The first expansion of Diablo 4, Vessel of Hatred, takes you into the jungle areas of Kurast: Nahantu. Now, some first images have emerged that show the area. MeinMMO editor and Diablo expert Benedict Grothaus is pleased with the look, but the shown enemies are a point of contention.
This is the leak:
- Vessel of Hatred expands the area of Diablo 4 southward. There lies the city of Kurast amidst Nahantu, a dangerous jungle that is closely linked to the new class.
- We already know the area from images from Blizzard. However, a player on Reddit has allegedly shown screenshots from Nahantu.
- Visible are stone buildings reminiscent of Mesoamerican architecture. There are totems made of bones and wood in skull shape, brackish water areas, and trees like those found in swamp areas:
The leak allegedly comes from the pre-order of the Ultimate Edition of Vessel of Hatred. However, we cannot confirm how exactly the user obtained the screenshots – nor their authenticity. However, the images look consistent; it’s quite possible they are real. And that’s what makes me a bit skeptical.
What bothers me about the images: The screenshots show not only the environment but also some of the possible new enemies. Among them are:
- Snakes and snake people
- Zombies and grotesques
- Daemon crawlers
- Shamans like those of the Fallen
The models are not surprising; such enemies fit perfectly in the jungle. What bothers me now is that they all look like recycled versions. Every model – with the exception of the grotesques – has already appeared in Diablo 4.
These enemies are just not fun
Especially in Hawezar, there are already plenty of snakes and snake people that look almost identical to those in the images, just without golden scales. The shamans may be a bit stockier but have the same posture as those of the Fallen.
That wouldn’t be a problem if these exact enemies weren’t already among the most annoying in the game. They can one-shot you, revive their friends, and stand somewhere off-screen being bothersome.
For me, the problem is not that the same enemies may appear, but that it’s simply not fun to play against them. An entire area filled with these creatures is already sucking the enjoyment out of exploration for me.
Blizzard has just the chance with Nahantu to bring back some of the best pests from the history of Diablo. They might be even worse, but somehow they are also imbued with nostalgia.
Here for comparison are the official screenshots and artworks – The style is very similar:
“Calm down”
So far, there are only these 4 images and no information about the enemies. That they are exactly like the annoying types from Hawezar and Co. can only be inferred, but not confirmed. At the moment, this is merely a concern.
Users on Reddit comment similarly and say: Trying to draw conclusions about the entire expansion from these few screenshots is a bit much. And yes: Especially in dungeons, new enemies and bosses are likely to appear.
Some players are even harsher on the leak. They say: This all looks just like what we already have in Diablo 4. And they get immediate counterarguments. If Blizzard has shown one thing, it is new areas (or “tiles”) and enemies in every Diablo expansion:
Just think of every single Diablo expansion since Diablo 1. New monsters, new tile sets. Can we just NOT assume that three random screenshots represent in any way what is coming in the expansion? So much negativity in the sub.
And yes, I am also sure that Blizzard will put effort into Vessel of Hatred. I already like the area extraordinarily well, even though hot jungles are not typically my preferred biome. The atmosphere seems to be very well captured. We will see how the expansion actually looks in the fall: It will be released on October 8. Here you can find all information about Vessel of Hatred.
