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Diablo 4 Season 5 had a lot to live up to, considering it was succeeding the wildly successful Season 4. After spending a few days playing almost nothing but D4, I’ve come to the conclusion that overall, Season of the Infernal Hordes has been a huge success. Admittedly, there are a few hiccups and glitches that frustrated me, as well as others, but these are being ironed out. The developers know, and at least one of them has been fixed by the time of this writing.
Diablo 4’s Loot Reborn (S4) reignited my love of this game, making so many builds feel incredibly powerful. While not everyone shared that top-tier fantasy, I feel like that’s been improved here. While this is a shorter season, it feels like a breath of fresh air, as we get ready for the Vessel of Hatred expansion.
Diablo 4 Season 5 continues to give players what they want: Incredibly powerful gear
Diablo 4 Season 5 brings with it more than just a rad endgame activity — it brings with it a much-needed overhaul to practically every Unique in the game. This is something I thought was an incredibly good idea, since it changes these items up, and improves them for everyone. You don’t want the Uniques to remain stagnant, as better gear inevitably arrives.
Trending
Uniques should be on a fairly even power level with each other, and as this gear drops into the game over the months, it’s nice to see this kind of power shift. Almost every Unique received some kind of fantastic buff, with some being better than others. However, unless I get two of the exact same unique dropping at the same time, I don’t mind seeing that familiar, brown aura on the ground.
The new Uniques in Diablo 4 Season 5 are also incredible, don’t get me wrong - Heck, The Umbracrux - the must-have Rogue Unique - was so good that it was doubling players level, due to an unforeseen bug. There’s also Axial Conduit, which has given Sorcerers back the power they desperately sought. If you’re a Chain Lightning player, it’s the weapon you should hunt down over anything else.
That’s what I like about this update. Sure, it’s short, but it’s done a lot to keep people interested - even if it wasn’t all intended. For example, Blizzard accidentally left in the Season 4 Tempering Manuals. If you’re like me and tend to grind hard in Loot Reborn, your characters had a nice head start. It doesn’t make the game unplayable if you didn’t - it’s just a little treat.
No matter what you’re playing as, you’ve got awesome options for Diablo 4 Season 5. Rogue, my least favorite class, has somehow become my main class for this season. Barrage Rogue is just so much fun to play. It’s overall been incredibly fun, and I can’t wait to get right back to grinding through my current and future characters.
Diablo 4 Season 5 has been plagued with a few noteworthy bugs
Unfortunately, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows on Sanctuary. The first thing players came across was a really annoying bug. Players began noticing that they were receiving ridiculous numbers of Rings and Amulets. Every single chest I opened had at least one Ring in it, unless it was specifically supposed to do otherwise.
This has been hotfixed, thankfully. However, it appears to have led to a completely different bug - now chests that guarantee Greater Affixes on gear are not doing that. In a way, it’s quite funny, but I cannot tell you how frustrating it is. Blizzard is looking into it, at the time of writing, and hopefully, an answer will be found soon. Neither of these is game-breaking, though the second bug is much more frustrating than the first.
How are the Hellbreach Dungeons and Infernal Hodes modes?
Diablo 4 Season 5 introduced Hellbreach Dungeons, which offer you a little teaser of what to expect in the Infernal Hordes endgame activity. I’m going to be honest — the Hellbreach Dungeons are okay, but a little on the boring side. They’re short, but they’re just good enough to get you excited for Infernal Hordes. Knowing that they’re just that little teaser is what makes me grind them less.
I’d rather do the real thing. Adding a roguelite mode is exactly what I wanted — it’s one of my favorite things in gaming. I’m a sucker for a little bit of a randomizer in my games. In this mode, you use Infernal Compasses to enter the Infernal Realm, and battle through massive waves of demons.
At the end of each wave, you pick a Boon, which can help or harm you. They can make enemies take/deal more damage, spawn more Elites, and much more. In return, you gain more Burning Aether, which allows you to crack open more chests at the end.
You also have the Fell Council — a trio of demonic foes that wait for you at the end of the run. It’s a fun mode that gives you some choice and agency — alongside powerful gear.
I also appreciate that there are more end-game activities with Infernal Hordes. One of my few complaints about Diablo 4 was the lack of stuff to do at the end - other than fight bosses and Helltides. I hope more options come in the future, but this is a solid start.
Diablo 4 Season 5 teases the expansion’s story, for both Eternal and Seasonal players
Who knew that our actions had consequences? Was it right to slay Lilith? It’s something I’m still torn about - though I lean towards it being the wrong move. However, our actions, binding Mephisto, could never be permanent.
We know he’s coming back, and seeing little glimpses of what the future holds is kind of nice. I’m glad that Eternal players aren’t locked out of it either. It’s not a massive quest chain, but it’s just enough to whet the appetite. I was already very excited for Vessel of Hatred, but this has helped immensely.
Final Thoughts
Other than the glitches and bugs, I feel like Blizzard really knocked Season 5 out of the park. Players just want to feel powerful, but don’t mind working a little bit for it. I appreciate that it didn’t feel like everything just got nerfed for the next season. We have no idea what Season 6 will entail, but I’m not worried about that right now.
I want to just keep grinding through Infernal Hordes, and seeking out the most powerful gear I can right here, and right now. Diablo 4’s really on a hot streak right now, with two back-to-back smash-hit seasons.
