GenieKnows Games Narrowing the field

With the unveiling of the long anticipated Diablo III at the 2008 Blizzard Entertainment World Invitiational, I thought it would be handy to compile a list of all the details and features surrounding Diablo III.  This list will be updated as soon as new information is released.

Plot:

Two decades have passed since the demonic denizens, Diablo, Mephisto, and Baal, wandered the world of Sanctuary in a vicious rampage to shackle humanity into unholy slavery. Yet for those who battled the Prime Evils directly, the memory fades slowly and the wounds of the soul still burn.       

When Deckard Cain returns to the ruins of Tristram's Cathedral seeking clues to new stirrings of evil, a comet from the heavens strikes the very ground where Diablo once entered the world.  The comet carries a dark omen in its fiery being and it calls the heroes of Sanctuary to defend the mortal world against the rising powers of the Burning Hells – and even the failing luminaries of the High Heavens itself.

(Diablo III Plot)

General Information:

• Unveiled on June 28, 2008, at the Blizzard Entertainment Worldwide Invitational in Paris, France.
• Project was originally being developed by Blizzard North but was put on the backburner when Blizzard North was closed due to a mass exodus of employees.
• Stuck in development hell for 4-5 years.
• Taking a more cartoony and colourful approach to graphics.
• Not coming to consoles in the foreseeable future.
• Fixed Camera and isometric perspective.
• Havok physics engine being employed, semi-destructive environments which can be used to the player’s advantage.
• Much more story driven than previous games in the series.  Characters now have the ability to respond to dialogue.
• Blizzard has yet to confirm or deny that you can respec your character.
• Release Date: “When it’s done”.

Areas:

• New Tristram

• Began by merchant seeking to profit off the riches from the old cathedral.
• Completely looted the cathedral of all its riches and eventually fell into decline.
• Town now compromised of a depressing shacks and an inn.
•  “Old Man” (Cain) believes the ancient tomes located in the cathedral still contain some value.

• Caldeum

• Was once the trade capital of the world.
• Eventually exceeded Kurast in size (Diablo II, Act III).
• The nobles of Kurast eventually immigrated to Caldeum and began taking control over the city.  The Kurast noble’s influence over the city and sense of entitlement lead to the eventual deterioration of Caldeum.
• The death of the Emperor of Kehijstan triggered a series of events which led to the return of the Zakarum into the city.

(Diablo III Caldeum)

Classes:

• Like Diablo II, Blizzard has confirmed that there will be five character classes.
• Ability to select gender of character class.
• Not all classes will be returning from Diablo II.
• Two confirmed classes as of June 28, 2008:

• The destruction of Mount Arreat Summit led to the decline of the Barbarian race.
• Some Barbarians have turned into “inhuman beasts”.
• As of June28, 2008, there are 5 confirmed skills in the Barbarians arsenal:

1. Cleave:  Directional attack that hits multiple enemies.
2. Ground Stomp:  Leap with aoe stun effect.
3. Leap:  Goomba jumping action.
4. Seismic Slam: Directional attack which can cut through multiple enemies.
5. Whirlwind:  Same as Diablo II.

• Similar to the Necromancer from Diablo II
• Believe in a sacred realm beyond the physical called “The Unformed Land” which they are able to interact with (known as the Ghost Trance).
• As of June 28, 2008, there are 7 confirmed skills in the Witch Doctor’s arsenal:

1. Horrify: Aoe fear.
2. Mass Confusion: Similar to the Necromancer’s attract curse; mass confusion turns enemies against each other.
3. Soul Harvest: Aoe skill which kills and converts enemy souls into mana for the Witch Doctor.
4. Firebomb: Fire spell with aoe damage.
5. Locust Swarm: Swarms of locust devour multiple enemies.
6. Mongrel: The Witch Doctor summons a demon from the bones of its enemies.  The Witch Doctor has the ability to enhance his mongrels by casting locust swarm on them which inflict additional damage.  The Witch Doctor has the ability to kill his mongrels resulting in some nice aoe damage (think corpse explosion for summons) .
7. Wall of Zombies: Just how it reads, the Witch Doctor summons a wall of zombies who maul and attack any enemies who get close.

Gameplay:

• Potions will still be in the game but their role is being dramatically diminished.  Health orbs will be dropped by slain enemies which will heal the player or the entire party as long as they are within range.
• Hardcore has not been confirmed but is likely to return.
• Mercenaries will be returning.
• Destructible environments which the player can use to his advantage.
• Randomized dungeons along with randomized enemies will be returning.
• Town Portal system being reworked.
• Difficulty level being raised from previous games.
• Enemies can miss player and get their weapons caught in the ground.
• Huge Bosses are expected to be included in the game which will rival the size of previous bosses from Diablo II.

Battlenet and Multiplayer:

• Battlenet will be extensively upgraded with the launch of StarCraft 2 and Diablo III.
• Expect to see something similar to the World of Warcraft Armory for Diablo III.
• Blizzard has yet to determine how many people a game will support.  (A Diablo II multiplayer game could support up to 8 people)
• Diablo III will only have a single realm for North America.
• No confirmation on whether the game will have a subscription fee.

Quest System:

• Class based quests.
• Ability to converse and respond to quest givers/npcs (All voice acted).
• The game will contain a new system which randomly generates scripted events in certain areas.

Interface:

• Health and Mana Orbs make a return.
• Class specific loot drops.  This means you can only see and pickup loot that you can use.
• Items no longer take up multiple slots in your inventory (similar to World of Warcraft)
• Ability to easily change your skills by using the mouse wheel.
• Gold is automatically picked up.
• Potion slots replaced with a hotbar.
• DPS shown on weapons.
• Buffs are now displayed.
• Scrolling combat text now displayed on critical hits.