In Diablo 4 you can finally decide how your hero looks. But Blizzard has determined that you do not have complete freedom in this regard. Some players are bothered by that. MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus thinks it’s just right.
After the launch of the Open Beta of Diablo 4, I certainly spent 20 minutes creating my character. I love customizing every detail to make my hero appealing to me. That’s why I play MMOs.
In Diablo 4, there are plenty of customization options and each class already comes with a completely different appearance. However, there are people who complain about this.
Here, the Necromancer looks too skinny, the Barbarian is too much of a hulking figure, and Druids are way too heavy anyway. All kinds of complaints could be found especially in the first hours on Reddit and other platforms.
People wanted sliders, more detail settings, and to dictate how they look. However, Diablo 4 strictly prohibits this – and for good reason.
You can see how character creation looks in the video here:
Crazy Dark Souls characters do not fit Diablo
By restricting what we can customize, Blizzard simultaneously sets a guideline for appearances. Meaning: No one can look like they simply do not fit into the world at all.
And that is fundamentally important for an MMO, even if Diablo 4 claims it is not one. There is a Shared World, which I, by the way, think is excellent, and other players regularly walk through the screen.
Even the crazy titles of Diablo 4 can disrupt immersion, so I don’t need anyone setting all sliders to the maximum to look as ridiculous as possible.
A game where this is often the case is Dark Souls. No matter which part: someone always looks as ridiculous as possible. And I always played offline because I didn’t want Sir Piggles (via Reddit) to come into my world, disguise as a chair, hit me, and then dance on my corpse.
I like the Shared World, but the characters there should also fit. Otherwise, the beautiful, dark atmosphere of Diablo is simply wasted.
The majority of appearance customization is handled later via Transmogrification:
A few more options would be cool, but I’m satisfied
Admittedly, the restrictions are a bit too large. Four faces, a few hairstyles, and always the same hair colors can get monotonous over time. And at least a little control over body shape I would like to have.
Even as a stocky guy, I find Druids a bit too heavy, even if others like that. At least three body shapes for slim, medium, and robust would be cool. However, I wouldn’t really need that.
Anyway, I mostly wear armor or run around as a werewolf or bear. And there are really cool armor and transmogs, especially with the shop offering new skins. I will certainly indulge myself there.
I find it more important that in OUR world, no one walks around who looks like they clicked “random” too often. Even if I fear that even with the Transmog someone will quickly find the best “clown skins” …
Nevertheless: thank you, Blizzard, for giving us freedoms, but not too many. The direction is just right. Here, Diablo 4 has only adopted the right things from Diablo Immortal:
