort to defeat the beings, the rewards are tremendous. Greater gold, special and unique items, new powers, just to name a few.
But where would a role playing game be without super bosses. These guys are more prevalent at the end of a quest or level. It takes many resources and skills to destroy them, but peace is the reward. Not only will you get even greater items from these super creatures, but you will also get the satisfaction of ridding the world of another evil.
Enough talk about the monsters, what about the character him or her self. Well, this incarnation of Diablo brings to us five separate character classes, each having their own abilities. Along with that, they have a new "skill tree" where they learn new skills, magic, etc to help them on their journey. This is a ton better than Diablo 1's "everyone can learn the same stuff" way of doing it. With these new character classes, you can have a new experience with each one, making the game that much better.
I think the most lacking aspect of Diablo 1 was the one town, one dungeon approach. Diablo 2 more than makes up for this with 4 completely different worlds, with dozens of dungeons, and hundreds more types of monsters. Not only that, but the level of skill needed increases tremendously on every world. No longer are we stuck in one place, but we can get out and explore, making the game consume even more of our time.
Not to mention the fact of different difficulty levels. Incorporating what was only a Battle.net feature into the single and multiplayer realms, Blizzard has given us three levels of difficulty to attempt the conquering of the game at: Normal, Nightmare, and Hell. Each of these levels greatly increases the difficulty in defeating monsters, number of monsters, completing quests, and more. So when you think you are good at normal, give Nightmare a shot for another challenge.
Nevertheless, I don't think Diablo 2 would be the hit that it is without its wonderful graphics. Blizzard has finally incorporated some real 3D APIs in a game. You can now play in Software, Rave, OpenGL, or Glide mode, depending on what your video card can handle. Not only that, but the graphic designers have come up with some really awesome creatures, visual effects, spells, etc.
Not only are the graphics great, but so are the cinematics. It seems that to make it into the big show these games, games have to have brilliant cut scenes to move the story along. Diablo 2 comes through on this point as well. From the very beginning, we see high quality cut scenes, that really bring a surrounding plot to this endless killing of monsters.
However, where would graphics and cinematics be without sounds. From the swinging of a sword, to the picking up of and item, to people talking, the sound is great. The aural experience really immerses you in the game, and gives you clever hints as to what's happening where you can't see. This brings you into the game, so that you feel like you are the hero.
Yet, what would a Blizzard game be without multiplayer support. Diablo 2 incorporates this aspect in quite well as LAN gaming or over the internet via Blizzard's proprietary Battle.net. With a new player ranking system, and controls to keep cheating at a minimal, this is one of the best multiplayer environments to date.
Finally, I must say a word or two about the manual. Blizzard continues to pump out great manual after great manual. It's set up for both PC and Mac users, instead of the more common PC only manuals. Plus, it gives great information on creatures, items, game play, and even an intriguing story line. This is one of the few manuals that I would have to say is a must read.
Problems:
I did encounter some freezes when playing Diablo 2. They seemed somewhat random, but were always annoying as they required a force restart. Blizzard is constantly working on updates for their games, so hopefully this will be addressed later on.
Also, if you have killed a bunch of monsters in one world, and have to leave the game for whatever reason, the next time you open your saved game, those monsters will be back. It seems to happen like this until you complete the quest for that area. It can be used as a way to gain experience, but usually, it just gets annoying defeating the same monsters over and over again.
Conclusion:
No matter if you are an avid Role Playing Game fan, or not, you should enjoy Diablo 2. Because of the randomly generated maps, items, monsters, and more, you will never get the same experience twice. Plus, once you have conquered the single player mode, you can always try your hand at multiplayer over Battle.net. At any rate, this game will have you eating, sleeping, and living Diablo 2.
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Pros: | Cons: |
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Awesome graphics
Great new sounds
5 new character classes are completely different
Thousands of monsters and items
Random maps for longevity
Wonderful cinematics
Splendid sounds
Excellent multiplayer support
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Very high system requirements
A few bugs
Sometimes slow even on high end machines
Battle.net can be flaky at times
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Rating: 9 out of ten Mac Faces.
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