Diablo 2 - Diablo 2: Lord Of Destruction (expansion) (2000)
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Everything that made the original Diablo great--nonstop action, wicked monsters, dark gothic atmosphere, and fantastic magic items--has returned. But new enhancements such as the class skill system and cheater-proof multiplayer competition make Diablo II even better than the original.
The millions of gamers who fought their way through the horror of Tristram's catacombs in the original Diablo realized that all was not well after their hero destroyed the demon's physical body. Diablo II opens with a vivid animated vision of that mad, doomed hero, who unwittingly spreads chaos as he moves toward a fate of Diablo's choosing. With the original character classes gone, players choose from a new cadre of champions: the Barbarian (can wield two two-handed swords at once, one in each hand), the Necromancer (raises the dead to fight his battles), the Amazon (master of bow and spear), Paladin (holy crusader), and Sorceress (wielder of elemental magic). These warriors follow a diabolical plot through four acts, and each act is roughly as big as the original Diablo.
Diablo II looks and behaves very much like Diablo. Players are assigned quests by nonplayer characters and adventure through dark catacombs and crypts. Hordes of vile monsters assail the hero, who survives by force of arms, powerful spells, and through the use of varied and exotic magic items. Randomly generated dungeons guarantee fresh adventure each time a new game is started. But unlike the original game, characters must fight their way through the above-ground wilderness before entering a dungeon. Fortunately, some of the frustrations of adventuring have been lessened in Diablo II, thanks to the new ability to run and the clever implementation of "waypoints" that let your character quickly travel to and from the safety of town.
Along with the new character classes comes a new character skill system. As in the original game, players improve their character's ability scores as they kill monsters and gain experience. But unlike the original game, players get to add specific skills, spells, and powers each time they advance. For example, after gaining a level you could choose between taking a skill that improves your attack speed or a skill that allows you to scatter your foes with a mighty shout. With this customized advancement system it is unlikely that two high-level characters, even characters of the same class, will be alike. Instead of progressing along a set path, you can choose skills and powers that complement your own particular playing style. Interestingly, this new customizable class system closely parallels the changes made in the new edition of Dungeons & Dragons.
Other enhancements include a method for creating and customizing magic items, 3-D accelerated spell effects, anticheat multiplayer code, and a place to safely store excess money and equipment. But even without these tweaks, even without the sophisticated story line and all the cool new features, Diablo II is just a great game. The sound, music, and graphics combine to create a tantalizingly eerie setting. Players will willingly let their game-playing hours slip well past reasonable bedtimes, suffering bleary-eyed classes and meetings in exchange for "just one more" magic item, dungeon level, or character skill.
Diablo is back. Say hello to the game that will once again dominate gamers' computers, and say good-bye to your free time. --Michael Fehlauer.
Pros:
* Diabolical, engrossing story line told through brilliant cutscenes
* All five of the new classes are distinct and fun
* Fantastic music and sound effects
* Random dungeons allow unlimited replayability
* Millions of magic items, including rare items and sets of unique magical equipment
Cons:
* Addictive gameplay may cause loss of sleep, significant other, job
* Virtually no improvement in graphics
Not content to merely add additional levels, the creators of the Diablo II: Lord of Destruction expansion have improved the entire Diablo II game experience while concluding the story. The expansion has been described as both an add-in and an add-on, and it truly is a must-have for Diablo II players.
Diablo 2: Lord Of Destruction
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The add-on is the new act, which finally concludes the epic tale of Diablo. The end of the fourth act of Diablo II saw Baal, brother of Diablo and last of the Prime Evils, reclaim his soulstone from the deceived mortal Marius. Lord of Destruction tells the story of Baal's destructive trek through the Barbarian Highlands of the north. The player must stop Baal before he corrupts the magical Worldstone and opens hell to the mortal world. An ancient barbarian tribe guards the holy mountain that houses the stone, and is the only thing that stands between Baal and Armageddon. The player must use a character who has completed the fourth act to access the fifth act (the expansion) and help the besieged barbarians.
The add-in is all the improvements to the core game. The most obvious is the graphics. Lord of Destruction lets gamers ratchet up Diablo II's graphics resolution to 800 x 600. This means both prettier graphics and the ability to see more of the battlefield at once, which effectively increases the range of spells and missile weapons. Best part: the graphics boost applies to all of the original game as well as the expansion's new act.
The graphics boost is nice, but hard-core players will most likely better appreciate the gameplay enhancements. It's hard to pick the single best element from the long list of substantial improvements: a larger character stash, more socketable items, more unique items, new classes of weapons for high-difficulty levels, and new Horadric Cube recipes. Entirely new features include the ability to craft unique magic items, runes (which function like gems but can be combined to form powerful runeword combinations), totems (which add ability, combat, or resistance bonuses, but take up space in inventory), and hireling inventory (you'll hand down your old equipment to your hireling). All these improvements are applied to both the new act and the four earlier acts in Diablo II. After playing with all these tweaks, you'll wonder how you ever managed to play with the tiny stash, blurry graphics, and weak hirelings of the original.
Even experienced Diablo II players get to appreciate the improvements to the first through fourth acts because the two new character classes (Assassin and Druid) must complete all four acts in Diablo II before you can use them in the expansion. The Assassin is a stealthy warrior and wizard slayer who uses martial arts, traps, and mental discipline to defeat hell's minions. The Druid is a feral whose spells, animal summoning, and shape-shifting abilities suit a wide range of playing styles. Both are cool enough to warrant playing through all of Diablo II once again. And the conclusion to one of the best-loved and most-played games of all time is satisfying--well worth the hours of sleepless nights and blurry-eyed mornings.
Instructions
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Mount diablo 2 install disk.iso with Daemon Tools or any other virtual dvd tool you prefer and install the game - full installation.When asked for a key use the included keygenerator to generate one.
Next install the expansion by mounting Diablo 2 Expansion - Lord of Destruction.ISO and performing the setup.
Last step is to install the latest patch 1.12 from Blizzard that removes the cd-check from the game, you need to copy some files from the cds to the Diablo directory for the game to work without the cd.
- If all required Diablo 2 '.MPQ' files are installed on the hard drive, the game will no longer require the CD to play.
For users that originally performed a 'Full Installation' and wish to run without the CD, all '.MPQ' files should be copied from the Diablo 2 CDs to the Diablo 2 directory. Most users will only need to copy D2Music.mpq from the Diablo 2 Play CD and/or D2xMusic.mpq from the Lord of Destruction CD. Mac users will need to copy these music files and rename them to 'Diablo II Music' and 'Diablo II Expansion Music' respectively.
Anyone who did not perform a 'Full Installation' will need to re-install from CD again to ultimately play without the CD. In this case, a 'Full Installation' is required, followed by file copy step noted above.
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