Diablo 4: Age of Hatred Collection review for Nintendo Switch 2

Diablo 4: Age of Hatred Collection review for Nintendo Switch 2 Diablo IV review for Switch 2

Diablo 4: Age of Hatred Collection review for Nintendo Switch 2

Posted on September 27, 2026 by Dawn in Features, Reviews, Switch 2

System: Switch 2
Release date: September 15, 2026
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Publisher: Blizzard Entertainment

I didn’t get the opportunity to play a game in the Diablo series until Diablo 3: Eternal Collection made its way onto Nintendo Switch, but as the pioneer of many systems that are now widely considered staples of the genre, its influence was stamped across many ARPGs that I had played up to that point, which made it something that immediately clicked with me. The isometric perspective and loot-based progression designed around quick runs made it a perfect fit for the Nintendo Switch. It also makes Diablo 4 the perfect fit for Nintendo Switch 2, although unfortunately there are a few caveats that don’t make it quite as easy a recommendation as it should be.

Diablo 4 has been through a lot of growing pains since its initial release three years ago, but it’s a lot easier to recommend now that the experience is complete. The Age of Hatred Collection includes the two expansions, Vessel of Hatred and Lord of Hatred, alongside the base game, and is a satisfying story when considered as a whole. Despite being the fourth entry in the series, the game offers a self-contained narrative that builds upon the existing lore but isn’t dependent on it. You’ll definitely get more out of it if you’re familiar with what has gone on up to this point, but the title does a good enough job at filling in any gaps in necessary knowledge that you won’t feel lost if this is your first experience with the series.

Set 50 years after the events of the previous game, the forces of Heaven and Hell have been severely depleted by the conflict that took place, but life has returned to some semblance of normalcy as the survivors have slowly begun to pick up the pieces. Naturally, this creates the perfect opening for Lilith, the daughter of Mephisto, to establish her power over Sanctuary and plunge it back into misery. As a Wanderer, your task is to pursue Lilith, uncover her plans, and ultimately put a stop to them, a journey that will eventually also lead you into a confrontation with Mephisto himself in the game’s expansions.

Despite being a very by-the-numbers affair, Diablo 4’s narrative is presented with an almost operatic level of gravitas that makes it a compelling experience, especially during cutscenes, which have the production values you would expect of an AAA title and are carried by some fantastic voice acting. Even without knowledge of what went on during prior games, the impact of events leading up to Lilith’s rise can be seen and felt in a very visceral way in the ruined world, and for returning players there are the usual cameos and small Easter eggs that connect the game with the wider series.

If you’ve played any action RPG, you’ll be broadly familiar with what Diablo 4 has to offer on a basic level, but what surprised me is just how good all of the different classes feel to play with, and the potential each has for different builds within their skill trees. The topic of which class and build is the best to use is one that is inevitable whenever a game presents different options, and there is almost always an objective answer to the question. Diablo 4 is one of the few exceptions to this rule, and a casual run through the story and its expansions is satisfying no matter which class you start with, or how you choose to build them.

The other half of the equation is, of course, your equipment. As the pioneer of the modern loot system we all know and love (or loathe, depending on what you’re hunting for and how much useless junk the game throws at you before you finally get it) Diablo 4 follows in its predecessors’ footsteps with loot-based progression that manages to somehow be addictive, rewarding, and often extremely frustrating all at the same time. Crafting that perfect build is the ultimate end goal of Diablo 4’s gameplay loop, although the game will often surprise you with gear that will support a completely different build, encouraging experimentation even once you’ve settled on a playstyle. Characters can equip a minimum of 10 different gear pieces depending on their class and weapon of choice, and most of it can be upgraded and modified with gems. At lower difficulties this can be safely ignored, but once you’ve unlocked endgame difficulty modifiers, the choices start to matter quite a bit more. If you plan on playing past the main campaign, it’s a series of systems you’ll become intimately familiar with as you climb through the echelons of power.

Once you’ve picked your class you’ll be cast out into the world, free to explore as you wish. Despite the game having a shared open world, Diablo 4 retains enough privacy that you’ll often only encounter other players only in the more populated areas or during World Events, and main story quests and dungeons are entirely closed-off to uninvited guests; in a lot of ways it feels like a traditional MMO in structure. Side activities and exploration net you Renown points, with the more significant milestones and rewards being shared between characters, making starting a new file a less onerous task but not one completely without meaning, as some activities will need to be done again for the rewards – and, naturally, if you’re playing as a Hardcore character, you’ll need to do everything again.

For those looking for a little more structure or a challenge, there is also seasonal content, which serves as time-limited, self-contained side stories that take place after the main campaign, and task you with playing through the game under under stricter criteria with specific classes. The reward for this is limited cosmetic items and equipment geared towards a specific build, and some additional lore that adds a little extra flavor and meaning beyond just playing through the game again for a few cosmetics. The fact that Diablo 3 is entering its 40th season at the time of writing is a good indicator that support for Diablo 4 will extend far into the future, and if you enjoy theory crafting builds, this is a game that is going to keep you busy for a long time.

Diablo 4 supports touchscreen controls in the menu on Nintendo Switch 2, which is highly convenient when you’ll spend extended periods of time micromanaging. It does not support mouse controls with the Joy-Con, so you’ll need an external USB keyboard and mouse if you want to simulate PC controls. This feels like a bit of an oversight, as it seems like something that could have been easily implemented alongside the touchscreen without the need for external peripherals. But it is overall not a dealbreaker in my opinion, especially if you’re coming into this as a first-time player and aren’t already accustomed to a particular control scheme, and what is here is perfectly optimized.

Overall, Diablo 4 is an incredibly polished game with extremely satisfying progression and has made the jump to Nintendo Switch 2 far better than I expected it to, especially in handheld, and honestly I wish I could end the review here and skip straight to the verdict with that as the conclusion. Unfortunately, the title is at its core a live service, which feels more than a little egregious when it carries a premium price tag, and for many people this is going to be a dealbreaker. The combined base game and the two expansions, and the quality and quantity of the content, is more than worth the price of admission. However, the requirement to be constantly connected to the internet to play it at all is the biggest sticking point, and it really doesn’t fit with Nintendo Switch 2 as a platform.

If you had any intention of playing outside of the house, don’t have access to a good or steady internet connection, or are like me and regularly put your console in standby mode mid-play to resume where you left off later, you’re going to find this aspect of Diablo 4 particularly frustrating. It doesn’t entirely negate the benefits of playing on Nintendo Switch 2, but it is a particularly sour note to the experience that eliminates a lot of it. It’s worth mentioning that I have experienced minimal delay connecting to the servers regardless of when I’ve booted the game up, but I have a reasonably fast internet connection at home and didn’t attempt to connect via a public network. Regardless, there are going to be times when Blizzard’s servers are down in the future – whether planned or otherwise – and you won’t be able to play at all.

Diablo 4 is tied to Battle.net and requires an account for access, and as this also houses Blizzard’s other franchises such as Overwatch and Warcraft, it seems highly unlikely that support for or access to the game will be suddenly disappearing any time soon. But this is a point to consider if you prefer to avoid that kind of requirement, as you will be entirely reliant on Blizzard’s servers for continued access.

Despite the seasons being fantastic endgame content that adds potentially limitless replayability, as long as Blizzard keeps doing them (and with Diablo 3 still going 14 years later there’s no reason to think that they won’t for some time to come), the live service model also adds the usual noise of paid currency in Platinum, which is not transferable between systems despite cross-platform progression support. Battle passes with unique cosmetic rewards are also available, so although you will still be able to participate in each season without spending money, to get the most out of it, you will need to spend on top of the price of entry.

It’s an extremely unpalatable business model when a game already has a high price of entry and is fully playable as a single-player experience, and the lack of an offline mode only stands out more on Nintendo Switch 2, which has the unique distinction of being a system designed to be played anywhere: a design that Diablo 4 actively works against in many ways. As things currently stand, the only benefit offered by playing on this console over other platforms is portable play, and if you intend to purchase Platinum, it will be locked to Nintendo Switch 2 or the other platform you play on, which negates some of the benefits of cross-progression.

Diablo 4 is right at home on Nintendo Switch 2, and is absolutely perfect for handheld play in particular. For both the quality and quantity of content offered in the Age of Hatred Collection, it is more than worth the price of admission, and there is more than adequate reason to replay with a different class or build thanks to the ongoing season content. Even almost 30 years later, the Diablo series remains at the pinnacle of the genre, and offers an atmosphere and experience that few can match. But that makes the live service model adopted by Diablo 4 a particularly bitter pill to swallow, and with the abundance of high-quality action RPGs available on Nintendo Switch 2 at a significantly cheaper price point, or without that always-online requirement, it’s not as easy to immediately recommend as it should be.

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