Diablo 3 on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One stays current with content updates the older PC version receives. Patches often deploy at the same time, as many features are shared, and communities are large on all platforms. The biggest difference between playing Diablo 3 on a console versus playing it on the PC is that console players can play the game offline whereas PC players must connect to Battle.net in order to play the game.
Many consider the offline option a boon and a benefit to the way they play Diablo 3 . After all, it is a great game for couch co-op and there are still cases where LAN is the best option for various players. However, that offline component has kept seasonal play from coming to the platform. Seasonal leaderboards would be easy to manipulate and an offline player would likely be unable to participate in the season at all.
Senior game producer Rob Foote has told IGN that could change, however. Considering their offline nature, the idea of seasons was initially scrapped for consoles because leaderboard abuse would be easy and the console online community is different from the online-only nature of Diablo 3 on PC. Foote has said that perhaps the focus on leaderboards is not the only draw to seasons, making them something the team would reconsider introducing to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
“Sometimes Seasons aren’t really about the leaderboard, but having a fresh start, experiencing the game again and feeling like you’re part of a larger community than yourself where the excitement around Diablo is there. So I think maybe that’s something we need to re-evaluate again. We’ll probably go back and revisit that decision.”
Of course, the fourth season begins on August 28 for PC players with the 2.3 patch arriving the Tuesday before. It is likely the 2.3 patch will go live on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One simultaneously on Tuesday. Since the seasonal feature does not yet appear on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, all seasonal items normally found only by seasonal characters can be found by anyone the day the patch goes live. PC players will have to play in the current season to find the new items or wait until the season ends and the items are added to the non-seasonal drop tables.
Many of the new items and set pieces have been detailed earlier in the month and The Inquisitr has highlighted the upcoming new gear . Crusaders, Monks, and Witch Doctors have brand new sets to find, while many previously released legendary items with no special affix will now have one. In Patch 2.3, players can unlock Kanai’s Cube and sacrifice legendary items to the cube in order to use their special affixes as passives. With the cube, players can use one weapon, one armor, and one jewelry passive in addition to the items equipped to their character.
Be sure to check out what is coming to Diablo 3 with Patch 2.3. A new zone, Kanai’s Cube, and adventure zone revisions are also part of the major update. The Diablo 3 team has organized this quick and handy preview of the patch on the official Diablo 3 website for easy reference. Which piece of gear will you be placing in Kanai’s Cube after the patch launches?
[Images via Battle.net ]