Why Diablo 4’s Seasonal Content could need serious revisions

Why Diablo 4’s Seasonal Content could need serious revisions

A recent Diablo 4 revelation about Seasonal Content has left some hurt feelings among the action RPG’s fans. While it’s unsurprising to learn players will have to create a new character for each season, that’s not where the real disappointment lies. Rod Fergusson of Blizzard Entertainment recently confirmed that the Seasonal Battle Pass would only progress on Seasonal characters.

That means even if you spend real money on the battle pass, you cannot progress it forward on your regular characters. Not every player is especially interested in the Seasonal Content, but they may want some of the cosmetics. If you want those, you better make that fresh character.

What Rod Fergusson revealed about Diablo 4 Seasonal Content

On June 19, Rod Fergusson answered a question about Diablo 4’s Seasonal Content on Twitter. He stated that in order to take part in all of the new season content, players will need a new season character. While some of this makes sense, new mechanics, the storyline, and the season journey, one part is genuinely upsetting for some.

The notion that you cannot progress the battle pass without playing on a seasonal character frustrates many Diablo 4 players. It feels like another tedious grind to the endgame, only to do it again in a few months.

I want to be clear that I’m interested in the Seasonal Content. It should offer fun, new ways to play Diablo 4 and try characters or builds that I might normally skip over. Eventually, this is going to be tedious and frustrating. Many people who defend this system say, “This is the way it’s always been.”

Diablo 3, Path of Exile, and virtually every action RPG does something like this. But does that mean it should continue to happen? Generally speaking, I can overlook having to make new characters. The real deal-breaker is how the Battle Pass works.

I would like to see it be possible to gain XP for your Seasonal Content no matter what character you are playing. Fans will surely be frustrated about having to run through a fresh character every few months to get the cool cosmetics that come in the Battle Pass for Diablo 4.

By now, many players have spent dozens, if not hundreds, of hours on a specific character. For example, I’ve put all of my focus on a Lightning Sorceress in Diablo 4 on World 3 difficulty.

Even though I will own the Battle Pass, the notion that I won’t be able to make progress unless I make a new character is a little frustrating to me. Since I’ve not played many classes in the retail build, the first few seasons will be fine.

However, the longer this system sticks to this current plan, the more it will start pushing players away. The fact that my Lightning Sorceress will suddenly be useless when the first season comes out is admittedly vexing. The same goes for my Summoning Necromancer.

Another really frustrating thing about this Diablo 4 Seasonal Content is the story itself. Why is the next part of the story locked behind a seasonal character if people spend real money to play more stories and have to play a level 1 character? I don’t think that’s going to go well at all.

Is there another solution for Diablo 4’s Seasonal Content?

It’s hard to say, honestly. On the one hand, I see why it’s designed this way. It’s very safe – it’s how it’s always been. For a paid Battle Pass, though, it is frustrating.

One thought is to give at least a percentage of Battle Pass progression to your seasonal character, no matter what character you’re on. I’m not suggesting you can complete objectives this way – just general progression/XP for the Battle Pass.

If you have spent real money, you shouldn’t have to play a seasonal character for a new portion of the story. If it’s not a canon addition to the overall tale of Diablo 4, that might be one thing. If it progresses the overall story, though, it’s unfair to be made to start over just to see this new tale.

Let me be clear – not everyone hates this decision. There are tons of players who are excited to go through this the same way they do in Path of Exile and did in Diablo 3. Personally, I don’t especially mind it either.

However, there’s a very vocal part of the community that is upset, and they deserve to have their voice heard.

I have a feeling it’s too late to make changes to the Battle Pass/Season 1 content, but I do hope that the developers consider altering it to some degree in future updates. Just because it’s “always been this way” doesn’t mean it should stay that way.

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