Diablo 4 players slam Spiritborn’s similarity to older classes
BlizzardDiablo 4’s Spiritborn class reveal has frustrated the player base thanks to some apparent similarities to existing classes in the franchise.
Diablo 4’s Vessel of Hatred expansion will be the first paid DLC for the title and our first proper look came with the Spiritborn class reveal. Players had been waiting with great anticipation for a look at the new class and we got more than we bargained for after its entire Skill Tree leaked.
Unfortunately, a combination of the new Spiritborn footage and the reveal of its inner workings has dampened the excitement for some Diablo 4 denizens. The primary issue is a perceived similarity between the new class and some older ones from Diablo 4 and earlier titles.
Reddit user Waaailmer made a post on the Diablo 4 Subreddit that jokingly referred to the Spiritborn as the “cooler” Druid. While some players have pointed out common themes between the Spiritborn and the Druid, many more came forth with complaints about other potential inspirations.
“They did say this class is new and hasn’t been in any other Diablo game. They didn’t say it has never been in Diablo 4 already though,” one player joked. “The way they described the class mechanic and legendary effects is also… just like Druid,” another responded. “It’s like they said buffing Druid is too hard, let’s just add a skinny Druid instead.”
Others also took issue with how the Spiritborn’s gameplay appeared to emulate some of Diablo 3’s classes. “Looks like a green Monk, plays like a green Monk, so, it’s just a Monk, but it’s green,” one user commented. “It’s like if the Monk and Witch Doctor had a baby.”
Some players felt as if Blizzard had misled them with pre-release comments regarding the Spiritborn class. “The amount of ‘Oh it’s brand new, it’s all new, it’s not the Monk, it’s not the Druid’ got really annoying when it fact it’s 1000% a mix of Druid and Monk with some Witch Dr,” a player lamented. “There is nothing new about the class.”
The Spiritborn’s agile playstyle and spiritual connections to animals could certainly be read as referential to existing classes like the Druid or Monk. Certain Skills revealed in the emerging leaks do seem to point to a distinct playstyle, however.