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Diablo III ignites Blizzard Paris event

Posted on July 3, 2008 in the Games, News category

PARIS–Blizzard fans have lined up around the block of the Porte de Versailles Exposition Center in Paris, hoping to become among the first in the world to see the newly announced game from the popular developer/publisher. The 2008 Blizzard Invitational marks the first time that the company has held a fan event in Europe; during the two-day event, fans were able to participate in tournaments, check out playable versions of two Blizzard works in progress: World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King and Starcraft II, attend sessions dedicated to various Blizzard games, and, most importantly, find out all about the next game the company is working on.

The Blizzard event is taking up Hall 5 of the Porte de Versailles Exposition Center, with two levels of the hall devoted to all things Blizzard. Hundreds of fans poured into the center once the event opened at 9 a.m., looking to get hands on time with Starcraft II and the Lich King expansion. In addition to huge areas devoted entirely to those games, there was also a gaming area devoted to the latest WOW expansion, The Burning Crusade. In addition, there was two stages devoted to competitive tournaments, as well as a Blizzard store, where fans can stock up on all things Blizzard. Of course, the big news of the day is the announcement of Diablo III.

Since the initial showing, Blizzard has confirmed that Diablo III is being developed for PC and Mac only “for now,” with the aim being for it to run on a broad set of systems rather than just high-end hardware. When asked for a release window, all anyone from Blizzard is willing to say is simply: “When it’s ready.”

Diablo III has been in development for about four years, and now has a team of 50-55 developers dedicated to it, according to Jay Wilson, the game’s lead designer. The game will offer drop-in/drop-out co-op play over Battle.net throughout; though it will be doable as a solo player, gamers will be able to bring friends in at any stage.

Although the game is obviously not yet rated, Blizzard confirmed to GameSpot that it plans to stay true to the series’ M-rated roots. The company is aiming for an ESRB M rating, and a PEGI 16+ in Europe.

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