Diablo 2 is a dark fantasy action-adventure with RPG features set in a dark fantasy setting filled with angels, devils, and other malicious forces. It was the video game equivalent of a self-aware black metal album when it was released in 2000. It's still campy as hell, and that's part of the fun.

Diablo II is a hack-and-slash action role-playing computer video game developed by Blizzard North and released in 2000 by Blizzard Entertainment. The game's dark fantasy and horror concepts were created and designed by David Brevik and Erich Schaefer, who served as project leads with Max Schaefer on the project.

The plot of Diablo II is divided into four chapters, or "Acts." Each act follows a set path, but the wilderness and dungeons in between are produced at random.

Within each act, you proceed through the tale by performing a series of missions, with optional side dungeons for more enemies and experience. Diablo II's surroundings are far more diversified than the previous Diablo, which had levels that consisted of plunging further and deeper into a Gothic-themed dungeon and Hell.

There are three difficulty levels in addition to the acts: Normal, Nightmare, and Hell; finishing the game on one difficulty setting unlocks the next. Monsters are more diversified, tougher, and may be resistant or immune to an element or physical damage on higher levels; dying costs experience, and your resistances are limited.

You, on the other hand, are rewarded with better items as you progress through the levels of difficulty. Between difficulties, a character keeps all abilities and items and may return to a lesser difficulty at any time, although it is not possible to replay missions that have previously been finished.

You have the option of creating a hardcore character. In normal mode, you can revive your character and continue playing, however, in hardcore mode, your character only has one life. If a character is killed, he or she becomes permanently dead and unplayable.

Additionally, unless another friendly character has the "loot" symbol checked, all things and equipment on that character will be lost. Hardcore and normal characters play on different online channels, therefore a hardcore player can never play with a standard player in the same gaming session.

Diablo II also includes a lot of other enhancements that improve the game's overall experience. You can hire one of several computer-controlled mercenaries to follow you around and attack nearby enemies.

You could come upon a rare, precious item every now and then, or one that is part of a set that gets more powerful when the whole set is acquired. Sockets and gems may be used to customize items, and the Horadric Cube can be used to transform them into various items.