20 Video Game Hard Modes For True Masochists
15. Hardcore - Diablo 2
The Diablo series has been considered a serious challenge ever since the original game, but with the introduction of Diablo II, the franchise has evolved from a challenge into full-on torture.
As if having your behind handed to you on higher difficulties was not enough in the original game, the sequel made things even more painful by becoming one of the early adopters of permadeath modes.
Its brand-new Hardcore mode limited your character to only one life, and if you died at any point in the game, the hero would be gone forever and your save file would no longer be valid.
The choice of turning your hero into a hardcore character was irreversible too, so if you felt cocky during character creation and then got cold feet, guess what—you're all out of luck.
Although somewhat more common these days, this kind of game mode wasn’t really popular during Diablo II’s release, which is why Blizzard even put out a warning about it in its manual.
Still, despite the clearly devastating stakes involved, it became a staple of the series, and it’s why every other Diablo game after Diablo II comes with a Hardcore mode as well.