Diablo 4: Season 11 Needs Account-Wide Waypoint Unlock
As the cycle of seasons continues in Diablo 4, Sanctuary's heroes prepare to once again reset their journey, level new characters, and tackle demonic threats. Yet, amidst the excitement for new content, a persistent request from the community has grown into a roar: It's time to stop making players rediscover the entire map and unlock all the Waypoints every three months.
The overwhelming consensus is that for a future season, potentially as soon as Season 11, this single quality-of-life update would fundamentally improve the game.
The Seasonal Grind: Uncovering Sanctuary Again and Again
For veterans and newcomers alike, the first few hours of any new Diablo 4 season follow a predictable pattern. After creating a new character, players must embark on a mandatory tour of Sanctuary, not for the thrill of discovery, but to reactivate the fast-travel Waypoints they have already unlocked countless times before on previous characters.
This process involves methodically riding a mount from one sub-region to the next, clicking on the glowing stone circle, and then moving on. While uncovering the "fog of war" on the map is now an account-wide achievement that persists between seasons, the functional fast-travel points are not. This creates a disconnect in the experience; you can see the whole map, but you can't actually travel across it efficiently.
This repetitive chore serves as a barrier to entry, delaying a player's ability to:
- Jump into new seasonal activities: Key seasonal questlines and events are often scattered across the map, forcing players to complete this "waypoint tour" before they can properly engage.
- Efficiently farm dungeons: Accessing Nightmare Dungeons and Helltides is far more difficult without a network of active waypoints.
- Complete Whispers of the Dead: The end-game Whisper bounties are a primary source of gear and experience, but they spawn all over the world. Without Waypoints, traveling to them is a time-consuming hassle.
Why Renown Is at the Heart of the Waypoint Problem
The core reason Waypoints have remained tied to a seasonal reset is their connection to the Renown system. Renown is a region-based progression tracker where players earn points for completing specific objectives in each of Sanctuary's five major zones. These objectives include:
- Discovering Areas (uncovering the map)
- Finding Altars of Lilith
- Unlocking Waypoints
- Completing Side Quests
- Finishing Dungeons
- Liberating Strongholds
While the most significant Renown rewards—the extra Skill Points and Potion Capacity—are now account-wide and permanent once earned, discovering Waypoints still grants a small chunk of Renown for each new character. It appears the system was designed to have players re-engage with the world map each season. However, the community has largely found this form of re-engagement to be tedious rather than rewarding. The small amount of Renown gained is simply not worth the time spent retreading old ground.
A Chorus of Player Feedback: What the Community Demands
The call for change is not a minor complaint from a small subset of players; it is a widespread and consistent point of feedback across all platforms. Players argue that once a Waypoint has been discovered on any character on an account, it should remain unlocked for all future seasonal and non-seasonal characters.
The logic is simple: If the primary exploration rewards from the Renown system are already permanent, the functional tools of that exploration—the Waypoints—should be as well. This would respect the player's time and allow them to focus their limited gaming hours on the fresh mechanics and loot chase that each new season promises. It shifts the focus from mandatory chores to optional, rewarding gameplay.
Making this change would streamline the opening hours of a season, transforming it from a monotonous travelogue into an explosive start where players can immediately begin experimenting with new builds and tackling the latest threats Blizzard has designed.
What Does the Future Hold for Diablo 4?
Blizzard Entertainment has shown a commendable willingness to listen to player feedback and implement major quality-of-life improvements since Diablo 4's launch. The move to make most Renown rewards permanent was a direct response to early criticism, as were significant changes to itemization and end-game activities.
This track record gives players hope. The development team is undoubtedly aware of the community's feelings regarding the seasonal Waypoint reset. While no official announcement has been made for Season 11 or beyond, the overwhelming and logical nature of this request makes it a prime candidate for a future update. Unlocking Waypoints account-wide would be a universally celebrated change, demonstrating a continued commitment to refining the player experience and making Sanctuary a world players want to return to, season after season.