Over two years and nine seasons later, Diablo 4 has been a mixed bag of content throughout its life so far. While the game has undoubtedly undergone some drastic improvements in that time, Diablo 4 has seen its fair share of rough patches. Some seasons have struck a chord with players, and others have fallen flat. Through it all, Diablo 4 has largely come out a better game than when it first launched, but the quality of seasons in between has varied greatly.
This list will rank Diablo 4 seasons based on what new content they brought to the game and how impactful they ended up being to the game as a whole.
Diablo 4: Why You Should Play a Hardcore Character in Season 9
Hardcore mode ups the challenge in Diablo 4 by making death permanent, and Season 9 might be the best time for players to try out this mode.
S-Tier: Game-Changing Diablo 4 Seasons
- Season 2
- Season 4
- Season 6
Season 2: The Season of Blood Put Diablo 4 on Track for Success
The first season to really hit a home run for Diablo 4 was its second season, titled The Season of Blood. Not only did Diablo 4 Season 2 add a much more popular season gimmick in the form of Vampiric Powers—one that has become the gold standard for recent seasons—but it also reshaped the endgame loop by adding the Boss Ladder along with five bosses for players to challenge. Players could now farm these Tormented Bosses for mythics, called uber uniques at the time, pitting themselves against the likes of Lord Zir, Echo of Varshan, Gigoire the Galvanic Saint, The Beast in the Ice, and Andariel.
Season 4: Loot Reborn Addressed the Most Pressing Player Complaints
Diablo 4 transformed the game into something really special with Season 4 after a lackluster previous season. The Loot Reborn update completely overhauled itemization, adding the ability to improve gear through Tempering and Masterworking to help Diablo 4 players refine their endgame builds. Additionally, Season 4 made Helltides much more enjoyable to farm by increasing monster density and adding new events like Accursed Rituals to summon Blood Maidens.
Season 6: Hatred Rising Ushered in Vessel of Hatred with Style
Launching alongside the release of the Vessel of Hatred expansion, Season 6 helped support the new DLC content with some important changes to the base game. While the seasonal mechanic that saw Realmwalkers open Hell Portals across Sanctuary was only somewhat entertaining, the changes to the level cap and Diablo 4 Paragon system that came with Season 6 went a long way towards streamlining the game's leveling system.
A-Tier: Solid Diablo 4 Seasons
- Season 7
- Season 9
Season 7: Witchcraft Had a Hard Time Following Vessel of Hatred's Strong First Act
The Season of Witchcraft had the tough task of recouping players after the hype of Vessel of Hatred had died down. In general, the Witchcraft Powers of Diablo 4 Season 7 were an enjoyable riff on Diablo 4's recurring seasonal power gimmick, but the larger changes made to the game didn't feel as substantial as the previous season. The return of the Armory from Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls for storing multiple builds was a much-needed addition, even if it didn't necessarily appeal to every player.
Season 9: Sins of the Horadrim Makes Some Underrated Improvements
As the current ongoing season, it's hard to foresee how exactly Diablo 4 Season 9 will impact the future of the game. However, after nine seasons, it's nice to see the game continuing to improve with a feature like Escalating Nightmares to make Nightmare Dungeon runs feel refreshed. This season's Horadric Spells may be starting to feel derivative, but they still add an interesting layer to the seasonal meta for players to experiment with.
Diablo 4 Season 9 May Be the Last of Its Kind
Diablo 4 Season 9 stands out for one unexpected reason, but this could also be the last time the community sees a season like this.
B-Tier: Underwhelming Diablo 4 Seasons
- Season 8
- Season 5
Season 8: Belial's Return Had High Highs and Low Lows
Of all the Diablo 4 seasons, Season 8 felt like the most mixed bag of the bunch. While an overhauled boss ladder that added new fights against Belial, Urivar, and the Harbinger of Hatred helped Belial's Return feel like a substantial improvement, it was somewhat dampened by the controversy surrounding Diablo 4's Berserk collab. Seeing Diablo 4 crossover with a non-Blizzard IP was an exciting first, but the high prices for the Berserk cosmetic bundles overshadowed what would otherwise have been a solid season.
Season 5: Infernal Hordes Was Overshadowed by Vessel of Hatred Hype
Another Diablo 4 season that was overshadowed by a different aspect of the game was Season 5. Sandwiched between the popular Loot Reborn season and the release of Vessel of Hatred, Diablo 4 Season 5 was best known for adding the Infernal Hordes game mode as a new endgame activity for players to enjoy. Unfortunately, the season itself was largely lost among discussion about Vessel of Hatred, the new Spiritborn class, and the changing Paragon system.
C-Tier: Flawed Diablo 4 Seasons
- Season 3
- Season 1
Season 3: The Construct Was a Failed Diablo 4 Experiment
Outside of Season 2, the first few seasons of Diablo 4 struggled to gain traction for a variety of reasons. Season 3 made a bold attempt to shake up gameplay by introducing Vaults and the Seneschal companion, but neither felt at home in the Diablo 4 gameplay loop, with Vaults relying on players navigating traps rather than fighting enemies and the Seneschal companion feeling largely ineffective. The Gauntlet and Leaderboards were the biggest additions in Season 3, but have since been removed from the game pending a future rework.
Season 1: The Season of the Malignant Was a False Start for Diablo 4
The inaugural season of Diablo 4 had high expectations to live up to, but ultimately stumbled over the starting block. The Season of the Malignant's main focus was on obtaining Caged Hearts from Malignant Tunnels to socket into their gear for unique seasonal augments. However, the season felt very bare bones as a whole, lacking any meaningful new content for players who had completed the main Diablo 4 campaign.
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
