The enhancements in the Lord of Destruction made the magnum opus even more alluring.
Graphics: 8
Sounds: 10
Value: 8
Tilt: 9
Actual score: 8.5
Diablo is truly a powerhouse action RPG as many players were amazed with its simplicity and addictiveness. Naturally like all good things, the expansion pack Hellfire was released which resulted with mixed feelings yet was developed by Sierra. In 2000 Diablo II burst into the scene with massive improvements that anyone who has or hasn't played Diablo will surely drool over with outdoor environs yet still maintained the original Diablo formula – simplicity and addictiveness. Considering the end of Diablo II was left with a cliff-hanger, one will assume whether an expansion pack or Diablo III will be announced. Well, the answer is an expansion pack but this time developed by Blizzard.
Diablo II: Lord of Destruction is all about the story of Baal; cleverly escaped the dominance of the player character, is seeking out a powerful item which was safely hidden away in Mount Arreat, the grandest mountain in Sanctuary. This mountain is protected by the barbarians however now showing signs of defeat as Baal's forces continuing to push forward until he gets what he desires. You, the hero will start at the barbarian's camp, the base of Mount Arreat only to hear the sounds of siege just outside of the site. So the entire campaign will be one hell of a mountain climb all the way up to its summit and to stop Baal into whatever he's seeking.
The core game play is essentially the same as the previous Diablo's; that is left click to attack and right to cast spells. All the control panels are assessable with the left mouse button with all corresponding keyboard shortcuts to those who prefer this. However there are some significant improvements to Diablo II that even though Diablo II was a masterpiece on its own, can do with a bit a polish that again enhances the simplicity. Some of the examples are: instead of left clicking on one item at a time, you can bulk buy/sell by holding down the shift key and left click; more control of your henchman/woman as this time you can equip items, heal and s/he will level up with you; more stash space; an entire new act; more monsters; higher resolution (800 x 600) and the best of all, two new character classes being the Druid and the Assassin.
The druids' history stems in correlation with the barbarians as Bul-Kathos, the ancient barbarian king had either a confidant or a brother (the ancient text doesn't specify which) which happens to be the grand druid who's ideologies, even though accepted by both of them, made the two separate – the barbarian king used strict discipline to unite the tribes to protect the sacred grounds of Mt Arreat whilst Fiacia-Gear ideology is one of self awareness with the land they have sworn to protect. So this in mind, the Druid's skills are separated into three paths being elemental (influencing the forces of nature – e.g. arctic blast, cyclone armour etc), summoning (oak sage, carrion vine etc) and shape shifting (wolf and/or bear form with various enhancements).
The Assassin's history is in close relation to the ancient Vizjerei clan of mages as eons ago, two powerful mages Horazon and Bartuc had two separate ideas about harnessing demonic magic. Horazon believed that the way to study this magic is to harness the demon and bend him to your will. His brother Bartuc thought that ally the demon will share freely its secrets. Ultimately this caused friction among the clan for which the demons had played both pawns on a greater scale. Full scale war broke out which resulted Bartuc dead and Horazon vanished into self-imposed exile. The remainder of the clan then created a 'secret police' to slay any rogue mages hence tagged them the Mage Slayers, otherwise known as the Assassins. Lack of magic (for obvious reasons) these Assassins use the power of the mind and body to dispose any wrong-doers. Their three skill trees are martial arts (charge up or finishing moves), shadow disciplines and traps.
As far as expansion packs goes, this one is quite lengthy so expect to do some serious mouse clicking when climbing up Mt Arreat. At times though it gets pretty tiresome as Baal's siege engine has certainly got the numbers but all is not lost as considering it's just one location, it does look very cool when you get the opportunity to view ground level as it grows smaller and smaller. That said expect to spend some fifteen hours of pure hack-and-slash. Of course the replay value is very high as there's loot to collect and the additional bonus of porting your character from Diablo II. If you get sick of the single player campaign there's always battlenet for some serious PvP or PvE fun.
When I thought that Diablo II is the masterpiece of all action RPGs, I never thought in my wildest dreams that the enhancements made in Lord of Destruction can make this magnum opus more alluring. Enhancing the resolution (which was much needed) and making your adventure climbing up the sacred mountain puts a tick in my book. In addition when I thought all the character classes in Diablo II suits for all walks of life, Blizzard, yet again done the impossible and introduced two more characters that actually feel different when playing them. It could also be argued that because of these enhancements, Blizzard may 'force' players to upgrade their game otherwise will be left behind when playing on Battlenet. Suffice to say, Lord of Destruction is the perfect expansion that completes the tale of the three prime evils that shouldn't be missed for any Diablo II fans.