Archive for August, 2008

Diablo 2 back on the sales chart

Saturday, August 16th, 2008

Diablo 2 is enjoying a Renaissance of sorts on the back of the Diablo 3 announcement. The classic game is back in the sales chart at number 6!

I gave my copy of Diablo II to my cousin a few years ago, so now I’m beating my head against the wall. If you’re like me and would like to replay Diablo 2 with friends on Battle.net, I suggest you find yourself $5.

Why $5? Because that’s how much a Diablo 2 CD key costs. That’s an original key (not some keygen thing) and it works like a charm. You download Diablo II, you enter the key and you’re ready to roll.

Here, I just saved you $55 (the Diablo Battlechest retails for 59.99).

Update: Here’s a direct link to one site offering it at $5 – link.

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Posted in Blizzard, Diablo 3 News, Diablo 3 in the media | 8 Comments »

Diablo 3 – the end?

Wednesday, August 13th, 2008

In an interview for MTV, Jay Wilson said that Diablo 3 “will round out the story arc set up by the previous two games.”

“We also tried to focus a little more on bringing characters back, and not just from ‘Diablo II’ but from ‘Diablo I,’” he said. “We feel like a lot of the focus is on ‘Diablo II’ but ‘Diablo I’ started it all and has a lot of really good stuff on the gameplay side and on the character side. So people can expect to see characters from ‘Diablo I,’ more characters from ‘Diablo II,’ and characters from some of the books. We’re definitely going to bring a few of them in.”

The quote that really matters for me, however, is this one:

And while “Diablo III” ends the trilogy, fans needn’t worry — it’s not the final curtain for “Diablo.” “We’re not saying this is the end of the ‘Diablo’ universe, but we are trying to bring this storyline to a close,” Wilson said. “It’s not just ‘Diablo III’ — we’ve got plans beyond.”

Now, that’s finally an admission that no one at Blizzard is crazy enough to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs. Who knows… maybe we’ll see a Diablo movie soon?

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Posted in Diablo 3 News | 5 Comments »

Diablo 3 Art Director leaves

Friday, August 8th, 2008

This news just came in from Gamasutra . Brian Morrisroe, art director on Diablo 3, is leaving Blizzard.

In light of the whole argument about the new COLOR in Diablo 3 screenshots, you’d expect someone to lose their job. Not so this time, Brian is leaving on his own accord. What’s more, Blizzard said that Brian’s art direction is nothing short of amazing!

Part of Morrisroe’s legacy will likely be the somewhat controversial art design for Diablo III, which fans lambasted vocally in online petitions for what they thought was a lapse in its predecessor’s traditionally bleak, Gothic look.

“This change won’t impact the game,” continued the statement. “We’re really pleased with the look and feel that Brian helped create for Diablo III, and the new person we bring onboard will work with the other artists on the team to maintain the art style moving forward.”

If you ask me, that’s like making a pink Harley Davidson and then say it’s just like we always wanted.

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Posted in Blizzard, Diablo 3 News, Diablo 3 in the media, Diablo 3 rumors | 31 Comments »

Diablo 3 screenshots redone

Tuesday, August 5th, 2008

In an attempt to steer Blizzard into a darker world for Diablo 3, gamers have done some Photoshoping on Diablo 3 screenshots. The new screenshots are darker, the colors are less saturated.

I must say I’m impressed with the result (see below). Not Blizzard though. Jay Wilson, designer for Diablo 3 speaks out:

Now in terms of the actual texturing, this texturing, where they grayed out everything and it’s very flat and the monsters are all kind of a similar tone — that does not play well. It’s very boring to run through more than a couple of times, and it’s very difficult to tell creatures apart and pop them out of the environment. So those things don’t really work for us. A lot of the lighting stuff I think is very cool, but it’s also not very doable for us.


Let me know what you think. I understand these shadows can be tough to do in a 3D engine but let’s not forget Diablo 3 is supposed to be gothic horror, not cartoon-like fantasy like WoW!

diablo 3 screenshot redone

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Posted in Blizzard, Diablo 3 News, Diablo 3 in the media, Diablo 3 rumors, Diablo 3 screenshots, Diablo 3 videos | 59 Comments »