Diablo is one of those few games that made you proud to be a computer gamer. There were not many that made console gamers jealous, Blizzards Rogue-like was one of them. It joined the ranks of Wolfenstein 3D, Doom, Command & Conquer, and a few flight sims. Even Rogue was a PC exclusive for most intents and purposes. Fatal Labyrinth by Sega for the Genesis is a close entry about a decade later though. This adventure was for computer gamers only, well for just over a year anyhow. A Sony PlayStation port would appear the following year’s March.

More than just another maze game

Diablo one ups Rogue in that there is an actual story here. You are a lone hero that finds themselves in the small town of Tristram. This is no normal town as the Lord of Terror, Diablo, has taken up residence nearby. Your goal is to end the tyrannical reign of evil.

Sounds simple, right?

I will not bore you with the details of the story – that is what Wikipedia is for. Instead, let us focus on how you defeat a Lord of Hell. You are tasked with traversing 16 levels of winding corridors, large rooms, and collecting treasure. It will not be as simple as walking in and taking what you want. Nope, what kind of Rogue game would that be?

In Diablo you are facing hordes of evil. Many fantasy creatures made their way into the dungeons. These blood thirsty creatures want nothing more than your head, and the favor of their master.

Class makes a difference in Diablo

You can choose one of three classes before entering the world of Diablo.

Warrior – For those that prefer physical strength and close-up battles versus wits and magic. Can only wield one weapon at a time.

Rogue – If you do not prefer to be right up on your enemy then choose this class. Also, you can disarm traps with skill rather than your body like the warrior class.

Sorcerer – Like the ethereal arts? This one is for you. Just be ready, physically, this class is weak but strong with magic.

Monk – Only available in the Hellfire expansion. Rather good class to choose if you like the warrior style combat but prefer two weapons at once.

Only one dungeon with infinite possibilities

Yep, there is only one dungeon in Diablo. It does feature 16 levels, each slightly different than the last. There are also themes to many sections of the dungeon. Caves are more open-ended affairs while built up areas are more linear and tighter.

Each time you play the levels are randomly generated. This is a callback to Rogue and Nethack. This gives you tons of replayability but with little graphical variety. It can wear on you after playing long periods repeatedly. Playing once or twice a year for old times sake though and it is fine.

Considering the levels are randomly generated means leaving the graph paper out of your sessions. This allows you to focus on the tasks at hand. You are randomly assigned a handful of tasks per play. This also helps keep Diablo fresh and interesting.

These tasks come with massive rewards for completing them. They also come with immense challenges. Attempt them at your own risk.

The future was bright for Diablo

Diablo would go onto spawn two sequels, a third is on the way. It would see ports to PlayStation, Macintosh, etc. GoG.com would release the first game and expansion on their digital store as well. This marked a unique situation was Blizzard has their own digital store.

Blizzard did well by fans by picking up the company that originally created Diablo. Yep, this is not a 100% Blizzard original as it was pitched to them. They liked it so much they acquired the company behind it.

Remember those days? When companies liked a game so much, they just bought the developers?

Anyhow, it all started here on computers in late 1996/early 1997. The exact date is argued but it is in that range. I am going with January 3^rd, the date the announcing press release was dated. I believe Blizzard as we know it now marks the date as December 31^st, 1996.

No matter how you slice it, happy birthday to Diablo and thank you for the memories, Blizzard.

Carl Williams

It is time gaming journalism takes its rightful place as proper sources and not fanboys giving free advertising. If you wish to support writers like Carl please use the links below. https://www.paypal.me/WCW https://www.patreon.com/CarlWilliams