On June 2, Diablo Immortal will be released. MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus already had the opportunity to preview the new MMO. He primarily tested the most controversial feature: the shop.
Actually, Diablo Immortal starts on Thursday, June 2 at 7 PM German time. However, I was able to play a week earlier with other selected players.
Before anyone complains: no, we cannot carry over progress. Everything will be deleted and I will start anew with you on June 2. Okay, maybe a bit earlier – the download is already online on iOS and Android.
However, I used the time before the release to look at the features of Diablo Immortal in its nearly final version. The main focus here was on the shop. After all, many claim that Diablo Immortal is “extremely Pay2Win”.
Although the executives themselves already addressed the accusations, I want to clearly explain what you can actually expect in the Diablo Immortal shop and how much you should actually pay for what.
Please note that I played a pre-release version. The shop was already active here and I could see prices and more, but could not make any purchases yet. Major changes don’t usually happen until the release, but it can happen. What you need to know about Diablo Immortal can be seen here in the video in 3 minutes:
15 hours played, reached level 30, paid not a cent
In my 15 hours of playtime, I have only gotten about halfway through the campaign and reached level 30. “But you said, that the campaign is only 10 hours long!” Yes, that’s correct, but:
- that only applies if you could play the entire story in one go
- during the campaign, you learn all the mechanics of Immortal – it’s a kind of tutorial
- Dungeons, story dungeons, and portals (“Rifts”) are necessary for progress
- I spent some time carefully examining the content and testing on various systems
- I also tested the controller support, but touch feels almost better
Back to the topic: in the 15 hours of gameplay, I did not pay a cent. And I did not feel at all disadvantaged because of it. The shop is really not important until the endgame.
Based on my experiences so far, both here and in previous tests, you can definitely play through the entire story for free without any disadvantages. This is partly due to the fact that there are relatively few gameplay-relevant items available for purchase.
A more detailed test of gameplay and mechanics can be found by my colleague Fabiano Uslenghi at GameStar.
Cosmetics, emblems, and… a subscription? Here’s what’s in the shop
In the shop, there are several things available for purchase in about equal measure:
- skins for your character
- crafting materials
- platinum that you will need later for upgrades
- legendary emblems to enhance elder portals
- packages with various items, one of which is available for free daily
I did not buy crafting materials, especially since I was not quite sure what to use them for at my level. The same goes for the emblems, which are, however, the biggest point of criticism of the system. More on that later.
Most of the content is not purchased with real money but with a premium currency. This is normal for free-to-play games. For around one euro, you get 60 of these premium coins, larger packages contain a small discount.
On average, you pay approximately €1.50 for crafting materials, €20 for a skin (complete set), and €2.60 for a legendary emblem. Not necessarily cheap, in my opinion, but I haven’t needed any of that so far. Currently, skins are the most attractive to me.
In addition to one-time purchases, Diablo Immortal offers a sort of subscription called the “Blessing of Abundance.” It works similarly to the Crystal Aura from Lost Ark and brings several benefits for €9.99 per month:
- Rewards distributed over the month, including legendary emblems
- Larger inventory
- Remote access to the market and more trading slots on the marketplace
The offer is clearly aimed at frequent players. All in all, the shop of Diablo Immortal strongly reminds me of that of Lost Ark.
For me, it’s not “Pay2Win,” but also not unimportant
Overall, I haven’t seen any reason to use the shop so far. I had a lot of fun with Diablo Immortal and it was free. In the next 15–25 hours, I also do not see myself spending money, so I will enjoy the story for as long as I can.
Still, I already know that items like legendary emblems will be important. You will need them later to extract guaranteed legendary gems from elder portals. These gems are a cornerstone of your power in Diablo Immortal.
Legendary emblems are sometimes available for free, so you will at least receive some gems for sure. However, you will need additional gems or materials for upgrades. Some fans say: those who don’t pay will need 40 years for the best gear.
I do not view it that harshly. Without paying, there is always a chance of obtaining the gems and upgrades. Emblems are also available in the Battle Pass. It simply takes longer, and I will most likely pay, because, to put it bluntly, I have more money than time. And I want to see as much of the game as possible, as quickly as possible.
In short: Those who want the best gear and the last few percentages of performance within the first few days will probably have to pay. However, those who just play do not need to.
You should be able to reach the endgame comfortably without paying. And those who already play well will be able to compete in raids and PvP as free-to-play players. Testers have already agreed on this. After all, there are still equipment and paragon levels that can make you stronger.
Speaking of endgame: There is new gameplay of areas that no one could see before the release:
The only major downside so far: whenever I kill a boss, a “new, unique package” is unlocked in the shop. However, those are not free, and the game quite intrusively points out that the package is there until you have at least viewed it once.
These packages are often cheaper than the sum of their parts, so they are definitely good offers if you want to buy them. However, the in-game advertising is a bit annoying.
I was also able to interview the heads of Diablo Immortal before the release. If you are interested in how the MMO will develop after the release, you can read more about it here:
Heads on Diablo Immortal: “We will be like World of Warcraft”
