Diablo 4 Cross-Play, Cross-Progression, And Co-Op Explained

All hell is about to break loose when Diablo 4 launches, and you don't need to face the demonic horde on your own. Diablo 4 is out very soon, and even earlier for those with the special editions preordered. You can play with anyone across PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, and Xbox One via cross-play.

Ahead of its debut on multiple platforms, you can read up on how cross-play works, what co-op options will be available, and how cross-progression will function.

How Diablo IV cross-play works

These PC and console realms won't be gated off for Diablo IV, as you'll be able to group up with players regardless of the platform that they're playing on. This is thanks to Diablo IV being hooked into Blizzard's Battle.net online system, so if you don't already have an account, you'll want to set one up now to be ready to play as soon as you start the game. Console gamers do get one exclusive function that PC gamers won't have access to, and that's couch co-op.

How Diablo IV cross-progression works

If you're planning to do some solo adventuring on PC and then hop onto your console to join a friend for a trip into the Burning Hells, the good news is that Diablo IV will have full cross-progression enabled. All in-game progress will be saved to the Battle.net servers when you use your Battle.net account, and if you're planning to go multiplatform with Diablo IV, you'll want to make certain that you use the same account on all of your gaming hardware. This means that your save games will also work between console and PC, allowing you to continue your fight right from where you last left off.

How to unlock co-op in Diablo IV

You'll first need to complete the Diablo IV Prologue and reach the city of Kyovashad in the Fractured Peaks before you can start slaying demons with your friends. The good news is that this can be done quickly, so you won't have to wait too long to form a gang and head out into the dangerous lands of Sanctuary. Parties are limited to a maximum of four players, and can easily be set up from the Diablo IV game menu. Alternatively, you can use Blizzard's Battle.net launcher to add people to your friend list and invite them to join you for a quest.

How Diablo IV co-op works

Once you've got a squad ready, Diablo IV becomes a more challenging game as enemies will begin to scale up in power and health. Groups of players will still be able to hack and slash their way through monsters, but you'll want to be careful if you stray far away from your comrades. If your friends are at a higher level than you, don't worry, because each enemy is scaled to the player individually so that a consistent challenge is present for everyone. As long as your team has a wide variety of skills and classes that complement their teammates, you'll still be a force to be reckoned with.

It's worth noting that unless players are on the same step of a quest, progress and rewards won't be the same for the entire group. For example, if a player is hosting a session and you join them for a quest, they'll get the lion's share of the rewards as the "owner" of that session. One of the better options is to either have the player with the least amount of progress hosting a session so that they can determine a quest or to create a character that you only use for co-op so that the playing field is even.

How Diablo IV PvP works

Up for a little friendly competition? Diablo IV will have several Fields of Hatred PvP zones in which players can collect Shards of Hatred and purify them to earn a currency that can be spent on some great loot. You'll want to be careful in these zones though, as other players can attack you and claim your purified shards.

The catch here is that as a player kills other players and collects shards, they'll eventually activate the Curse of Mephisto and become a Vessel of Hatred. Every player in a wide radius will be alerted to the location of a Vessel of Hatred, and killing that cursed player will earn them bonus rewards. If the Vessel can stay alive until the event ends, they'll receive a large bonus instead.

For more on Blizzard's return to Sanctuary, you can check out everything we know about Diablo IV, the best Necromancer builds guide, and our Diablo IV review.