Diablo 4 impressions: Soaking in dark atmosphere and feel-good combat

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  Even in its early build, Diablo 4 looks to be an atmospheric stunner. This gallery is full of game imagery. [credit: Blizzard ]

ANAHEIM, Calif.-This year's BlizzCon was a big one in many ways, but among them was the presence of playable demos for Diablo 4, World of Warcraft: Shadowlands, and Overwatch 2. I attended the show this year and played all three.

While there was some tension in the media coverage and social conversation around this BlizzCon after the company's decision to temporarily suspend a pro Hearthstone player for making a political statement during an official stream, it was not the dominant mood on the ground. From the keynote through the community events, it was clear most people were a lot more concerned about the games than anything else.

And there were a lot of games. I've been to many a BlizzCon, but this was by far the most eventful in terms of announcements. There was the long-awaited Diablo 4, a new World of Warcraft expansion called Shadowlands, a sequel-of-sorts to Overwatch, and a new Hearthstone mode that marks Blizzard's entry into the popular auto-battler genre.

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