Just reinstalled Diablo II for the umpteenth time and got it working properly on my new system. The "feel" of the old Blizzard North games are just so right for the series. I watch endgame videos of Diablo 3 and it looks like a damn stock market circus show with a wild splash of random colors and styles and millions and millions of damage numbers bouncing left and right. Not to say there weren't some really cool ideas in D3, but the "soul" of Diablo, the soothing redundancy, the music, the dark atmosphere...that's all gone.
Funny part is that blizzard put a big focus on story in diablo 3. Yet the diablo 2 story was in my opinion 10x better. I mean just look at the opening scene in diablo 2... just wow.
but the funny thing is: all the CGI AND story for Diablo 2 was done by Blizzard South, and people at Blizz North had to adapt the game to them. Davik Brevik shared this story a while ago, in that they received the CGI and had to somehow make them work in the final game, because all the scripts and direction were created and designed at Blizz south without any sync with Blizz North team. So, the D2 we know and love is what it is as a combination of Blizz South story and lore + Blizz North gameplay.
No it wasn't, you fucking idiot. Warcraft 1&2 was made and released, before they got their hands Condor(Which was renamed to Blizzard North). Not to mention, Diablo was a inherited project, and had started development well before Condor was bought by Blizzard's parent company.
In another video someone stated: The perfect D4 would be a D2 with better graphics, new items and new stuff. In fact there are nice features in D3 compared to D2, but overall D2 is WAY better than D3.
And their justified hate for D3, fuck D3 its a terrible Diablo game. Wish the talented people at Blizzard North made it. The people working on D3 had no idea what made the franchise great: no trade, no pvp, boring items, terrible art direction, abysmal story... the list goes on! Oh and fuck Jay Wilson, that pompous charlatan! It's a yearly ceremony for me, I just have to get it out of my system sorry :)
They already destroyed the games lore by killing Deckard Kain, showing every possible demon lord, instead of slowly revealing each demon and giving them deeper stories with their own unique set of minions.... even the angels were revealed just like that... i always loved that the characters you played were normal humans and mercenaries... rather than some kind of angel/demon hybrid bullshit that only Marvel could come up with.... I don't want to play a superhero... i want to play as a human who slowly gains powers from ancient books and enchanted weapons... Not to mention their addition of that cheesy humour that only 5 year olds would enjoy.... Diablo was a dark and mysterious game... but they turned it into Disney
Cain didn't really become a central character until the second game...and even then, he was there simply to provide exposition. Ultimately, he wasn't as important as people like to make him out to be. The way the Lesser Evils of D3 were revealed was exactly the same as the two feature in D2; they were just kinda plorped out there as bosses with no real buildup or development.
@gamesmaster 87 the Act 2 is quite atmospheric as well. The tomb and tal rasha were plus with duriel encountered, pretty much intense than the Andariel from act 1
They went from dark, serious, psychological horror game to high fantasy and it shows in art style. They did their best to attract their wow players to a new game. They will never make a game even close to style of Diablo 1 and 2. POE and Titan Quest are more Diablo 3 then Diablo 3 is.
they don't resemble wow at all, especially not old wow I played wow and D2/D3 and nobody I know that tried D3 liked it one bit and thought it was really dumbed down.
Nicholas Mcmurray how are they ripped off from WoW, it's a hunter class. In WoW you can tame any pet you want lol how is that even a good comparison. A good comparison imo would be the fact that there are no skillpoints anymore and there are no individual tweaked builds in D3 compared to D2, just like in old WoW. The last few expansions have completely destroyed individuality in WoW as well, just like in D3. I wouldn't blame it on the devs directly that came to do the work FOR Blizzard, but the corporate mindset of SELL SELL SELL and dumbing down the games they used to have for a wider audience.
Goddamn Neko Idc u can argue with urself all u want, but those wolf and boar models are same as wow i hate it. And i guess the meta builds in vanilla weren't cookie cutter either. Sarcasm . As if there was so much customizability lol . Oversimplification has transpired though. Which has been enjoyable in WoW, but d3 is almost mindless compared to it's predecessors.
I'd rather see a remake of Diablo 2 in HD with more content, than anyone trying to change Diablo into something new. Keep the game exactly like it is, but more detailed graphics, new acts, new items, new characters, new skills. Why try to change one of the best games ever made, instead of just polishing it up to look modern and expanding the content?
Blizzard never captured the feeling of Diablo in D3. This is more to do with the story than the art direction (although the art direction was pretty far off as well). D3 somehow took a game named after the devil and turned it into a fantasy game, and although I played a lot of D3 I was never satisfied by the feel. In D1 I remember feeling terrified as I fought the Butcher in his room full of blood and gore. Going down into the chapel of Tristram where the dead were spawning was a horrifying prospect, and I felt like a sacrificial lamb being the one to venture down to find the source of evil itself. In D2 it's your job to follow in the footsteps (literally) of the last hero who confronted Diablo. And you're wondering the whole time how you'll possibly be able to escape the same fate EVEN IF you succeed in defeating him as the last hero did. In both cases you feel the horror and depth of sacrifice as you put your own soul on the line in defense of the world. In D3 you never feel like a sacrifice, it just felt like you were fighting hordes of monsters. It didn't feel like Satan was after your soul, or that you were doomed even if you succeeded, you just kinda ran around hunting for treasure from monsters that apparently spawned from hell. Blizz screwed up D3 at launch. Most disappointing game launch in the last 20 years for Blizz, but I have to give them credit for where they eventually took the game. The feeling of discovering the most powerful build based on skills and runes along with the staggering number of combinations of legendary effects and stat rolls makes the game feel constantly fresh and exciting (until you start looking at build guides). But there was literally zero value at all in the narrative, everything the game held for me was in the gameplay.
the art is the worst part along with game play. diablo 1 and 2 where not cartoony. nor was it anything like world of warcraft. whitch blizzard south manly devs
To be exact, they didn't turn it into just any fantasy game, but a power fantasy game. Even if they made the art style dark or scary there's no way the game would have the same feel of dread/helplessness of previous games when you're literally playing a Dragonball Z character who's miles beyond any enemy in terms of power, both lore and gameplay-wise. It also doesn't help that he/she can't even shut up about how cool they are, bragging about how easy it is for them every time they kill a zombie. It's baffling that like 8 lines recorded in trash bitrate, one of which is literally "That's a cow, alright!" feels like a better done voice-over than 100+ lines recorded in crystal clear quality by professional actors voice-over of D3. Shows just how bad/cringy the lines are.
The funny thing is: all the CGI for Diablo 2 was done by Blizzard South, and people at Blizz North had to adapt the game to them. It's a really funny story the devs shared, in that they received the CGI and had to somehow make them work in the final game, because all the scripts and direction, all that was created and designed at Blizz south without any guidance by the North team. So, the Diablo 2 turned out the way it is not only because of Blizz North, but also Blizz South had good part on build the atmosphere with thoe great CGI. Blizzard as a whole was just a different company at the time, even Blizz South KNEW what was right for the game, they are surely not to blame. It was the direction they went after being sold to Vivendi and later merged with Activision, not to mention the big change on their core design philosophies after the massive success of WoW that made Diablo 3 what it is. I dare to say that if it wasn't for all of that, even Blizzard South would put together a great Diablo 3, closer to the second game. It's not that Diablo 3 didn't turn out a good game, one expansion and many patches later, it indeed became a good game (gameplay-wise at least), but the art direction, removal of all demonic and christian references, the poor story and horrible, childish dialogue, all of that was due to Blizzard now only making games to the mass global market, and that means anime-style graphics with plenty of colors, easy to follow story and writing, super powered characters and childish, pixar like CGI.
I really liked the secrets of Diablo 2. I liked the fact that you needed to browse numerous online guides to find runeword recipes, what monsters can drop the best items, how to do uber runs, etc. It made me feel like I was constantly learning new secrets about the game. Diablo 3 was just so easy and straight forward.
Remember in diablo 1 and 2 when diablo was this mysterious creature who had no dialogue, just a demon you heard about leading into the finale where you eventually challenge him? In diablo3 in the last act it got annoying having diablos face pop up on your screen to talk some shit? Took the intrigue and fear out of the main bad guy for me personally
Lol I remember skipping him. After you hear diablo he sounds like he fears you and trying his best to deter you from killing him because he's so fearful. Defeats the purpose.
One way to expand the game universe, and maintain replayability, would have been to "discover" millions of new worlds in the game universe, each of which is threatened by invasion from the Burning Hells. The player meets with Tyrael in the Pandemonium Fortress, and gets sent to what is basically an Act like in D2, but with a randomly generated town, NPCs, maps, and the Act boss selected from one of the already known D2 bosses (with Tyrael thrown in as the Lord of Treason).
Yes!! Why dont more people talk about Grim Dawn? Truly a phenomenal game. Path of Exile is good, but I love Grim Dawn. A true spiritual successor to d2
@@joshstill5509 My thoughts exactly. Grim Dawn is what Diablo III should have been and would have been had Blizzard North not been shit canned. Path of Exile always felt like a beta next to Grim Dawn. Grim Dawn is superior in every respect. Except for that constellation skill tree thing...
New images of the canceled DIII have resurfaced in the art station profile of Oscar Cuesta. They look so much better in art direction... There is something so close with the atmosphere of the originals series, something that neither 3 of 4 from the current Blizzard accomplish.
Blizzard North is absolute masters. I am creating my own company based on their experience and peoples who grown from Diablo 1-2, the creators of Destiny 1 and 2. Game creators of: NOX, Revenant, Allods2 also masters, some stuff like inventory of Revenant was reborn in WoW btw
Man I'm watching this in 2022, now we have Diablo Immortal. I though Shitzzard had hit rock bottom with the way they massacred the entire warcraft franchise, but it looks like they had a shovel with them.
Especially since they make games way too easy nowadays for Generation Z vs. my Generation (X). Try playing a bunch of NES games and then try playing Switch games and then tell me which generation of console appeals to you the most; we all have our own charms and then we have games that just plain stink in both generations... but those who do not learn the lessons from the past are doomed to repeat them.
There are better games with graphics that don't look pixelated most of the time. I recommend Path of Exile if you aren't a fan of Diablo III. It is really fun, and you can customize your character in interesting ways.
Grim Dawn is only visually better. PoE is on another level when it comes to gameplay, and the developers keep on enhancing the game with constant expansions. Story-wise, both kinda suck though. It's hard to find another 1 like D2: great graphics (at the time), superb music, great gameplay and a great story.
That happens when the essence and the very soul of what the creation was leaves! Even to this day i feel the urge to play Diablo 1 everytime i hear the music that starts as soon as u enter tristram. I was never a hardcore D2 player but i did play it, ALOT! And i loved ervery minute of it! I even tried to play around with doing some of my own modding that i never released. It was ofc for personal use only, thats how invested i was back then!
a lot of those screenshots look like builds of the current d3 released now. (not all, but I recognize a lot of those model) never the less I miss blizzard north, what a great hardworking team
I will play Diablo 2 to eternity. Big companies cannot understand artist are unique you cannot replace them. Now Blizzard is falling to oblivion because of mistakes they made 10 years ago.
I´d like to see D2 in slightly upgraded graphics. I think hi res would be enough. I still love D2 graphics. I think if there would be the same type of upgrade as D1->D2, it would be gift to us and also apology for DIII crap.
@@DoItForU they were not fired. thier was a rights issue between blizzard north and blizzard intertanment. on whome owned the rights to the franchies. david and his 3 best friends walked out. so they wouldnt damage thier dev carreers. this was talked about on david breviks twitch chanel. him and his wife do every monday wensday and friday at around 12pm cenratl time. his wifes twitch channel is THEJUNGLEQUEEN
2:45 this guy... just by looking and listening to him i see he knows how to make a masterpiece diablo game, and he is sad what blizzard have done to the franchise. sometimes u get feelings about ppl just by looking at them... i admire this guy
The Diablo III we needed, but not the one we deserved... It sucks what happened to Blizzard North, one of the greatest game development companies of my time (the 90's), or any time, really.
Story line of diablo 3 with the game of diablo 2. That's what I wanted. I dont need perfect fuckin graphics. I need a well built, intelligent, and challenging game. I dont care about graphics, or bullshit auction houses and seasons. Diablo 2 was literally perfect. All they had to do was update it with a new story, new maps, maybe some new characters and that's literally it. It would have been the best game of our time.
I think Diablo 2 should get a compatibility patch for modern operating systems. Thankfully, it's looking very likely that D2 is getting a remaster this year.
Pretty much what he said. Diablo 3 was just made by a different group of people with a different vision of what diablo should be. Personally I prefer the older diablo 1 and 2 style, but it is what it is I guess
It’s really sad when the original creator was no longer able to work on their games after leaving the company, due to creative differences, while the company they left retain ownership of the IP. They really worked so hard to bring their work to life and popularize.
well it's not rocket science management changes means change of the final product this video was quite enjoyable to watch thank you and may the gods of the seven kingdoms hail supreme
What I don't understand is why Runic games, which is team comprised of many of those Blizzard North guys, made Torchlight so cartoonish? Why didn't they continue with their aesthetic style from D2? That's the only complaint of that game for me, but it's I feel.
man, i share david's emotions because D2 had so much impact, and for me not seeeing it transcend to D3 was a total bummer. anyway I still have D2 LOD in my pc and I watch some streamers. Tbh Im playing Path of Exile and enjoying every minute of it.
I enjoy Diablo 3, but again, Diablo 2 was just such a great game and so original. It was a game you had a PC for and it was a unique experience only on there. Diablo 3 came out after WoW and when the online community had really taken off.
It feels so good to read comments from people who feel as i do about D3. I was a huge fan of the diablo series 1 & 2, and its not just nostalgia, the games still hold up today. Diablo 3 is an utter travesty and made me literally hate Blizzard. Everyone predicted they would turn it into WoW with Binding items and killing customization. Now it's just an endless grind fest with no point to getting loot other than having it. No one pvps (and how could you even find someone that wants to?), there are no builds to base your items around, and trading is completely removed. Fuck Diablo 3, and fuck Diablo 4 because it will be the same shit.
Awesome interview and back story! Thank you for your work, I'm definitely saving this one. A separate question - where did you get the electronic version of the music? That's a pretty accurate orchestration.
What I would have liked? For Diablo 3 not to have been called Diablo 3, that would be a start. The game is not comparable to Diablo 2, which is fine, both games does one thing the other don't. Blizzard should just have come up with a name that wasn't gonna haft to live up to expectations and hype for 10+ years. I like trading, so expand upon that with better systems, improve the amasing (We'll it was 10/10 back in 2002 remember) lobby system and social features
D2 was literally my heart and soul in High School. I still regard it as the best game I've ever played, nothing has touched the fun level that it had. My memories will live on forever, unlike D3. D2.5, D2HD or w/e it would be called would garner more game play hours from me than D3 has. The only thing D3 has over D2 is quality of life improvements like not clicking on gold to pick it up, having a shared stash so we don't have to "mule" our items with a friend, or worse join a public game and find a random corner of the map where hopefully nobody finds your stuff(or everyone leaves/server crashes) and you lose all your gear. Also of course updated graphics and physics engines, but as far as game play NOTHING HAS IMPROVED. At all. Blizzard is no longer a company comprised of gamers making games for gamers. It's corporate monstrosities creating money-making platforms, using marketing to attract gamers with false promises. Blizzard is pathetic, heartless, and has spit in the face of my childhood so much I don't think I'll ever respect them again. I also will never purchase another product from them again, unless they bring back Condor(AKA Blizzard North) and let them fix this joke of a game. Blizzard, you are an embarrassment to true gamers. Thanks for stabbing us in the back and taking our money......Pathetic.
What I wanted from D3 and what I want now that I've played it - cleaned up UI, at least where we can hide the mini map, chat and achievement buttons, turning off achievements completely, focus the game less on leader boards and more on experiencing the world, less gaudy mid screen pop ups while playing, being able to turn off the drag-you-by-the-dick quest markers and end of dungeon portals, better character creation both visually (skin, hair color, hair style, face, minimum) and in terms of adding points to skill trees and personally assigning attribute points per level, mouseover knowing how much damage each skill is doing, adding armor rating back on the main inventory screen so i don't have to keep clicking on it, more than 4 hotkeys, a broader, I didn't like Leah, branching story maybe based on alignment where you can get different parts of the story depending on how you play each character (more RP in the RPG), maybe we should be able to or be in a fight with angels instead of their ally or play for the demon side, some kind of interaction with the world lore so it's less words on a page and part of the playable world (a la TES or BG), less of that heavily painted and over designed glamor final fantasy / wow looking armor and environments - where it's based on plausibility and not boobsocks and huge stupid looking armor, less saturated clothing dyes, i want dirt and grime that looks like dirt and grime, not fancy painted perfect dirt and grime, less glowy magicy stuff everywhere, go back to having things like light radius and potions, less of a focus on random dungeons and the collecting of crafting materials and other nonsense phone game style garbage. Less flashy lights and explosions, more simplified iconic imagery, where 'dungeons' look less like you're in a mouse maze and an actual place, it doesn't need to be immersive, just stop slapping me in the face that i'm an idiot playing a game. Maybe let people play with mods? Yeah. Mods. And I want to feel fear and trepidation again. The first time I killed Diablo as a kid I was shaking - I want that again. I would also like a little Cydaea spider lady as a pet - she's bloody adorable!
I agree. I think the best option for an offshoot of D2 would be to re-skin the old game in HD and keep as much of the engine as possible. If they could add new rune words or cycle some out or something that would be cool. Or create a patch that introduces something that competes with rune words, like better uniques or something
What I'd like to see as Diablo 3 from Blizzard North... what they wanted to make. Blizzard North made one of the most iconic games of time, and my second favorite game ever. Anything they would have made would have been amazing. (Diablo 3 was a fun game, but not a great one)
Everyone who hasn't yet and plays d2 should buy diablo 2 resurrected. It's awesome and they are bringing some of the old files they never used to fruition.
Those arena maps weren't made by blizzard north and early development team. Arenas were supposed to be in current diablo 3 but were scrapped few months prior to launching the game in 2012. I still remember reading about it. Did i miss understand you or did you mean that blizzard south developed it?
the series will never feel like the old D2 days. just look at heroes of the storm. all blizzard characters are colorful integrated and feel like a pokemon collection
@@lukeluckynblue1873 you're the trash here kid! Im pretty sure u never played the old games and you only know wow and d3. you dont even know what you are talking about! Sit down and do your homework dumb kid!
@@lukeluckynblue1873 i was 12 when diablo 2 came out. it was a dark atmospheric demonic dreadful game. it was the time before the 'blizzard art style'. back then diablo was the unknown evil that everybody feared. now you can actually play him as a humanized character, riding on a unicorn if you want to! i'm totally fine with it. but, as i said, the series will never have the same dark tone people loved about it. they 'cartoonized' everything (it's fine. i'm a game artist myself), and now they can't go back. you see, i'm not even complaining about anything. it's just a fact
Have you heard of Wolcen Lords of Mayhem? I heard they will make it possible for players to fully mod it, so maybe someone will make a Diablo themed mod for it in the future. The game itself has some of the qualities the early Diablo games had with the gritty graphics and weather effects
I disliked when hear David said that they also had MMO concept, so one way or another Diablo 3 would be MMO and I miss my single player experience in Diablo 2, exploring alone, gaining extra experience by killing once and another low level monsters near the Rogues encampment, or killing once and another Diablo, alone, not knowing even for what were those portals! I used to run (and walk for stamina) very very long distances! Was an amazing experience and, the best from I had memories. Then, the online experience was "fast", "grind", and especially "meaningless". For that reason I love Grim Dawn for having returned that lonely experience in a Diablo 2 environment.
It was better in nearly every way than D3, but I don't agree that it's a successor to the Diablo series. The atmosphere isn't the same to be sure, and it just didn't have the "magic" D2 had that keeps me coming back to the game even 17 years later.
Just reinstalled Diablo II for the umpteenth time and got it working properly on my new system. The "feel" of the old Blizzard North games are just so right for the series. I watch endgame videos of Diablo 3 and it looks like a damn stock market circus show with a wild splash of random colors and styles and millions and millions of damage numbers bouncing left and right.
Not to say there weren't some really cool ideas in D3, but the "soul" of Diablo, the soothing redundancy, the music, the dark atmosphere...that's all gone.
Indigo Gaming Im trying to get my hands on a copy of D2 now. I so miss the damn game.
if I had the time, I would definitely delve into D2 again...
Really feel the same as you, very much agree to what you said.
Access Denied They sell it on Battle.net, but annoyingly in true Blizzard form they still sell the game and expansion separately.
Indigo Gaming thnx for the info dude. I'm getting both now 😆
diablo 1 was the best. d2 was great. d3 is also great, just different. games evolve and change there's nothing we can do about it
if blizzard north's version of d3 actually saw the light of day, the world would simply be a better place.
Funny part is that blizzard put a big focus on story in diablo 3. Yet the diablo 2 story was in my opinion 10x better. I mean just look at the opening scene in diablo 2... just wow.
but the funny thing is: all the CGI AND story for Diablo 2 was done by Blizzard South, and people at Blizz North had to adapt the game to them. Davik Brevik shared this story a while ago, in that they received the CGI and had to somehow make them work in the final game, because all the scripts and direction were created and designed at Blizz south without any sync with Blizz North team. So, the D2 we know and love is what it is as a combination of Blizz South story and lore + Blizz North gameplay.
@@RainerLuizFonseca burnnnnn!
Blizzard North was THE real Blizzard, the heart and soul of it.
blizzard turned into to a shit storm without blizzard north
"King in the NORTH!"
Technically they were Condor, but I would have to agree D1 and D2 were arguably Blizzard's best work in general.
Best Blizzard company division
No it wasn't, you fucking idiot.
Warcraft 1&2 was made and released, before they got their hands Condor(Which was renamed to Blizzard North).
Not to mention, Diablo was a inherited project, and had started development well before Condor was bought by Blizzard's parent company.
I would still like another D2 expansion.
This, if it was somehow possible... I'd hope that the orignial team would make it according to their vision..
the only thing that (for me) comes a bit close to that is the diablo 2 mod called Annihilus
You're not the only one !
So do i , But .. by blizzard north that no longer exists... so that's a problem right there.
ill take another expansion
2:45 till the end, poor guy tried so hard to not say "They fucked it up" haha
The fact that Diablo 3 wasn't made by Blizzard North makes me cry every morning.
And now you have a NEW reason to cry. Diablo IMMORTAL. Just a reskin of D3 marketed to China
Yeah really sad...
This. We could have had another game as epic as D2. Instead we are still playing D2 because D3 sucked balls.
I'm with you 1,000 percent on that.
It is so nice to see other ppl sharing the love for D2 that i have. Keep it up bro!
Thanks man! I am so happy I can echo what Diablo 2 was and have thousands of you appreciate it. Thank you.
In another video someone stated: The perfect D4 would be a D2 with better graphics, new items and new stuff.
In fact there are nice features in D3 compared to D2, but overall D2 is WAY better than D3.
And their justified hate for D3, fuck D3 its a terrible Diablo game. Wish the talented people at Blizzard North made it. The people working on D3 had no idea what made the franchise great: no trade, no pvp, boring items, terrible art direction, abysmal story... the list goes on! Oh and fuck Jay Wilson, that pompous charlatan!
It's a yearly ceremony for me, I just have to get it out of my system sorry :)
Most people who hate Diablo III do so purely because it is not Diablo II with better graphics.
DrPluton
Me included!
They already destroyed the games lore by killing Deckard Kain, showing every possible demon lord, instead of slowly revealing each demon and giving them deeper stories with their own unique set of minions.... even the angels were revealed just like that... i always loved that the characters you played were normal humans and mercenaries... rather than some kind of angel/demon hybrid bullshit that only Marvel could come up with.... I don't want to play a superhero... i want to play as a human who slowly gains powers from ancient books and enchanted weapons... Not to mention their addition of that cheesy humour that only 5 year olds would enjoy.... Diablo was a dark and mysterious game... but they turned it into Disney
Cain didn't really become a central character until the second game...and even then, he was there simply to provide exposition. Ultimately, he wasn't as important as people like to make him out to be.
The way the Lesser Evils of D3 were revealed was exactly the same as the two feature in D2; they were just kinda plorped out there as bosses with no real buildup or development.
In Diablo's lore, humans have been always the hybrids between angels and demons. It's not a thing only revealed on Diablo 3.
@@GabrielMRTheAnthologyOfLore thats a dumb retcon from Diablo 3
I couldn't agree more, well said. That's what i always thought.
@gamesmaster 87 the Act 2 is quite atmospheric as well. The tomb and tal rasha were plus with duriel encountered, pretty much intense than the Andariel from act 1
I definetly agree with one thing: It's the people that make great games, not the Company.
They went from dark, serious, psychological horror game to high fantasy and it shows in art style. They did their best to attract their wow players to a new game. They will never make a game even close to style of Diablo 1 and 2. POE and Titan Quest are more Diablo 3 then Diablo 3 is.
the mechanics resemble wow as well its no wonder the wow players who did not play Diablo before liked it
they don't resemble wow at all, especially not old wow
I played wow and D2/D3 and nobody I know that tried D3 liked it one bit and thought it was really dumbed down.
demonhunter pets, the wolf and the boar are literally ripped from WoW.
Nicholas Mcmurray how are they ripped off from WoW, it's a hunter class. In WoW you can tame any pet you want lol how is that even a good comparison. A good comparison imo would be the fact that there are no skillpoints anymore and there are no individual tweaked builds in D3 compared to D2, just like in old WoW. The last few expansions have completely destroyed individuality in WoW as well, just like in D3. I wouldn't blame it on the devs directly that came to do the work FOR Blizzard, but the corporate mindset of SELL SELL SELL and dumbing down the games they used to have for a wider audience.
Goddamn Neko Idc u can argue with urself all u want, but those wolf and boar models are same as wow i hate it.
And i guess the meta builds in vanilla weren't cookie cutter either. Sarcasm . As if there was so much customizability lol . Oversimplification has transpired though. Which has been enjoyable in WoW, but d3 is almost mindless compared to it's predecessors.
I'd rather see a remake of Diablo 2 in HD with more content, than anyone trying to change Diablo into something new. Keep the game exactly like it is, but more detailed graphics, new acts, new items, new characters, new skills. Why try to change one of the best games ever made, instead of just polishing it up to look modern and expanding the content?
Blizzard south took over development.. Aaaand things went... south?
Get out.
ayyyyy
Waaay TF South
Haha, good one. >D
CARLOS
Blizzard never captured the feeling of Diablo in D3. This is more to do with the story than the art direction (although the art direction was pretty far off as well). D3 somehow took a game named after the devil and turned it into a fantasy game, and although I played a lot of D3 I was never satisfied by the feel.
In D1 I remember feeling terrified as I fought the Butcher in his room full of blood and gore. Going down into the chapel of Tristram where the dead were spawning was a horrifying prospect, and I felt like a sacrificial lamb being the one to venture down to find the source of evil itself.
In D2 it's your job to follow in the footsteps (literally) of the last hero who confronted Diablo. And you're wondering the whole time how you'll possibly be able to escape the same fate EVEN IF you succeed in defeating him as the last hero did. In both cases you feel the horror and depth of sacrifice as you put your own soul on the line in defense of the world.
In D3 you never feel like a sacrifice, it just felt like you were fighting hordes of monsters. It didn't feel like Satan was after your soul, or that you were doomed even if you succeeded, you just kinda ran around hunting for treasure from monsters that apparently spawned from hell.
Blizz screwed up D3 at launch. Most disappointing game launch in the last 20 years for Blizz, but I have to give them credit for where they eventually took the game. The feeling of discovering the most powerful build based on skills and runes along with the staggering number of combinations of legendary effects and stat rolls makes the game feel constantly fresh and exciting (until you start looking at build guides). But there was literally zero value at all in the narrative, everything the game held for me was in the gameplay.
Perfect comment sire. I feel very much the same!
and don't forget about the lame dialogue... having the big demons talk (all the time) was the one single worst mistake in my opinion.
the art is the worst part along with game play. diablo 1 and 2 where not cartoony. nor was it anything like world of warcraft. whitch blizzard south manly devs
To be exact, they didn't turn it into just any fantasy game, but a power fantasy game. Even if they made the art style dark or scary there's no way the game would have the same feel of dread/helplessness of previous games when you're literally playing a Dragonball Z character who's miles beyond any enemy in terms of power, both lore and gameplay-wise. It also doesn't help that he/she can't even shut up about how cool they are, bragging about how easy it is for them every time they kill a zombie.
It's baffling that like 8 lines recorded in trash bitrate, one of which is literally "That's a cow, alright!" feels like a better done voice-over than 100+ lines recorded in crystal clear quality by professional actors voice-over of D3. Shows just how bad/cringy the lines are.
@@RainerLuizFonseca gotta love Azmodan skyping you in the middle of a dungeon
The funny thing is: all the CGI for Diablo 2 was done by Blizzard South, and people at Blizz North had to adapt the game to them. It's a really funny story the devs shared, in that they received the CGI and had to somehow make them work in the final game, because all the scripts and direction, all that was created and designed at Blizz south without any guidance by the North team. So, the Diablo 2 turned out the way it is not only because of Blizz North, but also Blizz South had good part on build the atmosphere with thoe great CGI.
Blizzard as a whole was just a different company at the time, even Blizz South KNEW what was right for the game, they are surely not to blame. It was the direction they went after being sold to Vivendi and later merged with Activision, not to mention the big change on their core design philosophies after the massive success of WoW that made Diablo 3 what it is. I dare to say that if it wasn't for all of that, even Blizzard South would put together a great Diablo 3, closer to the second game.
It's not that Diablo 3 didn't turn out a good game, one expansion and many patches later, it indeed became a good game (gameplay-wise at least), but the art direction, removal of all demonic and christian references, the poor story and horrible, childish dialogue, all of that was due to Blizzard now only making games to the mass global market, and that means anime-style graphics with plenty of colors, easy to follow story and writing, super powered characters and childish, pixar like CGI.
I really liked the secrets of Diablo 2. I liked the fact that you needed to browse numerous online guides to find runeword recipes, what monsters can drop the best items, how to do uber runs, etc. It made me feel like I was constantly learning new secrets about the game. Diablo 3 was just so easy and straight forward.
Installed Diablo 2 LOD for the nth time. I still love this game.
Remember in diablo 1 and 2 when diablo was this mysterious creature who had no dialogue, just a demon you heard about leading into the finale where you eventually challenge him? In diablo3 in the last act it got annoying having diablos face pop up on your screen to talk some shit? Took the intrigue and fear out of the main bad guy for me personally
Lol I remember skipping him. After you hear diablo he sounds like he fears you and trying his best to deter you from killing him because he's so fearful. Defeats the purpose.
@@thefiremanscomin Lord of Terror is scared... how ironic.
If you can even call that genderbending thing from D3 Diablo anymore.
Jon Tucker TERROR
I couldn't stand it, the whole "story" played like some Disney cartoon
Yeah then when the girl turned out to be Diablo.....such a letdown!
The North remembers
One way to expand the game universe, and maintain replayability, would have been to "discover" millions of new worlds in the game universe, each of which is threatened by invasion from the Burning Hells. The player meets with Tyrael in the Pandemonium Fortress, and gets sent to what is basically an Act like in D2, but with a randomly generated town, NPCs, maps, and the Act boss selected from one of the already known D2 bosses (with Tyrael thrown in as the Lord of Treason).
Grim Dawn helped me recover from Diabolo III.
impurfekt yes! Grim Dawn and Path of Exile.
Both are superb games.
Yes!! Why dont more people talk about Grim Dawn? Truly a phenomenal game. Path of Exile is good, but I love Grim Dawn. A true spiritual successor to d2
@@joshstill5509 My thoughts exactly. Grim Dawn is what Diablo III should have been and would have been had Blizzard North not been shit canned. Path of Exile always felt like a beta next to Grim Dawn. Grim Dawn is superior in every respect. Except for that constellation skill tree thing...
@@impurfekt My thoughts exactly!
I would love another Diablo 2 expansion, would be the best thing ever since a loooong time.
TheSethSon yes, i agree!
come back man. it's about to happen.
New images of the canceled DIII have resurfaced in the art station profile of Oscar Cuesta. They look so much better in art direction... There is something so close with the atmosphere of the originals series, something that neither 3 of 4 from the current Blizzard accomplish.
Blizzard North is absolute masters. I am creating my own company based on their experience and peoples who grown from Diablo 1-2, the creators of Destiny 1 and 2. Game creators of: NOX, Revenant, Allods2 also masters, some stuff like inventory of Revenant was reborn in WoW btw
A second expansion with two more acts and one more char would have been sick
Man I'm watching this in 2022, now we have Diablo Immortal. I though Shitzzard had hit rock bottom with the way they massacred the entire warcraft franchise, but it looks like they had a shovel with them.
it's true with every game... once the developers change, the new people bring a new game that won't be appreciated by veteran players
Especially since they make games way too easy nowadays for Generation Z vs. my Generation (X). Try playing a bunch of NES games and then try playing Switch games and then tell me which generation of console appeals to you the most; we all have our own charms and then we have games that just plain stink in both generations... but those who do not learn the lessons from the past are doomed to repeat them.
cq33xx Troll.
D2 music tugs at my heart god damn.
A new diablo expansion would be so sick.
There are better games with graphics that don't look pixelated most of the time. I recommend Path of Exile if you aren't a fan of Diablo III. It is really fun, and you can customize your character in interesting ways.
Grim Dawn is way better than Path of Exile. Way better.
Grim Dawn is only visually better. PoE is on another level when it comes to gameplay, and the developers keep on enhancing the game with constant expansions. Story-wise, both kinda suck though.
It's hard to find another 1 like D2: great graphics (at the time), superb music, great gameplay and a great story.
David Brevik is such an awesome guy, the amount of money I would pay for this guy to oversee Diablo 4........
What would I have wanted from Diablo 3?
More Polish at launch, deeper character progression (assignable stat points), and true offline mode.
Many original and New magics, skills, itens and quests.
A HD remake for Diablo 2 would be awesome.
Well guess what ...? 🤣🤣👍👍👍
Rip blizzard North
Would be sick if we could fund a kick starter for the old blizzard north team to make another game/d2 expac... then we would have pvp again O.o
I would support it and endorse it as Tifas-Revenge :)
It's sad that real Diablo III died at 2005 with Blizzard North. D3 which we got is godawful.
Never knew any of this... It all makes sense now...
Expectations from D3
- Single player support
- Skills that are actually useful
- Items that are actually useful
Haha you fukin idiot everything what you just said is there
@@lukeluckynblue1873 pfffffff where?
The Real D3 (Blizzard North Version) could be Awesome ....
That happens when the essence and the very soul of what the creation was leaves!
Even to this day i feel the urge to play Diablo 1 everytime i hear the music that starts as soon as u enter tristram.
I was never a hardcore D2 player but i did play it, ALOT! And i loved ervery minute of it!
I even tried to play around with doing some of my own modding that i never released.
It was ofc for personal use only, thats how invested i was back then!
I'm here because of Diablo Immortal.
yeah same i wish i would of seen this before. This interview is gold and tells everything that went wrong with Activision Blizzard.
a lot of those screenshots look like builds of the current d3 released now. (not all, but I recognize a lot of those model) never the less I miss blizzard north, what a great hardworking team
D2 remaster could be djablo 3 we've been wanting.
I will play Diablo 2 to eternity. Big companies cannot understand artist are unique you cannot replace them. Now Blizzard is falling to oblivion because of mistakes they made 10 years ago.
I´d like to see D2 in slightly upgraded graphics. I think hi res would be enough. I still love D2 graphics. I think if there would be the same type of upgrade as D1->D2, it would be gift to us and also apology for DIII crap.
I would too, but alas they're catering to the mobile market....
Diablo 2 ressurected! Boom
I am a huge Diablo fan. That's why I am enjoying Path of Exile so much.
I miss Blizzard North...
How could Blizzard Irvine/south mess up so badly? why did everyone have to leave from blizzard north? is there an interview on this?
Hopefully we can get X to see this and root out some answers for us
By X do you mean Generation X? This is my generation :)
They asked for full freedom in d3 or they will leave so they all got fired the next day
@@DoItForU they were not fired. thier was a rights issue between blizzard north and blizzard intertanment. on whome owned the rights to the franchies. david and his 3 best friends walked out. so they wouldnt damage thier dev carreers. this was talked about on david breviks twitch chanel. him and his wife do every monday wensday and friday at around 12pm cenratl time. his wifes twitch channel is THEJUNGLEQUEEN
2:45 this guy... just by looking and listening to him i see he knows how to make a masterpiece diablo game, and he is sad what blizzard have done to the franchise. sometimes u get feelings about ppl just by looking at them... i admire this guy
Thnx for sharing the vid. Never saw the interview from Brevik about Diablo 3.
The Diablo III we needed, but not the one we deserved... It sucks what happened to Blizzard North, one of the greatest game development companies of my time (the 90's), or any time, really.
Story line of diablo 3 with the game of diablo 2. That's what I wanted. I dont need perfect fuckin graphics. I need a well built, intelligent, and challenging game. I dont care about graphics, or bullshit auction houses and seasons. Diablo 2 was literally perfect. All they had to do was update it with a new story, new maps, maybe some new characters and that's literally it. It would have been the best game of our time.
I just started playing diablo 2 again about a week ago. It's still awesome and i still find myself staying up too late playing it.
I think Diablo 2 should get a compatibility patch for modern operating systems. Thankfully, it's looking very likely that D2 is getting a remaster this year.
So... Blizzard North was disbanded and from that moment on the Diablo franchise went South. Correct? :)
Pretty much what he said. Diablo 3 was just made by a different group of people with a different vision of what diablo should be. Personally I prefer the older diablo 1 and 2 style, but it is what it is I guess
It’s really sad when the original creator was no longer able to work on their games after leaving the company, due to creative differences, while the company they left retain ownership of the IP. They really worked so hard to bring their work to life and popularize.
diablo 3: biggest disappointment since Alien 3
Good job covering all the facts in the video well put together .
well it's not rocket science management changes means change of the final product
this video was quite enjoyable to watch thank you and may the gods of the seven kingdoms hail supreme
2018 RIP diablo
F
Old D3 looks so much better than the one we got. RIP
What I don't understand is why Runic games, which is team comprised of many of those Blizzard North guys, made Torchlight so cartoonish? Why didn't they continue with their aesthetic style from D2? That's the only complaint of that game for me, but it's I feel.
man, i share david's emotions because D2 had so much impact, and for me not seeeing it transcend to D3 was a total bummer. anyway I still have D2 LOD in my pc and I watch some streamers.
Tbh Im playing Path of Exile and enjoying every minute of it.
poe is the diablo 3 that never was. and alot more. poe is hands down the true succesor of d2
I enjoy Diablo 3, but again, Diablo 2 was just such a great game and so original. It was a game you had a PC for and it was a unique experience only on there. Diablo 3 came out after WoW and when the online community had really taken off.
It feels so good to read comments from people who feel as i do about D3. I was a huge fan of the diablo series 1 & 2, and its not just nostalgia, the games still hold up today. Diablo 3 is an utter travesty and made me literally hate Blizzard. Everyone predicted they would turn it into WoW with Binding items and killing customization. Now it's just an endless grind fest with no point to getting loot other than having it. No one pvps (and how could you even find someone that wants to?), there are no builds to base your items around, and trading is completely removed. Fuck Diablo 3, and fuck Diablo 4 because it will be the same shit.
Awesome interview and back story! Thank you for your work, I'm definitely saving this one. A separate question - where did you get the electronic version of the music? That's a pretty accurate orchestration.
What I would have liked? For Diablo 3 not to have been called Diablo 3, that would be a start. The game is not comparable to Diablo 2, which is fine, both games does one thing the other don't. Blizzard should just have come up with a name that wasn't gonna haft to live up to expectations and hype for 10+ years.
I like trading, so expand upon that with better systems, improve the amasing (We'll it was 10/10 back in 2002 remember) lobby system and social features
What is wish could have changed for D3....
Less rainbows and moar Cows... DII > DIII
Why fix something that aint broke? This version would have been legendary!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Bring back Blizzard North!!!!!!
I love D1 and D2 I still play it. I don't hate Diablo 3, and I do play it. Not as often.
D2 was literally my heart and soul in High School. I still regard it as the best game I've ever played, nothing has touched the fun level that it had. My memories will live on forever, unlike D3.
D2.5, D2HD or w/e it would be called would garner more game play hours from me than D3 has. The only thing D3 has over D2 is quality of life improvements like not clicking on gold to pick it up, having a shared stash so we don't have to "mule" our items with a friend, or worse join a public game and find a random corner of the map where hopefully nobody finds your stuff(or everyone leaves/server crashes) and you lose all your gear. Also of course updated graphics and physics engines, but as far as game play NOTHING HAS IMPROVED. At all. Blizzard is no longer a company comprised of gamers making games for gamers. It's corporate monstrosities creating money-making platforms, using marketing to attract gamers with false promises. Blizzard is pathetic, heartless, and has spit in the face of my childhood so much I don't think I'll ever respect them again. I also will never purchase another product from them again, unless they bring back Condor(AKA Blizzard North) and let them fix this joke of a game.
Blizzard, you are an embarrassment to true gamers. Thanks for stabbing us in the back and taking our money......Pathetic.
I feel so sad about this... we could have played such a great diablo 3 game.. we would have been forgotten about d2 lod!
D3. Runes, runewords, sockets, gens, charms. Expand on these and I’m golden.
The North Will Never Forget!
The North remembers!
Yes... Winter is coming from the north, and the REAL Blizzards in time will tell :)
perhaps the most random comment of all time but: I fcking love the hive theme music from the (unofficial) expansion from diablo 1 :D
What I wanted from D3 and what I want now that I've played it - cleaned up UI, at least where we can hide the mini map, chat and achievement buttons, turning off achievements completely, focus the game less on leader boards and more on experiencing the world, less gaudy mid screen pop ups while playing, being able to turn off the drag-you-by-the-dick quest markers and end of dungeon portals, better character creation both visually (skin, hair color, hair style, face, minimum) and in terms of adding points to skill trees and personally assigning attribute points per level, mouseover knowing how much damage each skill is doing, adding armor rating back on the main inventory screen so i don't have to keep clicking on it, more than 4 hotkeys, a broader, I didn't like Leah, branching story maybe based on alignment where you can get different parts of the story depending on how you play each character (more RP in the RPG), maybe we should be able to or be in a fight with angels instead of their ally or play for the demon side, some kind of interaction with the world lore so it's less words on a page and part of the playable world (a la TES or BG), less of that heavily painted and over designed glamor final fantasy / wow looking armor and environments - where it's based on plausibility and not boobsocks and huge stupid looking armor, less saturated clothing dyes, i want dirt and grime that looks like dirt and grime, not fancy painted perfect dirt and grime, less glowy magicy stuff everywhere, go back to having things like light radius and potions, less of a focus on random dungeons and the collecting of crafting materials and other nonsense phone game style garbage. Less flashy lights and explosions, more simplified iconic imagery, where 'dungeons' look less like you're in a mouse maze and an actual place, it doesn't need to be immersive, just stop slapping me in the face that i'm an idiot playing a game. Maybe let people play with mods? Yeah. Mods. And I want to feel fear and trepidation again. The first time I killed Diablo as a kid I was shaking - I want that again.
I would also like a little Cydaea spider lady as a pet - she's bloody adorable!
this should be high liked video for current blizzard wakeup
I agree. I think the best option for an offshoot of D2 would be to re-skin the old game in HD and keep as much of the engine as possible. If they could add new rune words or cycle some out or something that would be cool. Or create a patch that introduces something that competes with rune words, like better uniques or something
It hurts to see David gone hes the main reason the games are good : /
What I'd like to see as Diablo 3 from Blizzard North... what they wanted to make. Blizzard North made one of the most iconic games of time, and my second favorite game ever. Anything they would have made would have been amazing.
(Diablo 3 was a fun game, but not a great one)
Wow, this sure clears up why D3 was so rough at launch.
Inarius set *cough cough*
Dude never knew any of this info, TY! :D
Well i knew Condor (B NORTH) started on D3 but didnt see or hear anything about it.
I would help crowdfund D3 and/or Starblo made by Blizzard North and the original creators of D1 n D2.
Everyone who hasn't yet and plays d2 should buy diablo 2 resurrected. It's awesome and they are bringing some of the old files they never used to fruition.
I would like everything from diablo 2 + more
I find this all very heartbreaking. I love Blizzard North. I actually was more a Blizzard North fan than the South
Am i the only one who loves both Diablo II and III ?
damn that was a poweful interview
Those arena maps weren't made by blizzard north and early development team. Arenas were supposed to be in current diablo 3 but were scrapped few months prior to launching the game in 2012. I still remember reading about it. Did i miss understand you or did you mean that blizzard south developed it?
the real diablo 3 is Grim Dawn. it's really given me that "finally..." feel
they killed diablo. they killed their own godly game. its kinda lol but sad aswell
Grim Dawn is a nice game. I get some of the D2 feel when i played it. :)
I would pay anything to play Blizzard Norths Diablo 3 and know their story.
blizzard north was talented beyond all believe.
Am I the only one who likes all of the diablos? Including D3? After the auction house of course. And excluding Diablo Immortal.
the series will never feel like the old D2 days. just look at heroes of the storm. all blizzard characters are colorful integrated and feel like a pokemon collection
@@lukeluckynblue1873 you're the trash here kid! Im pretty sure u never played the old games and you only know wow and d3. you dont even know what you are talking about! Sit down and do your homework dumb kid!
"you are trash and cancer" the insult of every white 10 year old kid xD man RUclips comments never disappoint
@Chris just report him for harassment... people like him have no place here on RUclips.
@@lukeluckynblue1873 i was 12 when diablo 2 came out. it was a dark atmospheric demonic dreadful game. it was the time before the 'blizzard art style'. back then diablo was the unknown evil that everybody feared. now you can actually play him as a humanized character, riding on a unicorn if you want to! i'm totally fine with it. but, as i said, the series will never have the same dark tone people loved about it. they 'cartoonized' everything (it's fine. i'm a game artist myself), and now they can't go back. you see, i'm not even complaining about anything. it's just a fact
@Tim Hagedorn please, D2 isn't nearly as dark as D1. D1 felt like a legit horror game. D2 felt like a generic adventure fantasy game.
Have you heard of Wolcen Lords of Mayhem? I heard they will make it possible for players to fully mod it, so maybe someone will make a Diablo themed mod for it in the future. The game itself has some of the qualities the early Diablo games had with the gritty graphics and weather effects
I disliked when hear David said that they also had MMO concept, so one way or another Diablo 3 would be MMO and I miss my single player experience in Diablo 2, exploring alone, gaining extra experience by killing once and another low level monsters near the Rogues encampment, or killing once and another Diablo, alone, not knowing even for what were those portals! I used to run (and walk for stamina) very very long distances! Was an amazing experience and, the best from I had memories. Then, the online experience was "fast", "grind", and especially "meaningless". For that reason I love Grim Dawn for having returned that lonely experience in a Diablo 2 environment.
Path of Exile totally took the role as Diablo 2's proper successor. Maybe they can reclaim w/ D4.
It was better in nearly every way than D3, but I don't agree that it's a successor to the Diablo series. The atmosphere isn't the same to be sure, and it just didn't have the "magic" D2 had that keeps me coming back to the game even 17 years later.