Diablo 4 again offers NPC companions, but not all details about this system in the new action RPG have been clarified. The developers have now given a little insight into which direction it could go.
The new Diablo 4 is planning its release for June 6th, 2022 – so it will be a good 6 months before we can put the damn demons in their bloody barriers.
Since the release is still a while away, not all details about the title have been clarified yet. There are still many unanswered questions, especially in the endgame. This includes the companion or mercenary system.
In Diablo 2 & 3 you could organize, build and equip NPC helpers. A popular system for solo players, who then did not have to travel through the gloomy world all alone.
So far, the developers have been largely silent on what the companion system in Diablo 4 looks like. But at a game event, the colleagues from the US site “PCGamesN” were able to squeeze some information out of the developers.
You can find more about the game in our big info special on Diablo 4. A look at our trailer can also be worthwhile:
Diablo 4 takes the best features from its predecessors – This is how it looks so far
Diablo 4: Companion – Apparently it’s more towards mercenaries
What did the developers say about this? One does not want to reveal or promise too much at the moment. During the first introductory events of Diablo 4, it became clear that NPCs would fight on your side from time to time during the campaign. They stay for one or two dungeons or missions.
It was very similar in Diablo 3. Here you also met the companions in the course of the campaign and solved a few missions with them.
You don’t want to promise more than these “campaign NPCs” at the moment. However, PCGamesN posted a few more quotes from the developers from a playoff event (via pcgamesn.com):
For the launch version of the game we do have some places in the story in particular where you will have certain named NPCs following you and helping you out as you figure out what Lilith is doing in the world. […] We don’t have anything to announce about the Diablo 2-type follower that you hire – we’re sticking it to the campaign for now. […] stay tuned, we may have something in the future to announce but no promises.
For the release version we have some places in the story where certain NPCs will follow you and help you to find out what Lilith is doing in the world. […] We don’t have anything to announce yet about the Diablo 2-like follower you’re hiring – we’re sticking with the campaign for now. […] Stay tuned, we may have something to announce in the future, but we’re not promising anything.
Lead Class Designer Adam Z. Jackson told PCGamesN
PCGamesN writes that another developer reacted suspiciously to the statement – dungeon producer Ash Sweetring. The US side indicates that the reaction should have been quite clear.
At the moment it is still not possible to say for sure whether and in what form a companion or mercenary system will play a role in Diablo 4. But the statements made indicate such a system and it could be more in the direction of Diablo 2, i.e. the mercenary system.
How does it work in Diablo 2? During the course of the story act you can hire different mercenaries. Depending on the act in which you hire the mercenary, the NPCs have specific weapons and stats that differ from each other.
As long as you have a mercenary with you, he levels up with you. The starting level of the NPCs is determined by the selected level of difficulty and the current story act. In addition, the NPCs have a few equipment slots to improve them.
If a mercenary goes down, the traders connected to the system demand gold for a revival. If you want to get rid of the old mercenary, you can simply buy a new one.
Which system do you prefer? How would you bring NPC companions into the game? Do you even need that? Leave a comment on the topic.
If the companions only come in the endgame or at a high player level, it can take a while before you are confronted with them anyway: Diablo 4 should take 180 hours until you are even at max level