What Diablo-style games are tempting you today?

It’s a quiet time for us Diablo fans. The seasons trudge on while we try to be patient for more updates about Diablo 4 and Diablo Immortal. Sure, we can keep logging endless hours with new characters in Diablo 3; I’m still finding satisfaction in the seasonal grind, especially with the new wrinkles being added in. But every now and then, I wonder if those hours might be better spent elsewhere. Which begs the question: do any of the Diablo clones merit your time?

The biggest one that has recently caught my eye was Minecraft Dungeons. I play Minecraft every week with a crew of fabulous friends, so the thought that two of my favorite games might see their powers combined seemed so promising. But somehow the blend hasn’t been as dynamite as I’d hoped. It seems like there are some slow, tedious points for a new player, and I haven’t been compelled enough to know whether the end game has the long tail that I would hope for. My occasional Twitch investigations don’t fill me with optimism on that front, sadly.

Other people who spend more time on PC than I do frequently mention the Torchlight series as one that hits the same dopamine receptors, with a solid balance of great mechanics and story. And I hear a comparable amount of love for Path of Exile. They’re all tempting, but I have to ask myself whether I’m willing to explore the other avenues. Diablo will always be my favorite iteration of this game style. For players like me, how do we decide when to make the investment into something new?

I understand and respect the brand loyalty when it comes to a long-running RPG, and obviously Blizzard Watch readers will have some amount of favoritism for Diablo games, as I do. But when do you make the call to get serious about a rival IP? How are you Diablo fans feeling, with a new season and several new game launches on the horizon? Do you need other friends to already be at the level cap for a rival game, willing to boost you along? Or are you just hankering for something, anything new? How are you feeling?