Some were enthusiastic, others disappointed – and in between? Loads of opinions of all tastes. Because Diablo 4 was playable for the general public for the first time, the first weekend only for pre-orders, the second then really for everyone. The fans couldn’t be told twice, Blizzard’s servers could hardly withstand the onslaught. The beta version was not complete in terms of content, you could only play the first act and climb to level 25, which means: All endgame features and even the riding -Function was still missing in the beta. (We have an overview with all features that you can only play at the release here for you.)
Nevertheless, the beta already gave an excellent insight into the new, dark atmosphere, the open game world, the controversial online design – and of course you could already experience the new graphics, the brute combat and all five classes in action. In short: there was a lot to play with! And that’s why we were particularly curious about your impressions and opinions. In a large survey, we wanted to know from you how you experienced the beta, in which points the game convinced you – and where Blizzard should make improvements before the release. Here are the results! (Note: The percentages in the diagrams have been rounded, which can result in a total of 101 percent in individual cases.)
Question 1: Which beta weekend did you play?
It was important to us that this survey was not about Diablo 4 in general (buy now ) but explicitly about the beta. We wanted to get your honest opinion after playing, so we put this question first and deliberately didn’t give any other choice. (You can click or tap on all images for an enlarged view.)
Most participants in our survey played on the second weekend.
Source: PC games
Question 2: What platform did you play on?
No big surprise: the majority of PC games readers played the beta on the PC. Diablo may be a multiplatform brand today, but of course it has its roots on PC. Diablo 4 supports cross-play and cross-progression, meaning you can easily start your character on one platform and continue playing on another, much like Diablo 2: Resurrected did. It’s also the first Diablo to be designed as a multiplatform title from the ground up. The beta was already fully playable on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series S/X, only the switch is not used this time (it already had its load with Diablo 2: Resurrected). If you’re wondering how well Diablo 4 will run on a legacy PS4 or Xbox Series S, here’s a graphic comparison article for you.
Unsurprisingly, most PC games readers play on the PC.
Source: PC games
Want to know what you haven’t been able to play in the beta yet? In our video we summarize everything.
Question 3: Which class did you play the most time?
In our survey, the sorcerer is the most popular class, but that’s no wonder: only three classes were playable on the first beta weekend, namely barbarian, hunter and sorcerer. Only on the second weekend were necromancers and druids on offer. The Necro was also very popular, while the Druid was a little behind in last place.
The sorcerer wins the race, with the all-powerful necromancer in second place. The druid finishes well behind in last place.
Source: PC games
Question 4: How did you rate the Diablo 4 beta?
Of course, we do not give ratings for unfinished games and beta versions. The game wasn’t complete, the technology wasn’t final, the playing time was manageable. But that was enough for a first impression, so we wanted to know how you would rate the beta (on a scale from 1 to 10). The result is still a bit sobering: A 7.3 (or 73 out of 100) is not as outstanding as one would have hoped for a game of this magnitude – even if it’s only for the first few hours of play. We are already excited to see how the finished game will be received by the testers and especially by you – and whether it will end up in similar rating regions.
Almost 2,500 participants voted and gave the Diablo 4 beta a rating.
Source: PC games
Question 5: Game elements in detail – what did you like and what not?
Here we asked about all possible game elements, you could rate them in four levels (from very good to disappointing). Even at first glance there are a few interesting findings. For example: You really like the dark graphic design of Diablo 4! Just two percent are disappointed with the new look, the majority, on the other hand, clearly praises the redesign – who would have thought that after the controversial Diablo 3? The dark atmosphere, the sound effects and the background music are also great. In many other categories – from story to quests to the open game world – there is good, balanced feedback. In some points – such as the MMO elements and the technology – there are a few thick yellow bars in the overview. No wonder, after all, the beta struggled with login problems, connection errors and lags right at the beginning. Of course, the beta should provide important insights here, so that Blizzard can launch as cleanly as possible in June – but you don’t have to downplay the negative impression of the beta servers. Many players had simply expected more here.
From graphics to game world: This is how you judge different aspects of the game.
Source: PC games
Question 6: Did the beta live up to your expectations?
A simple question with simple answers, but which paint a clear picture. Only 13 percent of those surveyed said the Diablo 4 beta clearly exceeded their expectations. 38 percent judge that the beta has fully met their expectations, so together with the green bar we have half of the respondents in the clearly positive area. Another 36 percent say the beta met most of their expectations, but it just didn’t address some concerns about the game. And 14 percent draw an even worse conclusion – for them the beta of Diablo 4 is a disappointment.
Expectations met, but enthusiasm looks different.
Source: PC games
On the next page we will take a closer look at the story, the MMO elements and clarify the question of whether you would have liked Diablo 4 to have an offline mode as well. Incidentally, the point that deals with PvP is particularly interesting – your judgment really surprised us here.
