It's only day one for Diablo 4, but a patch has already nerfed some classes and made endgame harder

Diablo 4: Lilith with key.
(Image credit: Windows Central)

What you need to know

  • Diablo 4 officially launches on June 6, however, anyone who bought the Ultimate Edition gained Early Access on June 2. 
  • Blizzard has already released a 1.0.2 hotfix along with patch notes showing changes that have been made to the game. 
  • These changes include reducing the power of certain Sorcerer, Barbarian, and Rogue abilities and also makes the endgame harder.

Despite Diablo 4's official release day of June 6, many players are already hacking and slashing demons thanks to Early Access provided by purchasing the Ultimate Edition of the game. For those who sprung for this version, Early Access began today, June 2. 

Today in an official post, Blizzard listed all of the key changes made in Diablo 4's 1.0.2 update, which are now live. These include making it so that the Sorcerer's Flame Shield Enchantment goes on full cooldown after use and also making it so that the Rogue's Inner Sight experiences a four-second delay before being able to be used again. Additionally, the Barbarian's Shout Skill cooldown reduction affix has been altered so that it no longer appears on items. These adjustments could affect anyone playing these Diablo 4 classes who will need to think differently about how to employ these skills in battle from the way they did so in the previous beta or Server Slam. 

As another part of the Diablo 4 1.0.2 hotfix, the health of monsters in later World Tiers has also been increased, which means they will be harder to kill and will make the endgame more of a challenge for players.

We're likely to see several more Diablo 4 updates as time goes on and could see additional changes made to class abilities or endgame.

Official Blizzard 1.0.2 hotfix notes for Diablo 4

A server-side hotfix was rolled out this evening. Server-side hotfixes occur in the background and will not require a client-side patch.

Sorcerer
Class Specialization

Flame Shield Enchantment

- When Flame Shield is initially equipped into an Enchantment slot, it’s placed on full cooldown.

Rogue
Class Specialization

Inner Sight

- After Inner Sight’s unlimited Energy expires, there will be a 4 second delay before another enemy becomes marked.

Items
Shout Skill Cooldown Reduction

- This affix will no longer appear on items.

Miscellaneous

- Monster health values have been increased in later World Tiers.

If you feel like you're missing out on the fun, you can purchase Diablo 4 Ultimate Edition and jump into the hellish adventure right now before the official launch date. 

Diablo 4: Ultimate Edition

Diablo 4: Ultimate Edition

The Ultimate Sacrifice from your wallet to our Blessed Mother, the Ultimate Edition of Diablo 4 comes with a bunch of cosmetics, the Premium Battle Pass and 20 tier skips for you to enjoy.

Buy on:  Xbox | PC (Battle.net)

Rebecca Spear
Editor and Reviewer

Self-professed gaming geek, Rebecca Spear, is one of Windows Central's editors and reviewers with a focus on gaming handhelds, PC gaming, and laptops. When she isn't checking out the latest games on Xbox Game Pass, PC, ROG Ally, or Steam Deck; she can be found digital drawing with a Wacom tablet. She's written thousands of articles with everything from editorials, reviews, previews, features, previews, and hardware reviews over the last few years. If you need information about anything gaming-related, her articles can help you out. She also loves testing game accessories and any new tech on the market. You can follow her @rrspear on X (formerly Twitter).