Diablo 4 Season 3 Doesn't Thrill; Players Are Bored and Annoyed
The season of Constructs in Diablo 4 has so far disappointed players, annoying them with traps and an interesting but, for now at least, a disappointing mechanical sidekick.
The latest season in Diablo 4 is well underway, introducing numerous changes and new features. However, Diablo 4 doesn't seem to have regained players' trust with Season of the Construct.
For several weeks, we have been aware that players were going to have reasons to complain. While Blizzard has promised to make improvements to the item system (which fans have been criticizing since the release of D4 in June), significant changes will need to wait until the fourth, and possibly even fifth, season of the game. It's not surprising that few people are pleased about waiting for this long-awaited patches for several more months.
Unfortunately, the lack of announced fixes isn't the only reason why the game's official forum and numerous posts on social media are full of criticism of Blizzard. Some players are even stating that they are already tired of playing in the new season, after only one day since it started.
The accusations can be summarized by saying that for players, the 3rd season of Diablo 4 was "tedious" and "irritating," and also full of hateful grinding. Positive reviews can be found, but they are difficult to locate among a sea of complaints.
Traps annoy and slow down players
Players are mainly reluctant to engage in the Season of the Construct due to the traps filling the newly added Vaults, as well as the open locations. Even if a particular build allows you to anticipate these obstacles, you still need to invest time in disarming or bypassing them. And if the traps are invisible... well, then more careful (read: slower) exploration of the Vault is necessary.
The concept of traps reminds some Internet users of a similar idea from Path of Exile, which appeared in the Ascendancy expansion in 2016. Most players didn't warmly embrace the idea (although the developers revisited it in 2022 in The Forbidden Sanctum) for similar reasons as in D4: they are irritating and time-consuming, and they don't give anything in return. That's why some fans had concerns about adding this feature in the Season of the Construct.
At least in Blizzard's game, Vaults aren't mandatory. On the other hand, activated traps decrease the loot from the expedition - in a game where acquiring them is the main attractions.
The fans also have mixed feelings about the Vaults. First and foremost, at the moment all of these dungeons appear to have identical room layouts, as well as the majority of traps and opponents. At least now we know where to expect difficulties, but ultimately there's a frustrating battle with a horde of opponents (and traps), despite the meager reward for victory (again: especially when compared to PoE).
Seneschal to upgrade
The new mechanical assistant also failed to win over the players. The Seneschal isn't ineffective, but it doesn't provide enough support in combat and doesn't significantly enhance the gameplay. Some online users have different experiences (via Reddit) and argue that it will take some time before we fully use the robot's potential. This doesn't change the fact that for most players, the mechanical assistant simply pales in comparison to the vampiric powers of Season of Blood.
This is accompanied by minor complaints, for instance about the "new" boss, who seems to be a "boring" reskin of the Butcher from the base game. The players were unpleasantly surprised by all of this, even though some of them didn't have very high expectations and saw it as a transitional season before the major changes announced by Blizzard.
Not everyone agrees that everything is worse in every aspect compared to the previous season, but it seems that no one is attempting to defend the third season, which was generally acknowledged as a step backward after the successful Season of Blood. Despite the warm reception of the Helltide's return.
According to fans, its content appears to have been made for an entirely different game, which was developed and refined over many years. Or it could have been another instance of individuals in higher positions exerting influence, despite having no understanding of action RPGs, attempting to compensate with "modern trends" in order to keep players in the game as long as possible.
