Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred Review

After six seasons, Diablo 4, with its strong foundations and stammering endgame, has been greatly developed. More than a year after its release, the latest opus in Blizzard’s legendary hack’n’slash franchise is looking much better, with some extensive and useful improvements over the years, mainly motivated by feedback from the community. Sanctuary now welcomes its first major DLC, Vessel of Hatred. Is it an expansion similar to Reaper of Souls for Diablo 3, a completely dispensable addition, or just the right balance between the two? Here’s our review of the PC version.

Vessel of Hatred was included in Diablo 4 on October 8, 2024, along with Season 6 (which doesn’t require DLC) featuring Mephisto, the Lord of Hatred. The latter brings a major overhaul to progression, reducing the maximum level from 100 to 60, among other welcome benefits such as new skills for each class. The expansion is sold separately for $40, or as part of more expensive editions including additional goodies. Is the price of an AA title justified for this DLC of a game sold for $50 or $60, depending on the platform? It depends on each player’s point of view, but in our opinion, the extension is worth the money. We take you into the jungles of Nahantu to share our thoughts about it.

Back to the Bayou

Expansion means a new episode in the story. Vessel of Hatred picks up right where the Diablo 4 campaign left off. More than a year after its release, a quick recap is necessary, although it may contain some major SPOILERS. Read at your own risk.

[SPOILERS BEGIN] After our final expedition into the Underworld, Neyrelle decides to set off on a journey to an unknown destination, carrying a terrible burden with her: the Soul Stone containing the spirit of Mephisto, father of Lilith and the antagonist of the Diablo 4 campaign. On our hero’s side, the battle between the forces of Inarius and the demons has left serious scars. The Church of Light is in disarray, and everything leads us to believe that the evil influence of the Lord of Hate is already beginning to spread through Sanctuary like an insidious cancer. After a clash with a new self-acclaimed church leader, Urivar, a veteran from our infernal journey, we get news about our friend’s whereabouts [End of SPOILERS].

She’s gone to Nahantu, a rich jungle south of Sanctuary (already visited by Diablo 2 veterans), to find a more suitable prison for Diablo’s brother. This is Diablo 4’s new open-world region, similar to the others in size, with its own quests, dungeons to explore, and secrets to uncover.

Following in his footsteps, Vessel of Hatred begins, as Hatred spreads with increasing frequency, taking the form of a disgusting black ichor and insane creatures corrupted by Mephisto’s evil influence. On our quest, we meet the Nahantu residents, who have a special bond with the powerful ancient spirits that reside in the region. As in any decent Diablo game, this noble mission will not happen without heart-breaking sacrifices and one of the Major Demons corrupting everything in its path.

In this sense, the DLC follows in the footsteps of Diablo 4’s already excellent campaign. This applies to both the storytelling and art direction, the story is enriched with high-quality cinematics, the plot twists are fairly conventional but still have their effect, and the bosses are spectacular, not to mention the artistic direction, which is always beautiful. The jungle presents itself as a gorgeous, green, exotic tree that hides the real forest of corpses and hidden horrors beneath its roots, corrupted by Hatred.

While we didn’t encounter many annoying bugs, we did experience (too) many crashes. Even worse, these often occurred during dungeons accessible by using given resources. As a result, we not only lost our progress in these dungeons, but also the means to open them, and all the loot collected. A major drawback for a hack’n’slash game like Diablo 4. Let’s hope these instability problems are quickly resolved.

Finally, it’s worth noting that Vessel of Hatred’s campaign can be completed quickly enough: around 15 hours if you take your time, including cinematics and side-quest wanderings, or between 5 and 10 hours in a straight line. If Diablo 4 fans are satisfied with the DLC’s main story alone, this won’t weigh too heavily in the balance. Even more so as the expansion’s ending leaves us with a cliffhanger that can be described as a crime. We won’t say any more to keep things interesting, but it’s a clear indication that at least a second expansion is on the way.

The New Class Is a Game Changer

Stopping at Vessel of Hatred’s campaign would mean missing out on many of Diablo 4’s great new features. In addition to a new chapter in the story, the expansion also adds a new class: Spiritborn, based on Dexterity rather than Intelligence or Willpower, as you may have expected initially, reminiscent of Diablo 3’s Witch Doctor. In reality, they are Nahantu warriors with amazing agility, dedicated to protecting the spirits living there. These spirits can be summoned into battle, wielding a spear or a stick. So, in the end, we have a combination of the Monk and the Witch Doctor from the third opus.

And it’s fair to say that this is probably our second favorite class now, the first being the Rogue. The Spiritborn’s gameplay is highly responsive and offers pleasant variety too. His skills are roughly divided between four spirits: the Jaguar (fast and striking with his fire claws), the Eagle (agile with electric attacks), the Gorilla (defensive and focused on physical strength), and the Centipede (deadly thanks to his poison attacks). For our part, we started off with a build using the Eagle’s spirit as our main weapon and enjoyed flying between the demons with amazing speed. Things got even crazier once our Spiritborn joined the endgame.

In addition to the Spiritborn class, the DLC also introduced the Mercenaries to Diablo 4, an iconic element of the two previous opuses. This time, you’ll need to recruit four of them, each with a quick, but interesting side quest. These companions have intriguing backstories, reflecting the spirit of a Sanctuary where corruption and death are part of everyday life unfortunately. There are roughly four archetypes to complement our characters, and thus provide valuable support for pure solo players: Raheir (a warrior with a huge shield), Varyana (a cannibal barbarian), Subo (a bounty hunter with a bow and traps), and Aldkin (a demon-possessed child with magical powers).

Leveling up Mercenaries not only allows them to progress and help us in critical moments, but also gives us access to a store with a unique in-game currency to spend. This will be particularly useful for acquiring various resources and legendary items that the RNG gods stubbornly refuse to give us to complete a given build. Finally, they also grant us access to a lair where we can quietly manage our character between two demon massacres. However, we regret the absence of a jeweler to manage the gems to be embedded in our equipment, and an apothecary to make various potions and elixirs. We’re sure that Blizzard will add these elements later, if the community insists on it. Speaking of gems, the iconic Runewords from Diablo 2 are also back in Diablo 4 thanks to the DLC, with new combinations offering even greater diversity for creating powerful builds.

Spiritborn aside, Season 6 which arrived on Diablo 4 at the same time as Vessel of Hatred also added new skills for existing classes, with the added bonus of 10 extra skill points. We liked the new features of this first expansion so much that we also upgraded the Rogue and Necromancer classes to the maximum level. It was indeed quite exciting and refreshing to discover new builds and ways to slaughter demons over and over again. So, the DLC and Season 6 have clearly given the base game a great boost.

Vessel of Hatred: Endgame

Finishing Vessel of Hatred’s main story, becoming a Spiritborn, and recruiting our four Mercenaries is only the beginning of the journey, as in any Diablo game worthy of the name. It’s in the endgame that the excitement begins, with access to higher difficulty levels, where we can loot new and unique items to make our characters even more powerful. This central element of the game had already been refined over time in Diablo 4, with the addition of the Pit, Infernal Hordes, and Uber Bosses. This DLC adds another two stones to the big picture.

On one hand, we have the Kurast Undercity (Diablo 2 veterans will recognize the reference). In this new dungeon, we’ll be able to target specific loot thanks to the different keys and resources required to open it. Inside, it’s a matter of making a timed run, and eliminating as many opponents as possible (who won’t drop any loot to avoid wasting precious seconds collecting it all) to boost a harmonization bar. Certain elite enemies will also add extra time to our timer.

Our expedition ends with one of the four bosses specific to the Netherworld. And after defeating them, our efforts will be rewarded with a chest full of loot, depending on the items used to open the door and our level of harmonization (the maximum being set at four). So this new dungeon offers a pleasing variety of pleasures, as well as the opportunity to “farm” more specific resources or items that we may need to complete a build.

Vessel of Hatred’s second major endgame addition is called the Dark Citadel. However, you should be aware that it builds on an aspect of Diablo 4 that wasn’t always to everyone’s taste: its “ MMOish ” aspect. In fact, it’s nothing less than a raid dungeon, like those found in World of Warcraft, for example. It is absolutely impossible to complete the Dark Citadel in solo mode. A team of up to four players is required to complete the three wings. Each wing features puzzles and bosses requiring a degree of cooperation. For example, you may find yourself in another part of the dungeon, while your companions fight to unlock a door for you, or to weaken the boss you’re facing.

To get the most out of this new endgame activity, it’s best to do it with friends. However, we did appreciate this addition, which at least has the merit of offering some fairly original mechanics for a hack’n’slash game. And it’s well worth the effort, as the Dark Citadel is an excellent way to farm unique or mythical items, the rarest loot in the game. But the task will be far more difficult than the rest of Diablo 4’s content, even if you’re already on the highest difficulty level. You’ve been warned.

Conclusion

Without even mentioning an important expansion like Reaper of Souls for Diablo 3, Vessel of Hatred, and Season 6 have clearly brought a welcome breath of fresh air to Diablo 4, but at a price that might be a little high, depending on your expectations. Still, fans of the genre will find much to enjoy. The campaign in the Nahantu jungle is both beautiful and gruesome, and continues the excellent storyline of the base game, despite a cliffhanger that left us feeling a little frustrated. The Spiritborn class is a real pleasure to play, with a wide variety of exciting builds to explore, along with the Mercenaries and the Runewords, which make a welcome return for solo players. Last but not least, the two DLC additions on the endgame side are interesting and relevant to bring even more variety to this central element of a hack’n’slash, provided that Dark Citadel is played with friends. Let’s hope that Blizzard will continue on this promising path with a second expansion that is surely already in progress.