Diablo 4 Initially Planned as Batman Arkham-Style Roguelite

Diablo 4 was initially envisioned as a more "punchier" action-adventure game with permadeath, according to Diablo 3 director Josh Mosqueira.

Diablo 3 Director Envisioned a New Direction for Diablo 4

Roguelike Action-Adventure Concept for Diablo 4 Faced Multiple Hurdles

Josh Mosqueira, the director behind Diablo 3, shared insights that Diablo 4 could have taken a drastically different path from the series' traditional action-RPG formula. Instead of the familiar isometric view, the initial concept for Diablo 4 drew inspiration from the Batman: Arkham series, aiming to deliver a roguelike action-adventure experience.

This revelation comes from a chapter in Jason Schreier’s book, "Play Nice: The Rise and Fall of Blizzard Entertainment," featured in a WIRED report. The narrative traces the evolution from Diablo 3 to Diablo 4, highlighting Mosqueira's ambition to innovate within the franchise.

The project, codenamed "Hades," involved a small team of artists and designers who crafted an early version of Diablo 4. This version featured an over-the-shoulder camera angle, a departure from the series' top-down perspective. The combat was designed to be more dynamic and akin to the Batman: Arkham series, with the added intensity of permadeath, where a character's death would be permanent.

Despite the enthusiasm from Blizzard's executives to explore this new direction, numerous challenges arose that prevented the roguelike vision of Diablo 4 from coming to fruition. The ambitious co-op multiplayer elements reminiscent of the Arkham series proved difficult to implement, leading to doubts about the project's alignment with the Diablo brand. Designer Julian Love remarked, "The controls are different, the rewards are different, the monsters are different, the heroes are different. But it’s dark, so it’s the same." Eventually, the development team concluded that this version of Diablo 4 would effectively be a new IP rather than a true Diablo game.

Diablo 4's first major expansion, Vessel of Hatred, was recently released. This expansion takes players to the dark realm of Nahantu in the year 1336, exploring the sinister machinations of Mephisto, one of the Prime Evils, and his plans for Sanctuary. For more details, you can read our review of the Diablo 4 DLC in the linked article below!