Diablo 4’s huge Vessel of Hatred 2.0 overhaul will be playable sooner than you think

"Vessel of Hatred" is how I feel when I get a bad drop.

An environmental shot from a Vessel of Hatred cinematic.
Image via Blizzard

Diablo 4 has never been a game that shies away from evolution, whether that be iterations on mechanics established by the series’ previous entries or even reinvention of its own. The game’s upcoming 2.0 update promises another evolution—and it could be in your hands sooner than you think.

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Diablo 4‘s 2.0 update, Vessel of Hatred, will launch for free on Oct. 8 and kick off the game’s Season Six. If you think that sounds like an awfully long time to wait, however, you might be in luck. Diablo 4‘s next Campfire Chat, a livestream where devs sit down to address the community, has been announced for just a few short days from now—and this time, it’ll be all about Vessel of Hatred.

person inside a circle in diablo 4 VoH
This is actually the most accurate visual representation of what it feels like to play Diablo 4 with randoms. Image via Blizzard

The stream, set for Aug. 29, will discuss the 2.0 patch, the broad, sweeping mechanical changes it’s going to bring, and most crucially, its Public Test Realm (PTR) release. Players on the PTR will be able to play the patch early in the near future to get the hang of the altered mechanics, and help the dev team pick out any particularly pervasive bugs before its wide release.

As for what changes are in store, that’s still largely up in the air. Another major update, Loot Reborn, focused on rebalancing the game’s looting system to be a little more fun and rewarding, so players have been speculating for months about what systems Vessel of Hatred might touch. Signs and rumors have pointed to the leveling curve being impacted, with the level cap potentially being brought down to 60 from 100. This would encourage more deliberate, thought-out builds, although it’s uncertain how characters that have already crossed level 60 will be impacted. It might be best to be ready to respec, just in case.

Whatever the case may be, it won’t remain a mystery for long. The future of Diablo 4 looks bright all the same—even if that light is agonizing hellfire.

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Image of Grant St. Clair
Grant St. Clair
Grant St. Clair has been gaming almost as long as he's been writing. Writing about games, however, is still quite new to him. He does hope you'll stick around to hear about his many, many opinions- wait, where are you going?