Not into Online Multiplayer? THIS is the expansion pack for you!
Then I was given a copy of Hellfire. I haven't been back to the original version of Diablo since. I simply ENJOY playing this souped-up version of the game. So you can only multiplay over a LAN - big deal. The Monk (and The Bard when you put a certain command txt into the gamefile) are quite fun to play. The Monk more so than the Bard. Her double-weapon capability is a toned-down version of Diablo II's Barbarian character. Fun once or twice, but ultimately too repetitive even for me. And I thrive on repetitive fun!
The Monk is best played with Leather Armor. Do not give him plate armor, as his stats drop significantly! He's not a warrior, he's a Kung Fu master. Think FEET of death... The new trap-spell inspired Runes are interesting, but ultimately a waste of gold. Very often the monsters will walk around them.
The new levels are fun and quite challenging. The Nest is appropriately "icky", and The Crypt is appropriately creepy. Especially the Lich monsters later in Nightmare and Hell modes. (Hell mode is aptly named. Almost everything becomes immune to Fireball [and Chain Lightning] which WILL be your #1 spell of choice until then. Recommend keeping Stone Curse available on a hot button throughout Hell mode. You'll need it.)
This game also has a nice feature called "The Cornerstone of the World", which allows you to drop a cool item that your other character can't seem to find. When that character reaches level 1 of The Crypt, he/she can pick it up in the room once they find it. I will usually play a new character until they reach this level, then go back and forth between 2 characters, "delivering" several items - especially Rings and Amulets - until I have them transferred, then resume playing the game through to the end. I often repeat this process in all 3 modes (especially Hell mode, once I discover the odds against me).
To say that I obsessively play this game is the understatement of the year.
I don't go more than 3 days without still playing Hellfire for a little while. And I'll probably continue to do so for some time. I simply love this version of Diablo.
I've played Diablo II offline a couple of times. Eventually I'll play the Lord of Destruction expansion pack, after I've bid on - and bought - several more set-pieces to complete my collections. I live up to my gamer name: TheObsessiveOne...
Until later.