One nighttime environmental effect in the newer Legend of Zelda games could wreak damage to players' feeling of safety if implemented in d4 items.
On the heels of the successful beta, Blizzard continues to be candid regarding its ideas for Diablo 4 bringing the series to new heights. Given that the sport borrows heavily from the fan-favorite Diablo 2 whilst implementing many of the quality-of-life features and combat flow of Diablo 3, Diablo 4 has the possibility to be the largest and many immersive titles within the legendary dungeon-crawling series. With Diablo 4's sprawling open world and day/night cycle much like that present in Diablo 3, the implementation of the mechanic from The Legend of Zelda: Breath from the Wild could bring significant challenges to everything about Sanctuary - The Blood Moon.
Appearing within the red-tinged sky of Hyrule on nights having a full moon, the Blood Moon is definitely an eerie and unsettling environmental mechanic from Breath from the Wild that sees enemies resurrected in the grave and being given boosts to aggression and power. One of the more stressful aspects of the Blood Moon is its inability to be predicted aside from occurring in a specific lunar phase. With Diablo 4's change to an open world that players can traverse freely with "jump in, jump out" co-op and specific nighttime events, the inclusion of the Blood Moon-style mechanic will be a boon for players seeking an extra challenge.
An Unpredictable Day/Night Cycle Would Ratchet Up Tension to Diablo 4's Own Blood Moon
If the sport's recent beta is any indication, Diablo 4 will have a similar day/night cycle to the one present in Diablo 3 that does not follow a typical in-game clock but is instead associated with the completion of quests and entering or exiting dungeons. The unpredictable nature of the games diurnal invites the possibility of the Blood Moon-style mechanic getting used as a random in-game world event. Sanctuary in Diablo 4 has already been a world that has an underlying feeling of dread which unease would simply be exacerbated by the looming threat of reanimated foes as darkness falls.
In addition to assisting to underscore the sport's horror elements, these events may also spawn specific buffed enemy types or unique world bosses that only appear during an environmental effect akin to the Blood Moon. Similar to how Chris in Friday the 13th Part III struggles to obtain her keys to the van in time to escape her fate as a result of Jason Vorhees, players frantically scramble to obtain inside a dungeon or town in the first sighting of the Blood Moon would add true terror towards the Diablo experience.
In Diablo a Greater Challenge Equates to Greater Loot
Not all hope could be lost within the crimson darkness from the Blood Moon, however, as greater foes drop rarer and much more elusive loot within the world of Sanctuary. The inclusion of the Blood Moon event within the world of Diablo 4 incentivizes players searching for a greater challenge and looking to extend the sport's playability to go out into the night. Certain enemy types that spawn over these events may even require certain party compositions, adding a dash of MMORPG strategy to the encounters and encouraging players to think about what classes to create on these challenging hunts in search of the ultimate gear loadout.
The Diablo 4 team at Blizzard has outlined what players can expect within the endgame and one of the primary good reasons to keep exploring Sanctuary beyond the main story quest would be to hunt for a constantly stronger pool of loot through challenging boss encounters and world events. While an environmental mechanic much like Breath from the Wild's Blood Moon might spell doom for players still in the early stages of their quest, it might become one of the main draws to help keep playing Diablo 4 with friends as players look for encounters that test their skill and provide them a reason to carry on the hunt long afterward Lilith continues to be slain. When the Blood Moon rises it's dangerous to visit alone, however, in d4 items, fans won't need to.
Diablo 4 releases June 6 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.