Medusa project demystified

Remember when just before Starcraft 2 was announced, there was a rumor about a Medusa demo.

Some people thought it could be something related to Diablo 3 (I wish!). The mystery is over - courtesy of Kotaku:

Sigaty, Starcraft 2’s lead producer, told me that the original codename for Starcraft 2 was “alpha”, but when the game was nearing alpha they decided to change it.

“We couldn’t say that alpha was hitting alpha, so we needed another name,” he said. They settled on Medusa.

This isn’t another Diablo 3 rumor. It’s just setting the record straight!

E3: More Diablo 3 hints?

E3 has been tamer this year. That doesn’t mean there’s nothing happening there.

Gamasutra has an interview with Frank Pearce, founding member and senior vice president of product development for Blizzard.

Here a bit from the interview:

“Our global headcount is 2,700,” said Pearce, “And most of that is customer service for World of Warcraft! In terms of development staff it’s probably around 350. World of Warcraft is about 135 people, 40 for Starcraft II, 40 for team 3, our cinematics team is about 85 guys. Then there’s sound and Q/A and that sort of thing.”

When pressed for details regarding the new project, Pearce was cagey. “Team 3 is working on something really awesome. I can’t give you any hints, but it’s totally awesome.”

All attempts to extract additional information were understandably met with looks of shock and horror from Blizzard’s director of global public relations, who also attended the meeting.

With Blizzcon just a few days away, I wonder if Blizzard are warming up to a formal announcement of this mysterious third project.

E3: More Diablo 3 hints?

E3 has been tamer this year. That doesn’t mean there’s nothing happening there.

Gamasutra has an interview with Frank Pearce, founding member and senior vice president of product development for Blizzard.

Here a bit from the interview:

“Our global headcount is 2,700,” said Pearce, “And most of that is customer service for World of Warcraft! In terms of development staff it’s probably around 350. World of Warcraft is about 135 people, 40 for Starcraft II, 40 for team 3, our cinematics team is about 85 guys. Then there’s sound and Q/A and that sort of thing.”

When pressed for details regarding the new project, Pearce was cagey. “Team 3 is working on something really awesome. I can’t give you any hints, but it’s totally awesome.”

All attempts to extract additional information were understandably met with looks of shock and horror from Blizzard’s director of global public relations, who also attended the meeting.

With Blizzcon just a few days away, I wonder if Blizzard are warming up to a formal announcement of this mysterious third project.

Diablo the Movie

News |
Trailer |
Pictures |
Games |
Soundtrack

Cast |
Awards |
Reviews |
Downloads |
Wallpapers |
Posters |
Documentary

Uber Diablo a taste of things to come?

I’ve been thinking lately about the new content that Blizzard added to Diablo 2 with the Pandemonium Event (i.e. the Diablo 2 Ubers).

I’ve heard many arguments that it’s not REALLY new content as Blizzard have just taken a few bosses and made their uber versions. For example, they’ve used Andariel’s model to create Lilith who shares very similar spells and effects.

That is one way to look at it. However, lets turn to the year(s) preceding World of Warcraft’s launch. Blizzard created a special “custom” campaign (The Founding of Durotar) for Warcraft III that used the game engine BUT simulated WoW in terms of gameplay. The quest structure, the items (epic, legendary, etc), even the levelling.

Come to think of it, I might have enjoyed the campaign MORE than I have enjoyed WoW. You could control three heroes plus summoned creatures and henchmen, the quests made sense (i.e. not repetitive), and the items were pretty powerful.

That’s not my point though. My point is that what Blizzard has done with patch 1.11 is test the realms for the style of gameplay that their next-gen MMO (lets call it Diablo III: Heaven and Hell) will feature.

This looks a long shot now but come back in a year and we’ll see. I definitely think Blizzard’s next-gen MMO should feature top SOLO content in addition to raid content.

I do expect to kill Diablo even as a casual SOLO player. Surviving the fight might be a 10% chance and loot might be just a few greens but I’d like to see Diablo go down. Amen.

Diablo site update

I've just updated the Diablo site, so here's the updated sitemap:

Diablo Home
Diablo Downloads
Diablo Cheats
Diablo Item Editor
Diablo Hero Editor
Diablo Hellfire expansion
Diablo Story
Diablo Heroes
Diablo Spells
Diablo Items
Unique Items
Diablo Quests
Diablo Monsters
Diablo Guides

Diablo 3 listing

Just got word that the BOTW directory included a Diablo 3 blog to it's structure. Great news indeed. Also, the updated Diablo sitemap. Includes Diablo 1, Diablo 2, and Diablo 3.

More Diablo 3 rumors

Gamespot’s coverage of Starcraft 2 has been spot on. At the same time, IGN has got it wrong before when it comes to Diablo 3, so I take these articles with a grain of salt.

In essence, Rob Pardo talks how Starcraft 2 is one of the smaller projects currently in Blizzard:

Pardo also dropped a hint at the scale of Blizzard’s future plans, saying that the 40 developers working on Starcraft II are “one of the smaller teams.” Job listings on the Blizzard site have indicated it is working on a “next-gen MMO”–which the company said will not be another World of Warcraft. Also, rumors persist that Diablo III is in development.

Now, Paul Sams also said something similar - that Blizzard is working on three projects.

Here’s how I interpret it - Diablo 3 and the next-gen MMO are probably the same thing. After all, what’s better than a MMO in the Diablo universe? You got Heaven and Hell as factions… you got an Epic conflict that’s going to dwarf everything that WoW has. Frankly, who cares about Illidan when the can go after Diablo.

Blizzard announces Starcraft 2

For good or for worst, the wait is OVER.

As a die-hard Diablo fan, I’m disappointed. Yet, die-hard Diablo fans are just that - die hards. I’m not giving up hope that Diablo 3 is going to be next when Blizzard announces a major product (and not another WoW expansion).

Starcraft 2 is as good as a consolation as any! It will make the wait for Diablo 3 less painful - if not downright enjoyable.

Update: Blizzard have released a Starcraft 2 trailer and I managed to find some gameplay videos from the WWI. The game doesn’t look much different in terms of gameplay but the graphics definitely ROCK!

Diablo 3 teaser

My eyes are sore from all the reloading and staring at Blizzard’s new front page!
I’m attaching a snapshot below (click to zoom) in case they decide to remove it.

I’m really hoping Blizzard will announce Diablo 3 on the 18th. It was only a few days ago that everyone was convinced they were going to announce Starcraft 2 in Korea.

Money - good, Diablo - bad

Man, I’m a pissed off today!

It’s not just the rumors that Blizzard will announce Starcraft 2 in three weeks in Korea. Obviously, if Blizzard announce Starcraft 2 this puts Diablo 3 on the backburner for an year if not longer.
It’s not even Rob Pardo’s interview (that’s WoW’s game designer), where he explains how they have a commitment to keep the WoW money machine going by doing an expansion every year. No such commitment to Diablo, thank you very much!
It’s the OVERALL feeling that Blizzard have sold out. Money - good. You probably still remember that animation - Money good, Napster bad - from Camp Chaos.
Blizzard have become the gorilla in the room - catering to the millions of casual gamers (not to mention Chinese farmers!) and forgetting about the hardcore players who have built their franchises.
For God’s sake, there are tens of thousands of players who play Diablo 2 till this day and who who have been praying for a sequel since 2001! Say it ain’t so.

Diablo 2 sets update

All Diablo 2 Sets
All sets contain full description of all items as well as the cumulative bonus when the complete set is worn. (Diablo info at Diablo 2 wiki)

Angelic Raiment
Arcanna's Tricks
Arctic Gear
Berserker's Garb
Cathan's Traps
Civerb's Vestments
Cleglaw's Brace
Death's Disguise
Hsarus' Trim
Infernal Tools
Iratha's Finery
Isenhart's Armory
Milabrega's Regalia
Sigon's Complete Steel
Tancred's Battlegear
Vidala's Rig

All Diablo 2 LoD Sets (Expansion Sets)
All sets contain full description of all items as well as the cumulative bonus when the complete set is worn.

Aldur's Watchtower - Druid Set
Bul-Kathos' Children - Barbarian Set
Cow King's Leathers
The Disciple
Griswold's Legacy - Paladin Set
Heaven's Brethren
Hwanin's Majesty
Immortal King - Barbarian Set
M'avina's Battle Hymn - Amazon Set
Natalya's Odium - Assassin Set
Naj's Ancient Vestige - Sorceress Set
Orphan's Call
Sander's Folly
Sazabi's Grand Tribute
Tal Rasha's Wrappings - Sorceress Set
Trang-Oul's Avatar - Necromancer Set

Diablo 3 at Blizzcon 2007?

Blizzard announced today its BlizzCon event will happen in early August - about a hundred days from now.
The event itself will be held for 2 days. Make sure you reserve August 3 and 4 for a trip to Anaheim, California.
More from the press release:
Discussion panels with Blizzard developers
Artist and developer signings
Competitive and casual tournaments for players to showcase their talents
World of Warcraft® Trading Card Game tournaments and demos
Costume, machinima, and character sound-alike contests with great prizes
Commemorative merchandise and other products based on the Blizzard franchises
Here’s what caught my attention:
BlizzCon is a celebration of the Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® franchises and the players who have helped make them so popular around the world.
Now, Blizzard, if you want me to celebrate Diablo and Starcraft, just get the friggin’ games out, OK?

Blizzard interview: Rob Pardo

Next Gen has an interview with Rob Pardo, Blizzard’s chief Game Designer.
He’s the guy credited with the success of World of Warcraft and the first expansion, The Burning Crusade.
I ask him if getting these expansions out on a regular basis is a matter of survival. After all, if gamers aren’t getting fresh content, they’ll start looking elsewhere and WoW’s subscriber base will dwindle to that of a regular MMO like RIFT.
“Calling it a matter of survival makes it sound grim,” he says, “It’s more a matter of entertainment. Of course we want our gamers to stay in the world for as long as we can. But I look at this from the positive angle of us trying to entertain them. We’re trying to give them new experiences. One of my favorite analogies is how much an MMO is like a TV series. We’re developing episodes just like Lost or Seinfeld. We’re always trying to come up with something that’s true to the theory; that’s true to the content that people love; but that is new. From the moment that the series starts re-treading the same ground over and over again… well, that’s what we’re trying to avoid.”
Enough about WoW, if you ask me. Let’s hear something about what else is cooking in Blizzard’s kitchen.
We have other PC projects in development and we’re already working on new stuff for World of Warcraft, like another expansion. We’ve mentioned in the past that we’d love to get a boxed expansion out every year but it’s more important to deliver really high quality content to our fans. If we can do that every year that’d be great but we’re not going to do that at the expense of the experience.
With all due respect, I’m sick of hearing how Blizzard is now ONLY working on WoW expansions. What are these PC projects in development, Rob? Spill the beans already! I’d like to know if you’re talking about Diablo 3 or Starcraft 2.

Diablo 2 info update

Diablo 2 (and its expansion, Lord of Destruction) was developed by Blizzard North and released in 2000. Because of the massive amount of Diablo 2 cheats, the only version currently played is the one on Battle.net. (Diablo info at Diablo 2 wiki)

Diablo 2 Hero Skills
Diablo 2 heroes pack more power now. For a breakdown of hero skills, see the links below.

Sorceress (Sorceress skills)
Skills: Cold-Based Skills Lightning-Based Skills Fire-Based Skills

Amazon (Amazon skills)
Skills: Javelin Skills Bow/Crossbow Skills Passive and Magic

Barbarian (Barbarian skills)
Skills: War Cries Combat Skills Combat Masteries

Necromancer (Necromancer skills)
Skills: Summoning Spells Curses Poison and Bone Spells

Paladin (Paladin skills)
Skills: Combat Skills Offensive Auras Defensive Auras

Druid (Druid skills)
Skills: Elemental Skills Shapeshifting Skills Summoning Skills

Assassin (Assassin skills)
Skills: Martial Arts Skills Shadow Disciplines Skills Trap Skills

New Diablo 2 uniques
The Lord of Destruction expansion has introduced new unique items, especially in the exceptional unique and elite unique categories.

All unique armor
Unique Helms Unique Armor Unique Shields Unique GlovesUnique Boots Unique Belts Unique Rings Unique Amulets

All unique weapons
Unique Axes Unique Bows Unique Crossbows Unique Daggers Unique Maces Unique Polearms Unique Scepters Unique Spears Unique Staves Unique Swords Wands

Diablo 2 cheats & trainers
For direct download: unique items, powerful Diablo 2 sets and LoD sets - complete with stats and bonuses, the best weapons and armors.

Diablo 2 cheats (work with patch 1.11)
If you're looking for cheats, savegames, item editors, hero editors, maphacks, or rune words, click here.

Diablo Übers
Diablo 2 Ubers
Lilith
Über Diablo
Über Baal
Über Mephisto
Über Duriel
Über Izual
Über Tristram videos

Diablo 2 Quests
Quests in Act I
Quests in Act II
Quests in Act III
Quests in Act IV
Quests in Act V

Diablo Monsters
Diablo Monster FAQ
Monster Types
Monster Strategies
Monsters in Act I
Monsters in Act II
Monsters in Act III
Monsters in Act IV
Monsters in Act V

Wiimote for Diablo 3

When I mention Diablo (or Diablo 2) to someone, I usually get a response like: "Oh yeah, I remember it... my mouse broke because of it."

Diablo was such a click-fest that I started wondering if we could use something like Nintendo's wiimote (that's the Wii remote/controller). Forget PS3!

Then I saw a few pics (and videos) of guys going CRAZY with the wiimote: Smashing lights, windows, and one one guy who actually hit (and destroyed) his 60" rear-projection TV!

Check out the pic on the right. This guy got lucky and skewered the side of the TV but the TV survived (as did the guy.

So what do you think? Would you like to swing your sword at Diablo while destroying half the house?

Diablo 3 and Windows Vista

I still haven't "upgraded" to Vista for various reasons (hardware upgade pending). I'm on the look-out for the new generation of games that are coming for Vista that take advantage of DirectX 10.

I've seen Hellgate London's trailer as well as gameplay videos but I wasn't too impressed. The guys there were saying DirectX 10 allows them to do all kinds of character customizations.

Enter Age of Conan. See the trailer below and then download the HD versions. It's simply AMAZING to look at. If Diablo 3 looks anything close to that, I'm sold.

Note: this low-res version doesn't do it justice. You should download the high-def versions below:

• DirectX 10 trailer, 720p (.wmv) - 46.5MB


• DirectX 10 trailer, 480p (.wmv) - 26.4MB

On the funny side, if you machine can't play the 720p video smoothly, you probably need a hardware upgrade as well. I know mine can't.

What's next: Diablo 3 or Starcraft 2?

According to IGN, Blizzard is contemplating a Starcraft sequal for real.

...another little nugget of gold dropped alongside it with the public admission that Itzik Ben Bassat, Vice President Business Development and International for Blizzard Entertainment, would be keen to see a new StarCraft before too long.

On stage in London for the game launch, Bassat stated, "I'm a StarCraft player myself and I hope it's not a decade, and we launched StarCraft in 1998, before I'm standing here again, celebrating the next game in the series."

During another previous interview, Paul Sams (Blizzard's COO) said that in 2007 they'll have 3 (three) product announcements. If we consider that the Burning Crusade has been one, we're left with two.

Could it be that our wildest dreams will become true? Both Diablo 3 and Starcraft 2 will be announced soon?

Some Diablo 2 links worth noting: Diablo Downloads, Diablo Cheats, Diablo Save Games, Diablo Item Editor, Diablo Hero Editor, Diablo Rune Words, Diablo Maphack, Diablo 2 CD Keys, Diablo 2 ISO, Diablo 2 Utilities, Diablo cheat codes, and Diablo 1.11 no-CD.