Diablo IV’s Season 10 Public Test Realm (PTR) has officially kicked off, and it’s clear that Blizzard Entertainment is making significant moves to revamp the game’s endgame experience. From reworking Infernal Hordes to adding fresh avenues for theory crafting, this patch appears to address longstanding community concerns while offering players more strategic depth. After spending several hours exploring the PTR, it’s evident that this season could mark a turning point for D4 materials post-campaign gameplay.
In this article, we’ll break down the key changes, gameplay experiences, and potential implications of the Season 10 PTR, examining both its successes and areas where further refinement is needed.
A New Era for Infernal Hordes
One of the standout features of this PTR is the rework of Infernal Hordes. Blizzard seems determined to create a more engaging, dynamic system rather than relying on repetitive waves of enemies. For Season 10, Infernal Hordes introduces multiple new mechanics that change the way players approach each run.
Fleeting Hordes: A New Leveling Option
Alongside the traditional Infernal Hordes, Blizzard has introduced "Fleeting Hordes," a scaled-down version aimed at providing easier leveling opportunities. These smaller hordes are particularly helpful for players who may not want to tackle the full campaign for progression. Fleeting Hordes reward experience points and gear, making them a viable alternative for rapid character advancement.
During my PTR session, I tested Fleeting Hordes with a high-level Hydro Sorcerer, quickly throwing together available Masterworks and temperings. While the gear was better than what a standard build would have, the mode highlighted both potential and limitations. At the end of four waves, the rewards felt adequate for XP but fell short in providing enough ether to fully unlock end-of-run chests. Even with a high-level character, I finished with just 53 ether, while the large XP chest required 100 ether. This indicates that Fleeting Hordes could benefit from tweaking the balance of rewards to ensure a satisfying experience.
Chaos Portals: A Risk-Reward Mechanic
The main Infernal Hordes mode received substantial upgrades as well, notably with the introduction of chaos portals. These portals spawn randomly and offer greater difficulty but higher rewards. One of the most exciting rewards involves an onslaught of treasure goblins, which can flood the battlefield for one to two minutes, generating a massive amount of ether.
Chaos portals are a double-edged sword in terms of strategy. While highly rewarding, their frequent appearance sometimes overshadows other strategic options, diluting the potential for players to create long-term build strategies. This suggests Blizzard might consider implementing either a scarcity system or a tiered progression for chaos portals to maintain balance and keep alternative strategies viable.
Strategic Depth and Build Potential
Infernal Hordes now provide opportunities for players to create in-run strategies based on spires, masses, and other objectives. Spires, for example, spawn less frequently but offer more rewards when defeated. Masses provide ether for enemy kills in specific zones. Combining these elements with perks or powers could allow for creative build strategies, but the current iteration has room for improvement.
For instance, while spires grant more ether when spawned, their infrequent appearance makes it difficult to stack rewards meaningfully. Additionally, the predictable boss encounters—such as repeatedly facing the same Burning Butcher—limit strategic variety. A more dynamic approach, where bosses vary in type and difficulty, could provide a richer and more engaging experience. Imagine a progression system where minor demons escalate into major threats, culminating in encounters with iconic characters like Lilith for substantial rewards. This sort of scaling would enhance replayability and strategy formulation.
Boss Encounters and Environmental Mechanics
The PTR also showcases improvements in boss design. The Bartuk fight, for example, offers more intricate mechanics than many previous bosses, including environmental interactions and tactical challenges. While some players may find Bartuk relatively simple when using optimized gear, the encounter itself is a solid example of Blizzard experimenting with more engaging boss design in the endgame.
Interestingly, my session revealed that gear balance is still a work in progress. Some high-level abilities, such as Hydras, were capable of dealing billions of damage in a single strike, instantly defeating Bartuk. This underscores the ongoing need for fine-tuning difficulty across various builds and gear configurations.
User Interface and Theory Crafting
One of the more subtle yet impactful changes in Season 10 is the emphasis on theory crafting. Players can now experiment with different powers, perks, and objectives to optimize runs. However, the PTR revealed that the user interface for making these choices is not yet ideal.
Currently, players must manually mouse over individual powers or objectives to understand their effects—a process that interrupts gameplay flow and makes comparing options cumbersome. A more intuitive UI that allows side-by-side comparisons of potential choices could streamline decision-making and enhance the strategic depth of Infernal Hordes. Many modern rogue-likes employ such systems, providing players with immediate insight into the trade-offs of each selection. Incorporating similar mechanics in Diablo IV could elevate the overall PTR experience.
Balancing Chaos and Strategy
One challenge highlighted by the PTR is balancing chaos portals with other gameplay mechanics. While chaos waves are highly rewarding, their frequency sometimes reduces the importance of spires, masses, and other objectives. Players end up prioritizing chaos portals for immediate rewards, which may diminish the sense of long-term strategy.
Potential solutions include creating unique progression tracks for chaos portals, scaling rewards based on prior choices, or allowing players to retain some benefits while pursuing other objectives. These adjustments could ensure that every run feels meaningful, regardless of the random elements encountered.
Perks, Powers, and Seasonal Currency
Season 10 also introduces a revamped perks system, enabling players to earn and upgrade seasonal perks using seasonal currency. This addition aligns with Blizzard’s efforts to deepen player engagement beyond the main campaign. While the perks themselves feel similar to existing powers, the opportunity to customize seasonal builds adds an extra layer of personalization and strategic planning.
Additionally, itemization and crafting remain areas of ongoing development. Players will notice changes to legendary powers and item hues, indicating Blizzard’s intention to add visual and functional variety to the loot system. While not all issues have been fully addressed, the direction is promising and reflects a willingness to iterate based on community feedback.
Key Takeaways from the PTR
After extensive gameplay on the PTR, several key observations emerge:
Infernal Hordes Redesign: The mode is more engaging than previous iterations, offering players varied objectives, chaos portals, and potential for strategy-based builds.
Fleeting Hordes: A solid leveling alternative that may need adjustments to reward scaling for optimal progression.
Chaos Portals: Highly rewarding but risk overshadowing other strategic elements; could benefit from scarcity or tiered progression.
Boss Design: Encounters like Bartuk demonstrate improved mechanics and environmental interaction but require balance adjustments for high-level builds.
UI for Choices: Comparing powers and objectives remains cumbersome; improved interfaces would support theory crafting and informed decision-making.
Perks and Seasonal Currency: Adds customization options and long-term engagement potential, though perks currently feel similar to powers.
Itemization: Ongoing improvements to loot visuals and legendary power placement are encouraging but further refinement is needed.
A Step in the Right Direction
Overall, Diablo IV Season 10 PTR represents a meaningful step forward for Blizzard’s endgame design. The rework of Infernal Hordes, the introduction of Fleeting Hordes, and the addition of chaos portals all signal a commitment to depth, strategy, and replayability. While some areas—like reward scaling, boss variety, and UI improvements—still require polish, the PTR demonstrates that Blizzard is listening to community feedback and actively iterating on the game’s systems.
For players who may have felt that previous seasons lacked meaningful progression or strategic options, Season 10’s PTR offers a glimpse into a more robust and engaging Diablo IV experience. Whether through experimenting with chaos portals, optimizing spire-based runs, or exploring new perks, the potential for creative and satisfying gameplay is higher than ever.
Looking Ahead
As Blizzard continues to refine the PTR, it will be interesting to see how these systems evolve before the live release. The community’s input will likely play a pivotal role in balancing chaos portals, fine-tuning rewards, and enhancing the overall player experience. For long-time Diablo fans, Season 10 could mark a turning point in how endgame content is designed, offering a more dynamic and strategy-driven approach that rewards both skill and thoughtful planning.
With additional updates to itemization, crafting, and seasonal perks, Diablo IV is steadily moving toward an endgame that feels meaningful, varied, and rewarding. While some legacy issues remain, the progress demonstrated in the Season 10 PTR is promising, signaling a future where Diablo IV can fully realize its potential as a deep, strategic, and endlessly replayable action RPG.
Conclusion
The Diablo IV Season 10 PTR offers both exciting new gameplay and room for continued refinement. From revamped Infernal Hordes to the strategic possibilities unlocked by chaos portals and perks cheap D4 materials, the patch demonstrates Blizzard’s commitment to evolving the endgame. While balancing issues, UI limitations, and repetitive boss encounters still exist, the foundations laid in this PTR suggest a brighter, more engaging future for the game.
For players eager to dive back into Sanctuary, the PTR provides a tantalizing preview of what’s to come. Whether you’re experimenting with builds, battling hordes, or testing new perks, Season 10 promises a richer and more rewarding Diablo IV experience.