Blizzard is unlike many other developers, as their releases have been few and far between.
Taking a look at their major franchises StarCraft and Diablo, it usually takes them around 10 years (often more) to release sequels.
While you might argue this is due to a focus of quality over quantity, Diablo fans will probably argue otherwise. With Diablo IV keeping us excited, now’s a great time to re-play some classics.
Maybe jump back into Diablo II and remind yourself how fun it is.
And maybe you’d like to try it with some customizations? Well this list of mods is sure to come in handy!
This one is particularly good for those who are just starting out in Diablo.
As you might have come across in some of those online debates I mentioned earlier, Diablo II isn’t exactly an easy game to get into.
It has complex systems and the learning curve is much steeper than you’re probably used to from more recent games.
Of course, the games difficulty and depth ultimately become part of its charm, but everyone has to start somewhere.
The death penalty mechanic can be particularly frustrating for some, as you drop all equipment you’ve gathered when you die. This can make trial and error a difficult way to learn the game… but this mod makes things a bit easier for you.
Now here’s one of the more creative mods from SnakeByte Studios.
If you’ve played Diablo III before, this one might be particularly interesting.
The mod essentially tries to bring the Demon Hunter class seen in Diablo III to your Diablo II game, except with a twist.
The Demon Hunter has a completely new set of skills, which are mostly based on Assassin traps.
With that, you’re basically getting a sort of hybrid class combining both the Demon Hunter and Assassin attributes to give you a completely different class to play around with.
There’s no shortage of game enhancement overhaul mods for Diablo II.
If you’re anything like me though, you’re probably open for some random fun content to give a whirl for the hell of it.
You Gotta Be Kidding Me is probably the first one you’re going to want to try. It’s just a fun example of what modding makes possible within Diablo II.
The April Fools’ comedy mod adds some popular characters from all over the place, including Star Wars, Mortal Combat, StarCraft, Lord of the Rings, and much more.
Here’s another one that’s sure to make your Diablo II journey much easier – The Perfect Drop Mod.
Diablo is all about exploring different item and skill builds, all the while having to grind your way through monster-filled dungeons for chance drops.
Perfect Drop makes things by improving everything from drop rates, experience gain, and even expanded stash, inventory, and cube sizes.
Not only will you be getting more good items much quicker, you’ll have the space to carry everything around as well.
Valhalla is one more example of creative modding for Diablo II.
Instead of the typical vanilla enhancements, Valhalla takes a completely different approach – transforming the game completely to take it to the world of Norse Mythology.
Everything has been changed from the world, the items, and even the menu screen for an immersive Norse Mythology experience.
If you’re looking for a completely fresh Diablo II experience, you might want to give this one a try.
Diablo games are all about pushing your builds to the limit. People spend countless hours grinding towards those limits, only to find the end result to be the same.
You’ll end up satisfied that you’ve maxed your character out, but that only lasts until the next limit… and the next… and the next after that (you see where this is going).
The same was the case with Diablo III, up until they introduced the Paragon System, allowing for a deeper progression system for players who had already reached the level caps.
The Paragon Meme takes the same system to Diablo II, making it possible to level all the way up to 20,000.
Another way to drastically change your Diablo II experience is through this Puppeteer mod by dreameaterx.
While the mod does offer some new items and collectibles, where it sets itself apart from other mods is that it provides a completely new storyline to follow.
While it doesn’t stray too far from the original story, it does expand it quite a bit. All while keeping everything tied into how the original played out.
The mod even features new boss animations, voice lines, and even completely new bosses to overcome.
Spirit of Diablo is another creative mod that completely shifts your focus away from what you would normally do in a Diablo game.
Instead of focusing on grinding through dungeons to collect loot and ultimately build up your characters, Spirit of Diablo gives you a survival-focused Diablo experience.
While the mod does feature a few new classes and item balances, what makes it different from other mods is that purple gear and NPC trading has been disabled.
The overall atmosphere is darker than the original, and you’ll be forced to survive with whatever items you can find.
Dark Alliance is another mod that offers a completely new storyline from the base game.
While you’ll still be playing through the original first campaign, things start to branch out differently from there.
The mod features three campaigns, each containing 5 chapters to play through – with the 2nd and 3rd being completely unique extensions of the original game.
Dark Alliance also contains new skill systems, monsters, and new items for you to explore.
Is Alive takes a different approach, aiming to build on everything the base game has to offer. Plus molding the experience towards what the modder felt would have been the perfect official patch for the game.
Modder ZOMB_ states as follows:
“It’s a mod which respects the original game. It evolves the aspects of vanilla. It doesn’t make the game completely different, instead, it makes the game deeper, more [subtle].”
On top of that, he explains that the mod is targeted towards veteran Diablo II players since it adds to the depth of established systems.
By installing this mod you’ll find an enhanced crafting system, new quests, and new bosses as well.
Eastern Sun is one of the most popular Diablo II mods out there, hands down.
Many Diablo fans choose Eastern Sun over other mods because of how it expands on the content of the original game.
Eastern Sun doesn’t change much in the traditional sense, as most overhauls replace many of the game’s original mechanics. Instead it retains all items and skills found in the original game, but adds much more to what’s already there.
You’ll find tons of new skills, dungeons, items, runewords, bosses and plenty more in Eastern Sun. Because it’s also one of the community’s most extensively developed mods.
Reaper Of Souls is a notable fan-made mod that takes Diablo II items in a completely new direction.
The mod encourages build variety by introducing new item classes, including ancient and primal ancient items.
Primal and Ancient items are pretty much the same items, except with enhanced stats – making for more feasible build combinations down the line.
This is contrasted by a number of gameplay balances that make the overall game more challenging, so while you’re getting better gear for your characters, you’ll also be faced with more difficult battles.
If you’re looking for another less serious expansion to add tons of fun to your Diablo II playthrough, E=mc2 is a parody/meme mod worth trying.
It features new maps, new monsters, and even new sounds to give a fresh D2 experience.
Where it really shines is in the humorous easter eggs you’ll find throughout your playthrough.
There isn’t much information in the description as to what exactly are hidden in the game, but from the limited details available, it’s obvious that this parody takes comedy to a new level.
From what I’ve been able to gather, Santa Claus was added as a Christmas update in the past, and there’s a usable cellphone in the mod called the Avatar of Immortality, which adds fire damage, defense, and fire resistance to your build.
If you prefer to play Diablo II on your own, then the Diablo II SP (single-player) Enhancement Mod is definitely worth checking out.
After spending hours grinding through the game, player & modder sw33tsp0t decided to make his own mod to enhance the mechanics which he felt were lacking in the base game. All to make for a better solo experience.
He does this through a number of rebalances where you’ll now be able to level up faster, carry much more loot, and even share all your items between the other characters in your network.
The mod also makes multiplayer-only runeworlds accessible when playing solo. So you won’t really need to go on raids with anyone else to get all the collectibles you previously wouldn’t have access to.
If you’ve tested some of the previous entries on the list, there’s a good chance you’ve encountered PlugY a couple of times.
That’s because PlugY has become so popular in the Diablo II modding world, that many other mods have integrated it into their own.
PlugY isn’t really so much a mod as it’s more of an enhancement pack. It gives you the ability to tweak certain mechanics in the game depending on how you prefer to play.
The mod includes functions like infinite and shared stash space, world events, unassign skills and skill points, access to Cow Level, and so much more. Absolutely worth a try.
Le Royaume des Ombres (also known as The Realm of Shadows) might not be as popular as some of the other mods on the list, but that doesn’t make it any less interesting.
This mod overhauls your Diablo II game, giving you a completely new world with new monsters, items, quests, and dungeons to grind your way through.
You’ll also be playing through a completely new storyline which is designed to be at least twice as long as that of the base game – which can’t really be a bad thing because we all just want more Diablo at this point.
