Diablo 2: Resurrected is a thorough revamp of Blizzard’s classic high-speed clicking game, but since 2021 it’s only been available to purchase via Battle.net. Not any more: Diablo 2 is now on Steam, which comes with two obvious perks: one, it is more easily compatible with Steam Deck and even has a Steam Deck Verified badge, and two: you can now access the game via Steam rather than boot up Battle.net.
But wait! You’ll still need the Battle.net desktop app installed, according to the system requirements, and more obviously, you’ll still need a Battle.net account. As with the Battle.net version, Diablo 2 requires a constant internet connection to play as well.
The Steam release compliments a brand new expansion for Diablo 2 available now, which is its first in 25 years. It features a new warlock class and a revamp to the dungeon crawler’s nowadays quite clunky inventory management. Tyler Colp went hands on with the expansion.
It’s great news for people who hate to juggle launchers. Sure, it only requires moving one’s arm and pressing one’s finger on a mouse button to open Battle.net, but still (and I’m being totally sincere here) it’s very annoying. It’s the kind of annoyance that has ultimately compelled big publishers like EA and Ubisoft to mostly give up on their own storefronts in favour of Steam.
It also helps that Valve increasingly has its sights on hardware, and that it’s a great selling point that not only does Diablo 2 work seamlessly on Steam Deck, but that it likely will for the forthcoming Steam Machine as well.
If you are dedicated to Battle.net for some reason, Diablo 2 and its expansion Reign of the Warlock are also available there.
