On June 28, 2008, BLIZZARD, creators of such popular games as Starcraft and World of Warcraft, announced the making of the third game in the Diablo series – Diablo III. Diablo was an action RPG, and is strictly made for the PC. Although there has not been a Diablo game released in over a decade, this next one looks promising.

GAMEPLAY: Diablo III is said to play much like Diablo II in a lot of ways. You will see your game from an overhead view via 3D environment.  Just like Diablo II, Battle.net will be used by online co-operative players, who will now be able to drop in and out of sessions. This game is also guaranteed to have replay value! It features a random level generator, a random encounter generator, and class-specific quests to go along with the main storyline quests. Something I read about that I found very interesting is that there will be no more potion bar. Instead, health orbs will fall from enemies, which leaves room for a skill bar where the old potion bar was. PvP combat is implemented to enhance single player and cooperative modes. There are different game modes you can play in, one being ranked games, or “best of”. You will earn a certain amount of points per match based on how many kills you have, achieved objectives, etc. The points will get you multiplayer achievements and titles.

PICK YOUR CLASS: There are several character classes to choose from. According to Wikipedia, these are the five said classes:

• The Witch Doctor is a new character reminiscent of the Diablo II Necromancer, but with skills more traditionally associated with voodoo culture. The Witch Doctor has the ability to summon monsters, cast curses, harvest souls, and hurl poisons and explosives at his enemies.
• The Barbarians will have a variety of revamped skills at their disposal based on the use of their incredible physical prowess. The Barbarian is able to Whirlwind through crowds, cleave through swarms, leap across crags, and crush opponents upon landing.
• The Wizard is a version of the Sorceress from Diablo II or the Sorcerer from Diablo. The Wizard’s abilities range from shooting lightning, fire, or ice at their enemies to slowing time and teleporting around enemies and through walls.
• The Monk is a melee attacker, using martial arts to cripple foes, resist damage, deflect projectiles, attack with blinding speed, and land explosive killing blows. Blizzard has stated that the Monk is not related in any way to the Monk class from the Sierra Entertainment-made Diablo: Hellfire expansion.
• The Demon Hunter is the newly announced class. Demon Hunters use crossbows as their main weapon and also throw small bombs at enemies. Some of their skills have been revealed and among them are arrow skills such as Chain Arrow.

In Diablo II, I play an Amazon. I am very excited to try the Demon Hunter!

PLOT: I am sure you are aware of Sanctuary, which is the world which was saved in Diablo II. According to the Blizzard website, Deckard Cain returns to the ruins of Tristram Cathedral looking for clues on how to defeat evils, at which time doom falls from the heavens reaching every ground Diablo has walked upon. This awakens ancient evils, and the heroes of Sanctuary must defend the mortal earth. Wow… eerie.

Although there is no official release date yet, the BETA is said to possibly be releasing on May 9, according to one website. If it is, I will have it. Gamestop has a tentative release of November 2011, however, no one from Blizzard has confirmed a date. So that I do not disappoint my customers (I work at Gamestop, and made the mistake of telling the Duke Nukem fans the first street date day upon pre-0rdering, which angered them) I have just been safely saying “possibly by the beginning of 2012”.

I will keep updating this article as I find out more information about the game/beta.