With the announcement of the new expansion to Diablo 4, we think it’s time to clarify some significant misconceptions players have between seasons and expansions. Almost every game now has introduced the season system, where the game adds a brand new season every few months or so. However, understanding how expansions work alongside the addition of new seasons is definitely a difficult concept. Today, we’ll be explaining how seasons and expansions work in Diablo 4.
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What Are Seasons and Expansions in Diablo 4?
Before we get down to the specifics, everyone must understand what it means when a game releases a new expansion or talks about the upcoming season. While both additions do bring new features to the game, they are drastically different things.
What Do Seasons Mean in Diablo 4?
Seasons in Diablo 4 are on a three-month cycle, meaning players receive four seasons every year. These seasons come alongside a Battle Pass and new cosmetic items usually. Aside from those, you’ll have the chance to fight some new bosses, and of course, there will be some balance changes to keep the game stable. It should be noted that new seasons do not progress the main storyline. It only adds limited-time items or features but nothing permanent.
Since each season only lasts three months, the items included in the season are also made available for a limited time. If there’s a new wearable item, you’ll have those three months to collect/unlock it before it disappears. The same usually goes for bosses and any other feature that is season-specific. If you’re wondering why that is, it’s usually because every season follows a particular theme. Once the season ends, the next follows an entirely different theme to replace the prior one.
The main difference between seasons and expansions arises during your progress. When you start a new season, for example, the Season of Blood in Diablo 4, it requires you to make a new seasonal character. Once you create your seasonal character, you will start from level 1, and you’ll have to play through the seasonal content. You won’t lose your progress once the season ends. The character just transfers to the ‘Eternal Realm’. Besides your playable character, the other season items might be brought back later or disappear completely.
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What Do Expansions Mean in Diablo 4?
Now that you have a basic idea of what seasons and expansions are from the one perspective let’s move over to expansions. The one thing every player should keep in mind is that expansions are paid content. Compared to seasons, which are added for free to the game every three months, expansions are paid downloadable content that is released every year.
Diablo 2 and Diablo 3 got one expansion each, the Lord of Destruction and the Reaper of Souls expansions, respectively. Both of these expansions added to the main storyline and expanded on the gameplay quests, which is another major difference between seasons and expansions. Diablo 4 is set to receive its first major expansion in late 2024, called the Vessel of Hatred. Expansions usually feature additional acts where you’ll meet one of the demonic lords like Baal in Diablo 2’s expansion, while Diablo appeared in Diablo 3’s expansion pack.
When we look at the character progress feature, you do not need to build up a new character from scratch when playing the expansion pack. That makes sense, as the downloadable content simply adds the story to your game rather than shifting you to another feature altogether. So, for anyone worried about making a new character again and again, don’t worry since you can continue your progress in the expansion.
How Do Seasons and Expansions Work Together in Diablo 4?
We now know that seasons and expansions are totally different things. However, that doesn’t mean players can do one thing or another. The release of the expansion pack won’t mean that seasonal players will not receive new seasons. Blizzard commented on this, saying that they are working on both the future seasons and expansions together so no one feels left out.
Bear in mind that both the seasons and expansions are optional for players to try out. On top of that, the game even allows you to jump straight into this additional content by skipping the main storyline. That said, in order to skip the season campaign, you will have to complete the main campaign at least once before unlocking the skip option. You’ll also need to upgrade your character to endgame levels without all the exclusive buffs and perks, so there’s that as well. After that, you’ll be able to go straight into any additional content, especially the one in the upcoming expansion.
Final Statement
Both seasons and expansions in Diablo 4 cater to different audiences, but that doesn’t mean you have to play one or the other. If you’re willing to drop some cash, the expansion content is great for the extra storyline, while seasons are a good chance to try out new things and get your hands on limited-time items. Whatever you decide to do, just make sure you think it through so you don’t miss out on anything.
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