Exploring Diablo's Community Panel Overview
In this panel Brandy Camel (the Diablo Community Manager) interviewed several content creators for Diablo that you are likely familiar with: Rhykker, Leviathan, BigDaddyDen, and Lynxaria. A lot of the questions were fun and entertaining, but an interesting question was asked at the end that will likely satiate some of our conspiracies about a potential new Diablo game.
For the last question, Brandy asked the following to the panel: "As you guys know, those of us working on Diablo at Blizzard, we're exploring what's next... While we don't have anything to discuss today, or this weekend, I want to know what your thoughts are. What are you speculating?" She then turned to the crowd and emphasized "Again, speculation! Let's be clear about that!"
While we certainly have our own speculations about what the next game could be, this at least seems to indicate that there is indeed something being worked on. With that in mind, I pose the same question. What do you speculate the Diablo team is working on? Let us know in the comments!
You can find bullet points of the entire panel below.
What was your first diablo game?
- BigDaddyDen: Diablo.
- Leviathan: Diablo 2, right before LoD released.
- Rhykker: Diablo.
- Lynxaria: Diablo 2.
- Brandy: Diablo 2.
What is it about Diablo that makes you want to create content?
- BigDaddyDen: Fun factor, and the Diablo community as a whole.
- Leviathan: Educating players with new builds or ideas.
- Lynxaria: Playing a game that you love, and being able to share the passion with everyone in the community
- Rhykker: Already doing research on the game, why not share it by making content?
What is a good Diablo memory that you want to share?
- BigDaddyDen: First ever Starmetal Kukri drop.
- Leviathan: Getting Rank 1 on the Cursed Chest conquest in Season 3.
- Lynxaria: Completing a greater rift when it's the worst layout/monsters/guardian.
- Rhykker: Playing Demon Hunters with his cousin when Reaper of Souls launched.
- Brandy: Doing panels like these. Hearing these stories and moments is what community management is all about, and it is very fulfilling.
What is your favorite class?
- Rhykker: Wizard in vanilla, but Demon Hunter in Reaper of Souls.
- BigDaddyDen: Witch Doctor.
- Leviathan: Crusader.
- Lynxaria: Crusader.
- Brandy: Most hours played on Barbarian, and the name Dayntee comes from her tabletop RPG barbarian.
If you were a treasure goblin, what type would you be?
- Lynxaria: Rainbow Goblin.
- Leviathan: Blood Thief, because they must have some kind of shady deal with Kadala... Where else are they getting all those blood shards?
- BigDaddyDen: Want to see new goblin that is fat, when you hit them they bounce around the screen and drop bounty materials.
- Rhykker: Gem Hoarder... Because Rhykker is apparently a notorious hoarder.
- Brandy: Can't pick a goblin, because she resonates with Kadala the most.
If you could create a legendary, what would it do?
- BigDaddyDen: One that has a pet mechanic, such as stacking your Witch Doctor fetishes so they make one large fetish, or one that allows your fetish to jump onto the back of your zombie dog and use it as a mount. It wouldn't effect just the Witch Doctor, but all the classes that have pets.
- Leviathan: Offhand that matches the Horadric Hamburger
- Lynxaria: Flail that turns blessed hammers into hamsters.
- Rhykker: An item that applies to any class and adds more options. Such as a legendary gem for your weapon. It would need to be strong enough to compete with losing critical hit damage from an Emerald. Maybe give some kind of attack speed and movement speed buffs.
What are you speculating is next for Diablo?
- Rhykker: Frank Pearce pledged his loyalty at BlizzCon last year, and stated that Diablo has a future. That information, combined with the job postings that we've seen, indicates there is no doubt that something is coming. Ready and can't wait for what is next.
- Leviathan: Likes what Destiny 2 has. Maybe the next game could add MMO mechanics such as 8 person "raids."
- BigDaddyDen: Some kind of end game raid mode, maybe even a level-field competitive mode that doesn't require farming paragon points.
- Lynxaria: Easy to speculate, and we each know what we individual want. Envisioning a new project can be a challenge. We all know something is coming, but it's a matter of when and being patient. Can't even imagine what is next, but it's going to be amazing either way.
- Brandy: Even in moments the development team becomes quiet, it doesn't mean they aren't listening to feedback or what the community is saying. The team has been evolving how they interact with the community over time. They are just people working on their passion project, and are excited about Diablo as much as the community.
they are working on the druid. release will be late 2018. they are implementing new tech to make volcanoes possible. also hiring some contracted 3d model artist to make a druid model. and wolf. bear. release might get pushed to early to mid 2019. after that? speculation!
I actually think it's going to be some sort of end game content that has a competitive nature to it. I'm wanting a PvP, but what sounds/feels more likely is something dealing with grifts. Maybe a side by side race, a race to the boss, maybe even a wave of monsters mode. Either way, it's got to be something competitive other than just numbers on a leader board. The rewards have to mean something in the game. This will give the game a much needed life for the next few years.
Is this real life? Nothing would of been better.
Ew, Rhykker.
D2: HD mod in 2019.
D3: Maintenance mode, more of the same we already have, power creep.
D4: Possible announcement in 2020. If it is not a top-down view it is a no buy for me and the logic is it won't be. It will look flashy and colorful in a 3d perspective allowing people to spend tons of cash on it for cosmetic items.
aRPG/MMO in another universe: I'd love to see a post-apocalyptic (Fallout-like) setting done by a top studio like Blizzard. I think such setting gives a lot more freedom to its designers and would kind of change our focus from the typical things present in Diablo.
Summary: Whatever comes next, it will be oriented with the idea to make money. It won't be done just for the sake of experimenting with something new, it will be well calculated money machine. That said I don't expect miracles. For such to happen passion and freedom are needed. And money does not have to be your main goal. It has to be the art and the gamers. Kind of unrealistic things for the big studios. But at least one can enjoy the AAA cinematics from them. They seem to sell the products well.
I always have the hope that they a game where we play the angels/demons against nephalim.
I'm speculating that an announcement doesn't necessarily have to be at blizzcon.
Let's drop the pretentious titles. Recording yourself flapping your mouth or playing a video game does not make you a "Content Creator". It's just you flapping your mouth or recording yourself playing a video game. Make your own game, and then you can have a legitimate claim at creating something.
Hopefully D3v, similar to how they are finally making a vanilla version of WoW. Would be interesting to see how many players truly liked the original version of D3 more than the current version. At least it would give them some more solid info on player preferences before they make D4.
Raids as an end game mechanic? Shows how disconnected they are from what made Diablo.. Diablo. It doesn't need that
I still play Diablo 2. It needs to be like that game. Legendaries are way too strong, one way builds for late game sucks, get rid of skill changes, make it more co-op friendly.
The closer it is to an RPG and less MMO the better the game would be its what the community has always wanted
Damn that Lynxaria has massive amount of youtube guides indeed
https://www.youtube.com/user/lynxariaTwitch/videos
Also, if Blizzard themselves find me worthy enough of a content creator to invite me onto their stage at BlizzCon, I feel that's the vote that truly counts anyway. I hope this clears up some things for you all.
to be honest, i always play my games myself and never watch anyone playing it for me. and if someone makes a character guide in a video, i just skip the guide and his name for eternity. content creators and influencers, the world really has gone mad.