Future Diablo game discussion thread

[corebit]

The Diablo world just isn't as fleshed out as say, the Warcraft series. The franchise has devolved into killing the same Prime Evils over and over again, with RoS shoehorning Malthael to spice things up a bit. With the Nephalem being able to kill even all the Evils combined together, there is really nothing left to stand as opposition.

[Kontinuum]

The franchise has devolved into killing the same Prime Evils over and over again, with RoS shoehorning Malthael to spice things up a bit.

Only Diablo has been killed more then once in the series.

With the Nephalem being able to kill even all the Evils combined together, there is really nothing left to stand as opposition.

Make the Nephalem one of the antagonists.

[Darkarath]

I think that there are plenty of plots to go after RoS, but I understand why Blizzard isn't working a new expansion, I mean, besides the success/failure of the game and the profit that they can get out of it, from a lore point of view, RoS's ending is perfect as a D3 ending, it leaves the franchise in the perfect spot for a Diablo 4.

Just think about the possibilities. Right now we have:

- All the main evils free and well.
- The High Heavens worried sick not only because of the demons, but for the growing power of the Nephalem.
- The Nephalem, discovering their new and amazing powers.

It's just too perfect to touch it in D3. What are they going to give us? A filler expansion searching for Leah's spirit?

Just take this 3 factions, make a really big, misterious, dark world, and basically create a D3 with several MMO features. They can patch this kind of game forever. For example: patch 1.5, fight Mefisto / patch 2.7, introducing the Assassin class / patch 3.1, summer event.

They only have to think about how to keep making money with the game for a long time, and I'm pretty sure that they have plenty of ways to do that, hopefully it won't be an auction house.

[ophion1990]

Yeah, i would really like that too.

Story-wise, RoS basically paved a way for an MMO imho. All prime evils and lesser evils are basically free. Heavens are no more a safe nest - and Imperius pretty much is blaming the Nephalem. Sanctuary itself is no more hidden from the hells and demons can easily come and go and try to lure/corrput Nephalem, as it's stated that more and more are recovering their original power after the destruction of the Worldstone. The Angiris council is left broken after Malthael's demise.

So basically we're in a world full of heroes where Hell is trying to invade us and Angels very likely prefer to obliterate everything (since we're not exactly pure given how we're born from Lilith and Inarius) than reasoning with us.

To me is looks like a really good MMO setup. I hope it doesn't turn out to be an MMO though.

Nope. :/ It's just Diablo as the Prime Evil (I would prefer having the 7 back aswell).

[Coldkil]

Nope. :/ It's just Diablo as the Prime Evil (I would prefer having the 7 back aswell).

Well, there's speculation about that but no official answer.

All demons/angels cannot be really killed - you destroy their material form, their souls wander back to heaven/hell and they return over time. Reason why the Soulstones have been created - this way the souls of the slain nemesis would be trapped inside it and cannot escape to return.

Beside the fact that in D1 and D2 this solution has been proven pretty much bad since the soulstone would corrupt the host/possessor over time, we also destroyed the soulstones, meaning we have literally freed the prime evils from their prison.

In D3 we know from Adria that she has gone gathering all the souls in the Black Soulstone, thus creating the Diablo of D3 (which is very likley a fusion of all souls in a single host) but at the end of RoS Malthael shattered the Balck Soulstone, freeing all souls again.

Is the prime evil souls still one conglomerate, or they're back as single entities? We don't really know. As i said, very likely Diablo in D3 was a fusion, but the host for all souls channeled by the Black SOulstone was Leah. Same goes for Malthael. Now the host is destroyed, and we don't have clues about the outcome.

[potis]

Is the prime evil souls still one conglomerate, or they're back as single entities? We don't really know. As i said, very likely Diablo in D3 was a fusion, but the host for all souls channeled by the Black SOulstone was Leah. Same goes for Malthael. Now the host is destroyed, and we don't have clues about the outcome.

No clue..We know since Diablo 1 you need a soulstone to trap them, hence they are either free and respawning or we could go the "Someone collected them into a new soulstone" approach etc etc.

Whatever they do with Diablo i hope it wont be a pathetic mess like D3.

D3 RoS wasnt so bad, but its boring as hell.

[derpkitteh]

an important question is what does it mean for malthael.

when he shattered the black soul stone, he absorbed the unleashed souls into himself. will he even be reborn from the crystal arch? or will he be reborn in hell? will he be some new fusion of demon and angel?

maybe diablo will stay bonded to his soul and use his rebirth to corrupt the crystal arch.

[Coldkil]

an important question is what does it mean for malthael.

when he shattered the black soul stone, he absorbed the unleashed souls into himself. will he even be reborn from the crystal arch? or will he be reborn in hell? will he be some new fusion of demon and angel?

maybe diablo will stay bonded to his soul and use his rebirth to corrupt the crystal arch.

Thta's actually really interesting From RoS i get it's a sort of "third faction" between Heaven and Hell, since he just wants to obliterate everything. How does it work for him?

[derpkitteh]

Thta's actually really interesting From RoS i get it's a sort of "third faction" between Heaven and Hell, since he just wants to obliterate everything. How does it work for him?

well, he just wanted to kill all demons and anything corrupted by them. he was still on heaven's side in his mind. tyrael stood against him because he is justice and doesn't think humans should be killed. when you meet imperius, he doesn't really care that malthael's killing humans, he's just worried about the soul stone.

now that he absorbed diablo, it's hard to tell what his motivations may be wherever he's reborn. maybe when he comes back, he'll try to gather up the souls of the archangels and reform the original being? the one that separated into anu and tathamet.

[Kedemel]

Throw me in the "Diablo 3" is done crowd. The ending to Reaper of Souls gives Blizzard the perfect reset on this IP to move it in any direction they want. For now, they can throw some developers at it for maintenance, small content patches for seasons, and medium-sized content patches/downloadable content like classes (although I wouldn't be surprised if Necromancer is the first and last additional class).

My potentially bold prediction is that Diablo is taken into the "shared world RPG/looter" genre, which has been made popular (in my opinion) by Destiny and now the emergence of Anthem. I'd be surprised if it is moved from the isometric realm, but I wouldn't be surprised if they decided to breathe new life into the IP by making a change to third-person (The Witcher, aforementioned Anthem) or first-person (Destiny).

Regardless of direction, I doubt we will see another Diablo in the style we currently see it. All of their current games are self-sustaining to some degree, so they will most likely move to a platform that allows them to build a great game but also bring in profits through the game's life-cycle.

[Kontinuum]

The amount of angels the Lightsong can give birth to is finite—it is a case of them embodying a set amount of Anu's power. If an angel is killed, a replacement angel will be created by the Arch, but such an angel is still a different individual from the one (s)he is replacing. The replacement does not come instantaneously. Of note, the Arch specifically called on Tyrael to take the mantle of wisdom after Diablo's defeat, taking the place of the absent Malthael.

http://diablo.wikia.com/wiki/Crystal_Arch

As Malthael released the Prime Evils after his death I doubt there was anything demonic within him. IMO he won't come back.

[derpkitteh]

http://diablo.wikia.com/wiki/Crystal_Arch

As Malthael released the Prime Evils after his death I doubt there was anything demonic within him. IMO he won't come back.

diablo was always one of the more intelligent of the lords of hell. combined with mephisto and belial, he's probably insanely smart and would know a way to use malthael's soul for something at least.

[ophion1990]

Well, there's speculation about that but no official answer.

All demons/angels cannot be really killed - you destroy their material form, their souls wander back to heaven/hell and they return over time. Reason why the Soulstones have been created - this way the souls of the slain nemesis would be trapped inside it and cannot escape to return.

Beside the fact that in D1 and D2 this solution has been proven pretty much bad since the soulstone would corrupt the host/possessor over time, we also destroyed the soulstones, meaning we have literally freed the prime evils from their prison.

In D3 we know from Adria that she has gone gathering all the souls in the Black Soulstone, thus creating the Diablo of D3 (which is very likley a fusion of all souls in a single host) but at the end of RoS Malthael shattered the Balck Soulstone, freeing all souls again.

Is the prime evil souls still one conglomerate, or they're back as single entities? We don't really know. As i said, very likely Diablo in D3 was a fusion, but the host for all souls channeled by the Black SOulstone was Leah. Same goes for Malthael. Now the host is destroyed, and we don't have clues about the outcome.

https://www.diabloii.net/blog/commen...ot-diablo-free

That's why I don't really see a real way for the story to go now. Every demon or even angel is just a joke compared to the Prime Evil. Don't see how they'll make a continuation of the story work without some retconning. Unless we're just purely gonna be fighting corrupted nephalem who sided with the Prime Evil.

[Kontinuum]

^ That interview is from 2014 when there still could have been plans for a second expansion. Also, Kindregan and Boyarsky no longer work at Blizzard.

BTW I think many people don't realise this, but Malthael's actions affected all of Sanctuary, not just the Westmarch
e.g.
http://diablo.wikia.com/wiki/Necropolis
so the world is in ruins (or at least significantly damaged).

[Kagdar]

https://www.diabloii.net/blog/commen...ot-diablo-free

That's why I don't really see a real way for the story to go now. Every demon or even angel is just a joke compared to the Prime Evil. Don't see how they'll make a continuation of the story work without some retconning. Unless we're just purely gonna be fighting corrupted nephalem who sided with the Prime Evil.

Well, we might not be nephalems in D4 either, so we might not have super powers.

[Coldkil]

https://www.diabloii.net/blog/commen...ot-diablo-free

That's why I don't really see a real way for the story to go now. Every demon or even angel is just a joke compared to the Prime Evil. Don't see how they'll make a continuation of the story work without some retconning. Unless we're just purely gonna be fighting corrupted nephalem who sided with the Prime Evil.

Kinda agree with @Kontinuum - plans change a lot over time and D3's ones changed even more. Though even having a Prime Evil as ultimate foe still leaves room for new enemies. Demons are a horde, we fought Angels, Nephalem are awakening and possibly being corrupted. Quite a bunch of new threats to deal with.

[Kontinuum]

One more thing - canonically all heroes/classes in D1 and D2 took part in the story - I think the same thing will happen with D3.
Some of the Nephalem could be corrupted by Diablo, others will follow angels, Zoltun Kulle or shape their own destiny.
They could throw D2 heroes into the mix, we only know that Isendra was killed, other than that it's a blank slate.

[ophion1990]

Kinda agree with @Kontinuum - plans change a lot over time and D3's ones changed even more. Though even having a Prime Evil as ultimate foe still leaves room for new enemies. Demons are a horde, we fought Angels, Nephalem are awakening and possibly being corrupted. Quite a bunch of new threats to deal with.

I know, that's why I mentioned retconning. I'm with you guys, I really hope they pull the plug on the prime evil idea but as it stands right now, the Prime Evil being released is canon.

As for the enemies, I meant bosses more specifically. The 3 prime and 4 lesser evils should be about the strongest demons, if the last boss is the Prime Evil, it'd feel anticlimactic to only be fighting Butcher tier bosses etc or only nephalem. Granted that they did the same thing in Reaper of Souls where we went from killing the Prime Evil to fighting a corrupted angel and Adria, so what do I know. xD

[Gref]

I might be wrong but doesn't adria says diablo will return and something like in your heart etc. something I completely forgot but, I remember she made sure that he returns.

Apart from that I highly expect a new diablo game not an expansion with these new hirings.

[RobertoCarlos]

I would kill for a good d2:LoD remaster with updated sound/effects. Rather have that than another expansion for d3