Diablo III: Eternal Collection

Genre: Top-Down Action-RPG

Players: 1-4 Co-Op (Local, Local Wireless, Online), Online Leaderboards

Game Company Bad Behavior Profile Page: Activision Blizzard

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Review:

(Note: This game is included in the Diablo Prime Evil Collection along with Diablo II: Resurrected.)

Diablo III is a Top-Down Action-RPG that is currently considered the gold standard for this sort of Action-RPG with a focus on fighting hordes of enemies, collecting loot, and upgrading your character (although there are definitely some who will argue that Diablo II was better). When it was originally released in 2012, fans complained loudly about some of the game’s issues, including a real-money auction house that was at the center of the game, but in the time since, the game has been significantly improved through patches, with more content added in the Reaper of Souls expansion. The game was originally released to PC before being ported to PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 with more console-friendly controls, and then ported again to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One before finally arriving on the Switch in 2018.

This version of the game contains all of the content from earlier versions, including all expansion content, and even throws in a few Nintendo-exclusive goodies as well (Legend of Zelda-themed aesthetic modifications and Amiibo support that can summon special enemies to fight and hopefully drop some good loot). No touchscreen support, though.

The trip to the Switch has left the game largely intact – the Switch version has a respectable 900p resolution (720p in portable mode), and maintains a rock-solid 60FPS until you get very late in the game and your screen becomes absolutely filled with enemies and various attack effects. And while some of the subtle lighting and particle effects of the high-end versions of the game got cut from the Switch, these cuts are not very noticeable, and with the high level of detail and great animation throughout the game, you have a title that looks absolutely fantastic even by today’s standards. Suffice it to say, this is a phenomenal port.

Before getting to the gameplay, I want to address an issue that caused me to ponder how to address it here – there are a lot of people, myself included, who are still pretty frustrated with the Blizzard half of Activision Blizzard over their handling of the Hearthstone Blitzchung controversy, and I wasn’t sure whether it was appropriate to address it in this review. I’ll just leave it at this – if you’re not aware of what happened, do yourself a favor and look it up in Google. However, I’m not going to let it affect this review – whether or not Blizzard’s behavior in that incident causes you to refrain from buying their games is your decision, not mine.

Okay, with that bit of business out of the way… yeah, this game is still as great as ever, even now, 8 years later. It looks great, plays great, collecting loot is a blast, fighting hordes of enemies is fun, juggling your various abilities makes for some fun variety in combat, and outfitting your character with just the right set of gear is still as excellent as ever. Plus, with all the years of content this game has accumulated, it is a game that you will likely be playing for a very, very long time.

What’s more, this is a game that feels perfectly-suited to portable play, allowing players to go and fight for a bit at a time without feeling the need to follow any complex story if they so choose. Even with the reduced graphics compared to the Xbox One and PS4, the Nintendo Switch version of the game is likely to be the favorite version of many players for that reason alone.

However, even more than that, this game is a pinnacle of co-op play, allowing players to play in 4-player co-op whether they’re playing on the same screen, using local wireless, or playing online. I will note one caveat to that though – playing the game on the same screen can get a bit annoying if you have a player (like me, I admit) who likes to take their time looking at their equipment and deciding what to equip or drop, because the couch co-op in this game unfortunately stops the action whenever anyone goes into their menu, and only allows one person to do so at a time. I still say that the local co-op in this game is some of the best you’ll find on the Switch, but clearly if you have multiple people with their own Switches, that’s the preferable way to play.

Even 8 years later, Diablo III remains a must-have game that is the gold standard for its genre. It is one of the absolute best co-op experiences to be had in the realm of gaming, and being able to take the game on the go feels like a perfect fit for this game. Plus, this is a superb port that looks great and even adds in a little extra content that wasn’t in other versions. If you don’t yet own this game on another platform, you should definitely consider getting it for the Switch.

tl;dr – Diablo III is the loot-hunting Action-RPG that is currently the standard for the genre, and this is an excellent port that sacrifices little in the transition to the Switch and even adds in a few things. This is one of the best co-op games on the Switch, whether you’re sitting on the same couch or playing online, and it has a huge wealth of content. If you do not already have this game on another platform, you should definitely consider getting the Switch version.

Grade: A+

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