Diablo was supposed to be a turn-based game, but the dev clicked on a skeleton and thus an action RPG was born

Many Diablo series fans surely have lots of memories from different installments of this hack and slash game. However, if the original concept of the game had been implemented, these traces in memory would be completely different or not exist at all. Few people know, but originally the series was supposed to have... a turn-based combat system (via GameStar).

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The project's originator, David Brevik, wanted to implement it. This was decision was inspired by classic roguelike games like Rogue, Moria, and Angband. Furthermore, what mattered to the creator were strategic decisions, not the number of clicks.

However, the dev failed to convince the rest of the team or Blizzard itself (then under the name Silicon & Synapse) of his vision. The company wanted real-time gameplay, which was also shared by the rest of the developer team. So when the vote on the combat system took place, Brevik was in the minority. He can at least take comfort in the fact that the title of the game - Diablo - was his idea, specifically from Mount Diablo in California, where he used to live.

However, there was a moment when Brevik himself was convinced to "mass clicking." One Friday evening, while testing code in the office, he decided to check what such a game looks like. So he approached the skeleton as a warrior, clicking, he struck it, and when it crumbled, he said, "Oh my God, this is an amazing feeling."

The latest, fourth installment of Diablo was released in 2023 and is still being developed to this day. Recently, the latest part got its 9th season, which introduced a new storyline focused on the hunt for bloody relics.

Diablo

December 31, 1996

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• Overview

• games trivia
• Blizzard
• action RPG
• hack'n'slash
• David Brevik
• Diablo (franchise)