Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2008 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/BlizzCon 2008: Diablo III gameplay panelhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/11/blizzcon-2008-diablo-iii-gameplay-panel/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/11/blizzcon-2008-diablo-iii-gameplay-panel/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/11/blizzcon-2008-diablo-iii-gameplay-panel/#comments
Blizzard's Jay Wilson and Wyatt Cheng took the stage at BlizzCon for a second time yesterday to helm the Diablo III Gameplay panel, which gave us a few more details about the eagerly awaited third part in Blizzard's mouse-button mashing trilogy. Check out the highlights after the break, which include updates on some of the creatures you'll encounter, and how they're taking steps to mix up the gameplay by inserting "random adventures."

They started us out by taking us through a History of Diablo, and we hope there aren't a lot of people in the audience who don't already know this. Although it has been more than ten years since the first game came out, so maybe we can forgive some of the younger audience members. Like the ten year olds.

Wilson says Diablo III is "the next step" in the experience, and they're looking to upgrade it accordingly. He broke it down like this:
  • Diablo - random dungeons and items, simple, action-based gameplay, and character customization (Diablo had character customization? What?)
  • Diablo II - added outdoor environments, was larger, had unique classes and the skill tree.
  • Diablo III - will add amazing moment to moment encounters, an expanded RPG experience, and offers new systems, of which the Rune system is only one. "Some of the other ones may remain secret for years, although we're hoping not too many years." [Editor's note: AUGH!]
He explained that what they're trying to do is to maintain the "Spirit of Diablo," while updating the game and adding new features. Their focus is "Powerful Heroes Engaged In Epic Heroes Large Scale Combat," which is also one of their mottos. Right alongside Wilson's motto for his wife, "If you can click a mouse, you can play Diablo." When he says "powerful heroes," he went on to explain that means "almost ludicrously powerful."

They're also focusing on making this a replayable RPG that people will pick up over and over, and besides the already mentioned Rune system they plan on achieving this by adding random environments, monster encounters, random environments, more monster encounters, and higher difficulty levels. They hope to remove the generic feeling from random dungeons and to bring the world to life with more NPC interactions, with better quests and events.

They've changed and simplified some things since Diablo II, most noticeably the potion system. There are still health, mana, and other potions in the game, but now the monsters drop "health globes" that replenish your health on the fly. They're hoping this will lead to consistent encounters, rather just running back to town, buying 2,487 health potions, and then coming back to the encounter. Instead they're using the globes to have little to no downtime in battles, and it also relates to cooperative gameplay, because whoever picks up a health globe will also end up healing nearby allies as well.

The Hotbar at the bottom of the screen is new as well, emphasizing Skills over potions, and offering a great UI with more control over your character. You'll develop class-specific tactics, and they're diversifying controls and buffs.
Simple to learn, hard to master. Also new is Positional gameplay, which adds a new element to the game. When you see an enemy wind up for a slash, you can dodge him and attack (if you can click a mouse...) from behind. In the BlizzCon demo, when you fight the final boss you can easily dodge his massive swinging mace and use a ranged attack to take him down, as long as you don't get swarmed by his hordes of undead slaves.

They're also working on a new version of Battle.Net, which might be monetized as we already reported. They're looking to have a friends list for the Battle.Net servers, so you can see friends playing, click on them and join immediately in-game. It's not yet clear how they'll be looking to turn it into a moneymaking service, but with Blizzard now merged with Activision, there's probably more pressure to squeeze more gold out of players.

They showed off two new enemies from the game that show how they're trying to force the players to make new gameplay decisions:
  • Berserker - Uses a charged up attack that builds up for massive damage... but he's vulnerable if he misses. This changes the way players will approach and confront him.
  • Skeletal Shieldbearer - A slow but methodical creature that accompanies ranged units. He carries a shield that can be destroyed or circumvented, and he acts as a health wall for other units. Players can try and get behind him to attack where he's vulnerable, or destroy his shield from afar.
Random Adventures: these are events that can be placed almost anywhere in the game, and aren't full-fledged dungeons or instances. They'll encourage players to explore the environment more, and can randomly placed from game to game.:
  • Old abandoned house to explore
  • Evil cult summoning ritual
  • Caravan that needs protecting
  • Enemy camp with a boss

Character customization is one thing that people constantly knock in Diablo, and Wilson explained that they tried adding things like hair, skin, and facial customizations, but once you put them on your character you couldn't see them in the game, since your player is so small. They're focusing on permutations of the looks of items in the game, and they're not happy with how much there is in the game right now. The Rune system is one of the ways that you can customize what your character's actions look like in the game, and they're hoping to customize it more by having custom weapons and armors in the game. They'll be adding a lot of variations in the endgame to what your character looks like.

That's everything we learned, and we're hoping to get a bit more from today's Diablo III Art & Lore panel. If you're hoping for a release date, we haven't heard much except the fact that it doesn't sound like it's coming anytime soon.

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]]>Battle-NetBattle.NetBlizzardBlizzConblizzcon-2008diablodiablo-3diablo-iiiKevin Kelly2008-10-11T18:00:00+00:00BlizzCon 2008: The costume and dance contesthttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/11/blizzcon-2008-the-costume-and-dance-contest/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/11/blizzcon-2008-the-costume-and-dance-contest/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/11/blizzcon-2008-the-costume-and-dance-contest/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

One day of BlizzCon is already behind us, and with it came the announcement of the Wizard class for Diablo III, the fact that Starcraft II is going to be a trilogy, and the truism that World of Warcraft players really love their costume and dance contests.

Check out the video of the pants-off dance-off above, hit the links below that for some highlights, and then be sure and crawl through our galleries below for all that we've seen so far. Today brings more panels, more Diablo III news (omg wtf?!), and a closing ceremony featuring Patton Oswalt, Video Games Live, and Level 80 Elite Tauren Chieftain. We'll be bringing you audio and video, so keep watching.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Costume Contest


Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: The Experience

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]]>BlizzardBlizzconBlizzcon-2008Blizzcon08Diablo-iiiSC2Starcraft-2Starcraft-iiStarcraft2world-of-warcraftKevin Kelly2008-10-11T16:00:00+00:00Blizzard's Wilson: Some Battle.net features to be 'monetized'http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/11/blizzards-wilson-some-battle-net-features-to-be-monetized/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/11/blizzards-wilson-some-battle-net-features-to-be-monetized/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/11/blizzards-wilson-some-battle-net-features-to-be-monetized/#commentsFiled under: , , ,


Speaking at yesterday's Diablo III Gameplay panel, Blizzard's Jay Wilson was asked one of the questions that's been hiding in the back of all of our brains, "Is Battle.Net going to remain free?"

His response probably wasn't what you'd want to hear. "We are looking to monetize Battle.Net so that we get to keep making these games and updating features," said Wilson. "We kind of have to." He went on to say that they do recognize that everyone loves having it as a free service, and that they don't have a strong desire to make a subscription-based game.

What does that mean for our beloved free online gaming service? We're hoping to find out when we talk to Blizzard bigwig Rob Pardo later this afternoon.

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]]>Battle-NetBattle.NetBlizzardBlizzconBlizzcon-2008breakingbreakingnewsdiablodiablo-3diablo-iiiKevin Kelly2008-10-11T15:00:00+00:00BlizzCon 2008: Diablo III Wizard cinematic and new screenshotshttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/blizzcon-2008-diablio-iii-wizard-cinematic-and-new-screenshots/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/blizzcon-2008-diablio-iii-wizard-cinematic-and-new-screenshots/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/blizzcon-2008-diablio-iii-wizard-cinematic-and-new-screenshots/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,


Here's the piping-hot new cinematic video for the Wizard class in Diablo III, straight from BlizzCon. This leads us to suspect that each class will get its own cinematic, possibly as they approach the Sanctuary instance near the beginning of the game. There are several Wizard-specific CGI moments and gameplay shots in a sort of "coming up this season on Diablo III" format.

Below you can check out the new gallery of screenshots from Diablo III, featuring new shots of the Wizard, Barbarian, and Witch Doctor. Enjoy the goodies, and keep checking back for more info.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Diablo 3

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]]>BarbarianBlizzardBlizzConblizzcon-2008D3DiabloDiablo-3Diablo-iiiDiablo3Witch-DoctorWizardKevin Kelly2008-10-10T20:00:00+00:00BlizzCon 2008: The Diablo III Class Panelhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/blizzcon-2008-the-diablo-iii-class-panel/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/blizzcon-2008-the-diablo-iii-class-panel/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/blizzcon-2008-the-diablo-iii-class-panel/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,


Jay Wilson, Julian Love, Wyatt Cheng from Blizzard were the first panel from BlizzCon, which was all about the Diablo III class system, including its tweaks and special effects. Unfortunately, we didn't get any more hints at the other two classes which haven't been announced yet. However, with the Witchdoctor and Wizard being so magic heavy, we're sure they'll add another physical fighter that isn't quite as big as the Barbarian. Head after the break to get the new details on the Skill System, the Rune System, and four of the Wizard's spells that involve blowing things up, and / or melting them.

Gallery: BlizzCon: Diablo 3 Skill Systems Gallery


Jay Wilson, Julian Love, Wyatt Cheng from Blizzard were the first panel from BlizzCon, which was all about the Diablo III class system, including its tweaks and special effects. Unfortunately, we didn't get any more hints at the other two classes which haven't been announced yet. However, with the Witchdoctor and Wizard being so magic heavy, we're sure they'll add another physical fighter that isn't quite as big as the Barbarian. Head after the break to get the new details on the Skill System, the Rune System, and four of the Wizard's spells that involve blowing things up, and / or melting them.

Gallery: BlizzCon: Diablo 3 Skill Systems Gallery

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]]>BlizzardBlizzconBlizzcon-08D3Diablo-IIIDiablo3WizardKevin Kelly2008-10-10T19:29:00+00:00Joystiq hands-on: Diablo 3 and the Wizard classhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/joystiq-hands-on-diablo-iii-and-the-wizard-class/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/joystiq-hands-on-diablo-iii-and-the-wizard-class/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/joystiq-hands-on-diablo-iii-and-the-wizard-class/#commentsFiled under: , ,


Click for full, hi-res gallery
That's right, Diablo III. We jumped on one of the machines made available to the press, and hacked and blasted away until the intense stares stabbing daggers of "GIVE ME A TURN" forced us back. We'll spend a lot more time with this over the weekend, but for now here's the skinny.

First up was the "Choose Your Class" screen, which made us pee our pants when we first saw it. Six classes! Right?! Well, no. That's a male and a female of each class. The male wizard was ghosted out and nonselectable for some reason, leaving (from left to right) female wizard, female Barbarian, male Barbarian, male Witch Doctor, and female Witch Doctor. The other classes will be revealed (we hope) this weekend, and they seem to look like (we think) an Amazon and an Assassin for the other two unrevealed classes.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Diablo 3


Click for full, hi-res gallery
That's right, Diablo III. We jumped on one of the machines made available to the press, and hacked and blasted away until the intense stares stabbing daggers of "GIVE ME A TURN" forced us back. We'll spend a lot more time with this over the weekend, but for now here's the skinny.

First up was the "Choose Your Class" screen, which made us pee our pants when we first saw it. Six classes! Right?! Well, no. That's a male and a female of each class. The male wizard was ghosted out and nonselectable for some reason, leaving (from left to right) female wizard, female Barbarian, male Barbarian, male Witch Doctor, and female Witch Doctor. The other classes will be revealed (we hope) this weekend, and they seem to look like (we think) an Amazon and an Assassin for the other two unrevealed classes.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Diablo 3

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]]>BlizzardBlizzconblizzcon-2008D3Diablo-3Diablo-IIIjoystiqfeatureswizardKevin Kelly2008-10-10T13:50:00+00:00Diablo 3 Wizard class revealed [update]http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/diablo-3-wizard-class-revealed-update/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/diablo-3-wizard-class-revealed-update/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/10/10/diablo-3-wizard-class-revealed-update/#commentsFiled under: , ,


Click for full, hi-res gallery
Blizzard has revealed the third (of five total) classes for Diablo 3: the Wizard. According to the press release, "A wielder of the elements and a master manipulator of time, the wizard can hurl environment-shattering lightning bolts, channel explosive arcane energies, and create pockets of space outside the normal temporal flow." The class, along with Barbarian and Witch Doctor, will be playable this weekend at BlizzCon. Update: We originally stated that six classes were shown on the character select screen. A pox on us, it was just the male-female counterparts. Image of character select after the break.

Update: Check out our hands-on of the game and the new Wizard class -- plus the first gameplay footage.

Gallery: BlizzCon 2008: Diablo 3



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]]>blizzardblizzconblizzcon-2008breakingnewsd3diablodiablo-3diablo-iiiRoss Miller2008-10-10T13:25:00+00:00BlizzCon tickets are sold out. Like, totally, for realzhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/13/blizzcon-tickets-are-sold-out-like-totally-for-realz/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/13/blizzcon-tickets-are-sold-out-like-totally-for-realz/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/13/blizzcon-tickets-are-sold-out-like-totally-for-realz/#commentsFiled under:


Just stop hitting F5 because it's not going to make a difference now: BlizzCon tickets are sold out. Done, finished, finito, cashed. As thousands tried to grab one of the $100 tickets, the BlizzCon site buckled under the hordes of people, Orcs, Night Elves and Gnomes, but it's all over now.

Blizzard says that the event will be broadcast on DirecTV, but if you just have to be there, we're sure tickets will soon be available on eBay and other fine second-hand websites. It might be time for Actilizzard to start thinking about holding this thing at the Los Angeles Convention Center (or someplace a little bigger than the Anaheim Convention Center), for the sake of all those sad Pandarens who couldn't get tickets.

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]]>blizzardblizzard-entertainmentblizzconblizzcon-2008diablo-3diablo-iiisold-outstarcraft-2world-of-warcraftAlexander Sliwinski2008-08-13T11:40:00+00:00Shockingly, Blizzard has 'plans beyond' Diablo IIIhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/12/shockingly-blizzard-has-plans-beyond-diablo-iii/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/12/shockingly-blizzard-has-plans-beyond-diablo-iii/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/12/shockingly-blizzard-has-plans-beyond-diablo-iii/#commentsFiled under: , ,


We rather like trilogies. Not only are they narratively neat, allowing us to indulge in our favorite characters and universes just long enough, but they bring things to a close before the roman numerals get all complicated with incomprehensible Vs an Ms and stuff. Letters for counting? Ridiculous!

Despite this bothersome mental hurdle, developer Blizzard remains unrepentant when delving into the rich fantasy world it has crafted for Diablo. While the upcoming, artistically controversial three-I'd installment brings the trilogy's story of demonic overlords and highly uncomfortable facial jewelry to an end, it'll leave the portal open for future games, lead designer Jay Wilson tells MTV Multiplayer. "We're not saying this is the end of the 'Diablo' universe, but we are trying to bring this storyline to a close," says Wilson. "It's not just 'Diablo III' - we've got plans beyond."

Oh, and don't even bother submitting "World of Diablo." The commenter above you already did.

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]]>BlizzardDiabloDiablo-3Diablo-iiiTrilogyWorld-of-DiabloLudwig Kietzmann2008-08-12T20:00:00+00:00Diablo 3 lead: Necromancer, other classes could returnhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/08/diablo-3-lead-necromancer-other-classes-could-return/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/08/diablo-3-lead-necromancer-other-classes-could-return/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/08/diablo-3-lead-necromancer-other-classes-could-return/#commentsFiled under: , ,

When Diablo 3's Witch Doctor class was revealed, many of you -- at least one-fourth, by our estimates -- decried the perceived loss of the D2 Necromancer. Keep hope alive, True Believers, because D3 lead designer Jay Wilson tells MTV Multiplayer that it's still possible he'll rise from the dead.

Wilson admits that the dev team was divided on the topic of bringing back classes. "But after we've established Diablo 3 as its own game with its own type of gameplay and experiences," he said, "I wouldn't be opposed to looking at old classes ... We're looking out ahead of time at what our expansions are going to be, so we've got to keep room open for some of those other classes down the road." Wilson also said they designed the Witch Doctor so there would be room for the Necromancer. Now that we've got that settled, you can go back to complaining over the art style.

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]]>diablodiablo-2diablo-3diablo-iiinecromancerRoss Miller2008-08-08T01:40:00+00:00Diablo designer judging fan art for MTVhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/05/diablo-designer-judging-fan-art-for-mtv/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/05/diablo-designer-judging-fan-art-for-mtv/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/05/diablo-designer-judging-fan-art-for-mtv/#commentsFiled under: , ,


We've all thought it before: Watching a favorite franchise go astray and knowing that if someone, anyone would just lead you to the helm, you could right the ship. A few Diablo III fans actually got the chance thanks to MTV, as they showed how they would take the game's new, more colorful art style and dunk them in the same dirty blacks and grays that every other game this generation has been dredged through.

What's more, their attempts have been judged by Diablo III designer Jay Wilson, and it offers interesting perspective as to why Blizzard didn't go a darker route. (Oh, and shocking spoiler alert: Fan art does not change his mind.)

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]]>blizzarddiablo-3diablo-iiiJustin McElroy2008-08-05T09:00:00+00:00The Best of Big Download; June 22-28, 2008http://www.joystiq.com/2008/06/28/the-best-of-big-download-june-22-28-2008/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/06/28/the-best-of-big-download-june-22-28-2008/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/06/28/the-best-of-big-download-june-22-28-2008/#commentsFiled under: ,


Wow. We have had tons of news, downloads and new content for Big Download this week . . .and that's just for Diablo III. Let's take a look at the highlights for the past week.

Exclusive Features
  • Games for Windows Press Conference: We attend Microsoft's press event where they give their views on the future of PC gaming.
  • Guide to TF2 Pyro Achievements: Want a details look at all of the new achievements you can get while playing the Pyro in Team Fortress 2. Then check out the first five parts of our series: Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, and Part 5.
  • Shattered Suns Interview: We have an extensive interview with Chas. Cooper of Clear Crown Studios about their upcoming space based RTS game.
  • Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford: We chat with the head of the extremely busy game developer on Brothers In Arms: Hell's Highway and their other projects.
  • Alone In the Dark Interview: We chat with Atari US producer Todd Slepian about their just released survival horror game.
  • Hands-On: Deer Hunter Tournament: We get hands-on with the newest entry in the hunting sim series from Atari.
  • In-Depth: Armaggedon Empires: We take a detailed ook at this acclaimed indie strategy game.
  • In-Depth: The Political Machine: We offer a look at the just released political strategy game from Stardock
  • Big Ideas: Why do we play video games?: Our editorial takes a look at why we need playtime with games anyway.
  • BigCast 001: Our debut podcast has three of our team members chatting about, what else, PC gaming
  • Freeware Friday: Our weekly look at free games has a look at Freeciv, a free tribute to the great Civilization games.
  • Spore Creature Creator contest: You still have time to participate in our contest; make the best creatures and win some cool prizes


Downloads
News

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]]>big-downloadcall-of-duty-4call-of-duty-world-at-wardiablo-3diablo-iiiduke-nukem-foreverlimbo-of-the-lostrunescape-high-detailJohn Callaham2008-06-28T18:00:00+00:00Diablo 3 information overloadhttp://www.joystiq.com/2008/06/28/diablo-3-information-overload/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/06/28/diablo-3-information-overload/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/06/28/diablo-3-information-overload/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

After several days of conjecture, an evolving series of load screens, and more fanboy arguments than you can shake a mouse at, word has finally come down from on high that the newest Blizzard property will be Diablo III. With the announcement this morning, Blizzard has thrown open the floodgates with screen shots, concept art, video and more. If you're wondering about what this upcoming title has in store, check out coverage from around the network and beyond, or wander through the eye-candy goodness of the galleries!

Gallery: Worldwide Invitational 2008: Diablo 3

Gallery: Diablo III

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]]>battle-netblizzarddiablo-3diablo-iiirpgsingle-playerwwi-2008Krystalle Voecks2008-06-28T11:00:00+00:00Blizzard acquires Diablo3.com, nothing to see (yet)http://www.joystiq.com/2008/05/01/blizzard-acquires-diablo3-com-nothing-to-see/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/05/01/blizzard-acquires-diablo3-com-nothing-to-see/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/05/01/blizzard-acquires-diablo3-com-nothing-to-see/#commentsFiled under: , ,

diablo
Several weeks ago, Diablo3.com, an independent fansite, posted a provocative countdown set to end today, May 1st. The site teased that today would be the day that "half the web" links to the domain ... well, let us save you the click. Of the two potential outcomes posed by WoW Insider, we get the far less interesting one: Blizzard has acquired the Diablo3.com domain from Roger Barr (aka "Mockery") who is transitioning his fansite to a new domain, more appropriately dubbed, Diablofans.com.

Currently, Diablo3.com redirects to Diablofans.com, but eventually it will redirect to Blizzard.com, and after that...? Mr. Mockery notes that Blizzard has reminded him that the acquisition of the domain is not an official announcement of Diablo III, but Mockery can't help but speculate that "this is a confirmation of sorts that they're working on the next Diablo game." True that.

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]]>blizzarddiablodiablo-3diablo-iiiJames Ransom-Wiley2008-05-01T11:45:00+00:00