Blizzard has announced that it will bring a different approach to level scaling in Diablo 5 compared to Diablo 4. Game director Joe Shely noted that automatic scaling can weaken the player's sense of becoming stronger and pointed to a direction inspired by Diablo 2.
Blizzard has stated that it will take a different approach to level scaling in its in-development action role-playing game Diablo 5 compared to Diablo 4. In comments made during a roundtable interview at BlizzCon, game director Joe Shely said they are aware of players' desire to feel powerful in Diablo games.
According to Shely, the automatic level scaling system used in Diablo 4 and 3 weakens this feeling to some extent. In this system, enemies keep pace with the player's level; thus, the player neither encounters areas higher level than themselves nor can return to the starting area and feel how much they have grown stronger.
Shely said on the matter: "Diablo is in many ways a game about your character becoming more powerful, and when the monsters also become more powerful at the same time, especially when that's outside your control... You filled the experience bar, you got stronger, now you should feel amazing: a wave of light radiates from you and a bunch of monsters die."
Adding, "And sometimes automatic scaling can get in the way of that feeling," Shely said, "which is a feeling that is at the core of the game, so this is a really important question. That's why we're going to take a somewhat different approach to this in Diablo 5."
Shely did not say what the different approach would be, but acknowledged that the team has not yet fully discussed level scaling. Still, this statement shows that Blizzard is at least open to the idea of changing a core system used in two consecutive Diablo games.
This is not the only mechanic inspired by Diablo 2. The company previously stated that Diablo 5's item and loot system is also inspired by Diablo 2.
What has been learned so far shows that Blizzard is aiming for a more challenging experience and emphasizing player difficulty and challenge of the kind that rival action role-playing games like Path of Exile 1 and 2 are known for.
However, there is a long wait to see how much of these design ideas will make it into the final game: Diablo 5 is expected to release in spring 2029.
