Diablo 4 Season 8, Belial's Return, is set to launch on April 29, headlined by the highly revered Lord of Lies and his role in spreading Mephisto's influence throughout the Sanctuary. As revealed in Blizzard's content roadmap, Diablo 4 has many features and changes expected to go live in 2025—perhaps as some compensation for not releasing a major expansion, which it promised earlier.
Before the roadmap was released, Diablo 4 fans already got a glimpse into what the upcoming season is all about; however, more juicy details have made their way to the light since then. With that in mind, here is a rundown of every feature and change confirmed for Diablo 4 Season 8.
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Diablo 4 may be treading water ahead of its next major expansion, but one potential release could help history repeat itself in a big way.
Belial's Return Is Accompanied By New Boss Powers, A Lair Boss Rework, And A New Event, Among Other Updates
Belial's return to Sanctuary wreaks havoc, causing the wanderer to embark on the Lord of Lies' quest to take him down and unravel the truth behind his numerous deceptions. With a host of new Boss Powers, players are accompanied by Sayeena and Jarius on their journey to save Sanctuary. This lore piece sets the stage for the new Apparition Incursion event, where players go up against Belial's monsters and eventually Apparition Bosses to level up their character.
Boss Powers Add A New Dynamic To Builds
The Boss Powers mechanic is a new way to add variety to Diablo 4, allowing the wanderer to channel the abilities of defeated World, Event, and Lair Bosses. Each Boss Power has a Main and Modifier effect, and the wanderer can only apply 1 Main and 3 Modifier abilities at any time. There are a total of 24 bosses that can bless the wanderer with Boss Powers, so players are encouraged to try out different combinations to find the perfect one for their builds. However, not all Boss Powers are available to all players, as some are locked behind difficulty levels.
Lair Bosses Shake-Up Endgame Content
Endgame Bosses are now referred to as Lair Bosses, separated into three tiers based on difficulty and reward (Initiate, Greater, and Exalted Lair Bosses). To face Lair Bosses, players must be playing on at least the first level of Torment Difficulty, and upon their victory, are provided with a chest that can only be accessed with Lair Boss Keys.
The amount of Lair Boss Keys needed depends on the category of the Lair Boss, and the amount of loot gotten from the chest varies based on the difficulty level (up to seven unique items in Torment 4). Lair Bosses have a unique map to help locate them. They will also list the number of Lair Boss Keys required to access the chest to prevent oversight from the player.
Diablo 4 is Leaving The Ball in Path of Exile 2's Court
With the roadmap for Diablo 4 looking somewhat limited, Path of Exile 2 has the perfect opportunity to capitalize on the ARPG audience this year.
New Legendary And Unique Items Are Making Their Way Into The Game
Season 8 will also feature various new Legendary and Unique items, ensuring players can access powerful gear that complements their playstyle. From Barbarian, Druid, and Necromancer to Rogue, Sorcerer, and Spiritborn, every Diablo 4 class has a debuting unique item that offers fresh opportunities—as is customary for the game's seasons.
Diablo 4 is also set to collab with Berserk in Season 8, with new cosmetics inspired by the IP.
Reliquaries: A New Battle Pass System And What It Means For The Game
In addition to the items and Boss Powers, Blizzard is also introducing a new Reliquaries dynamic as a rework to its Battle Pass ecosystem. The Reliquaries system is split into Battle Pass and Event Reliquaries, and next season's Battle Pass has four options: Belial's Return, Weapons, Beasts, and Armor. Belial's Return is the only free tier, with the rest costing 200, 500, and 800 Platinum to unlock. Thankfully, players can view the content of any Reliquary tier before purchasing to decide how to spend their Platinum. To eliminate any decision-making, there's also the Premium Battle Pass bundle containing all Reliquaries on sale for 1000 Platinum.
Event Reliquaries, as the name suggests, appear as a popup due to certain events and IP collaborations and will only be available for a limited period. These Reliquaries contain cosmetic rewards that can be unlocked with Favor Tokens from slaying monsters and completing quests. However, players can only hold up to 99 Favor Tokens at any given time (although these can be saved for future seasons as well). Any unclaimed Reliquary rewards will disappear once the timer allotted to them expires.
With the introduction of the Reliquary system, the Season's Blessings and Smoldering Ashes have been moved to the Season Journey menu. Once players have completed the Season Journey, they will receive Iris the Cat, an in-game Pet, to accompany The Wanderer and their companions on their journey.
Premium Battle Pass Tokens and Accelerated Battle Pass Upgrade Tokens will be automatically exchanged for Reliquary Premium Battle Pass Tokens and 1800 Platinum, respectively. Tejal's shop will also see some new outfittings with a host of new Equipment, Armor, Mounts, and other Accessories starting April 29, and her stock will receive constant updates through the end of Season 8.
Diablo 4
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 88 /100 Critics Rec: 93%
WHERE TO PLAY
- Engine
- Proprietary Engine
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, Hack and Slash
