With Diablo 4 Season 3, Season of the Construct right around the corner, Blizzard hosted a Developer Update livestream showcasing the mechanics and new features coming to Diablo 4. The team highlighted the Season of the Construct’s new mechanics as well as some quality of life and other long-term features being added to the ARPG.
Season of the Construct details
The seasonal content in Season of the Construct focuses on new Seneschal Companions. Players can acquire these companions which will server as the seasonal borrowed power in Season 3. Each Seneschal construct can hold two governing stones which gives them more skills, and then be further enhanced using Tuning Stones. In total there are 12 Governing Stones and 27 Tuning stones that can be crafted or found as drops, including powerful Stones that drop exclusively from the new boss, Uber Malphas.
Players will also encounter Arcane Tremors on the overworld which act similarly to the current Blood Harvest and Helltide events. By participating in these Arcane Tremors, players will obtain Pearls of Warding which can be used to alter modifiers and loot quality of Vaults, a new form of dungeon in Season of the Construct. The Vaults also have Nightmare versions meaning players won’t have to decide between dungeons or the new Vaults.
QOL and Long-term Features
Even though they won’t be available at the start, Leaderboards and a new Gauntlet Dungeon are coming to Diablo 4. The Gauntlet Dungeon will be available in World Tier 4 and offer a weekly randomized Gauntlet Dungeon accessible to everyone. They will have their own Leaderboards as well. Leaderboards have been a long-promised feature by Blizzard, who at the release said they would be released around Season 3 which is now where we are.
In the QOL department, Helltide events will now be available for 55 minutes every hour, so players can endlessly farm them if that’s the content they prefer. WASD movement is also being added this season, as well as a new Skill Tree respec mode.
World Tier 4 drops are getting a buff as well as higher drop rates for boss summoning materials. Players trading on console are getting an easier and improved UI specifically for trading gold on console.
Honestly, it looks like a solid season overall. Season 2 didn’t hold me quite as long as I hoped, but it was a better season than Season 1. If Blizzard can continue improving Diablo 4 with each subsequent season, I think they are heading in the right direction. I just wish we’d do something about all this seasonal borrowed power.
Diablo 4 Season 3, Season of the Construct, will release on all platforms on January 23.
