Blizzard is Looking to Hire a Director for an Unannounced Diablo Project

[ffronw]

Blizzard is Looking to Hire a Director for an Unannounced Diablo Project

//cdn.themis-media.com/media/global/images/library/deriv/1333/1333666.jpgBlizzard is looking for the next Diablo director to take the next step in the series.

With all the attention on Overwatch and the Warcraft movie of late, you could be forgiven for having forgetten about Diablo. But Blizzard apparently hasn't, as they're looking to hire a new director to take the reins of the action-RPG series.

Blizzrd's careers page now features a listing [http://us.blizzard.com/en-us/company/careers/posting.html?id=16000J8] for a "Game Director, Unannounced project." The description for that position says that the director will "lead the Diablo series into the future." If you follow the series, you'll recall that Jay Wilson was the director until January 2013, when he resigned from that position and moved on to another within Blizzard. In June of that year, Josh Mosqueira took over the position. There's no word on whether Mosqueira is vacating the position, or if he'll continue to lead the Diablo 3 team.

There's been much speculation among fans about what the future of the series will hold. Some believe we'll see another expansion for Diablo 3, while others think that Diablo 4 will be the path Blizzard takes. Whatever is next for the series, it's obvious that Blizzard is planning for it right now.


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[Pirate Of PC Master race]

After f***up that is diablo 3, Not very interested.

 

[visiblenoise]

Whatever it ends up being, I'm gonna wait for at least a year after release until I consider buying it. Or it'll be just like last time...

 

[Devin Barker]

I would take another D3 Expansion. RoS helped the game a lot (it was trash at release but I actually enjoy what is there now) and a nice long expansion and maybe a new class or 2 would not suck... as long as its between $0-20... not paying more than that...

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

Oh please make it be Diablo World, a cute chibi RPG of Diablo character.

 

[SlumlordThanatos]

Still?

Did they ever fill that job, or is this the same one? This is at least the third time I've heard about it...

 

[Samtemdo8_v1legacy]

Oh please make it be Diablo World, a cute chibi RPG of Diablo character.

You'd also like a Chibi Bloodthirster from Warhammer would you?

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

Oh please make it be Diablo World, a cute chibi RPG of Diablo character.

You'd also like a Chibi Bloodthirster from Warhammer would you?

Yes please!!

 

[Dendio]

It's probably preplanning for Diablo 4.

I want less grinding, more story, more dark&edgy, and definitely a higher difficulty level.

But it may not be what the fans want...

The way they tell a story in the diablo franchise is never very good. Just audio tracks playing while you run around. D3 is primarily about grinding. Its a grind simulator for those who wanna grind.

 

[Hawki]

You...do realize that this isn't new news right? Like, at all? Old enough that it was already being talked about prior to BlizzCon 2015?

Edit: Apparently I spoke too soon. There's been evidence of new positions, but game director in of itself is a new one.

 

[Vendor-Lazarus]

I hope it's Diablo IV and that it's like Diablo II, except offline and refined/improved.

 

[Sheo_Dagana]

I thought this was old news? Blizzard has been working on something Diablo related for a year now. I just assumed it was another expansion, given how things are left off in RoS. Personally, I'd take another expansion for sure, a 4th game would seem a little rushed given how Blizzard waits tens of years between their main releases. Plus I need something for all my level 70 geared out characters to do other than grind for more gear that gives them like a +1.7% bonus to something...

 

[Hawki]

I thought this was old news? Blizzard has been working on something Diablo related for a year now. I just assumed it was another expansion, given how things are left off in RoS. Personally, I'd take another expansion for sure, a 4th game would seem a little rushed given how Blizzard waits tens of years between their main releases. Plus I need something for all my level 70 geared out characters to do other than grind for more gear that gives them like a +1.7% bonus to something...

It's old news in the sense that we've known about the project for quite some time, but this is the first time that the position of game director has been advertised.

As for the 10+ years, how that applied to SC2 (12 year wait, 6 year dev cycle) and D3 (12 year wait, 6 year dev cycle, 10 if you include the original Blizzard North version), both had the long wait due to different circumstances. SC2 was delayed because staff were transferred to work on WoW. D3 had a long wait because Blizzard North went under, and Blizzard proper restarted the development cycle when they took over. If we assume that D4 was being worked on as early as 2015 (that's at least as far back as the rumors go), then I'd still expect a D4 within the decade. A long wait, but far removed from the above time periods.

 

[prigdishnak]

I would LOVE for this to be a Diablo 4 indication. My dream for that game though I'm certain would never come true, D3 made it very very clear that while they will include some gore elements here and there the darker aesthetic of D2 is simply gone. Above all else I want each and every 'character' within the Diablo franchise to be distinct. D2 had excellent lines for the characters to say at certain points that very much showed who they were. D3 did not, the best example of this for me was meeting the Angel of Hope, every single character meets her and then firmly plants their lips upon her non-existent backside (since they are made of light and sound). I just wish I could have seen my D2 Necromancer or Druid in this situation, one heck of a dressing down would have been the least of it!

Anyway, enough day dreaming. I believe the most likely scenario would be another expansion that may or may not end the franchise entirely, allowing them to turn towards their real money maker games now like Hearthstone, HoTS, and Overwatch. I'm just under the impression that Blizzard really doesn't care about the Diablo-verse anymore, I would be beyond delighted to be proven wrong in that belief.

 

[Hawki]

I would LOVE for this to be a Diablo 4 indication. My dream for that game though I'm certain would never come true, D3 made it very very clear that while they will include some gore elements here and there the darker aesthetic of D2 is simply gone. Above all else I want each and every 'character' within the Diablo franchise to be distinct. D2 had excellent lines for the characters to say at certain points that very much showed who they were. D3 did not, the best example of this for me was meeting the Angel of Hope, every single character meets her and then firmly plants their lips upon her non-existent backside (since they are made of light and sound). I just wish I could have seen my D2 Necromancer or Druid in this situation, one heck of a dressing down would have been the least of it!

Wait, what?

One of the reasons I like D3 way more than D2 (then again, I like D1 more than D2, so go figure) is that the characters ARE distinct. They have distinct personalities with distinct backstories, Sanctuary as a whole has discovered the joys of dialogue rather than monologue, and the D2 characters...what were their personalities exactly? Nothing but one-liners. Also, unlike the D3 characters, they undergo no character development. The lines may provide insight into who they are, but the insight begins and ends with their character class. Considering how each character in D3 has a journal that shows insight into their personality, how said personality changes over time (especially in Act V, considering that their inner thoughts show a darker turn), and also get to meet their mentors, what exactly did Diablo II give us character-wise?

Anyway, enough day dreaming. I believe the most likely scenario would be another expansion that may or may not end the franchise entirely, allowing them to turn towards their real money maker games now like Hearthstone, HoTS, and Overwatch. I'm just under the impression that Blizzard really doesn't care about the Diablo-verse anymore, I would be beyond delighted to be proven wrong in that belief.

Considering that Diablo III has been getting nothing but free updates since RoS, considering that D3 has sold over 30 million copies, considering I'd have been happy for the storyline to end at D3, I disagree. Do you really think they're going to bring on a game director and effectively create an entire new team from scratch just for an expansion?

What sucks for me is that I have a sneaking suspicion that D4 is going to try and emulate D2 rather than be its own thing.

 

[Zydrate]

I was expecting another expansion at some point.

 

[Pirate Of PC Master race]

Considering that Diablo III has been getting nothing but free updates since RoS, considering that D3 has sold over 30 million copies, considering I'd have been happy for the storyline to end at D3, I disagree. Do you really think they're going to bring on a game director and effectively create an entire new team from scratch just for an expansion?

What sucks for me is that I have a sneaking suspicion that D4 is going to try and emulate D2 rather than be its own thing.

I am 99% sure there will be no more expansions for D3. The balance of the game is too f***ed to be balanced properly.

If you don't know anything about D3 balancing policy, one word: NEVER NERF ANYTHING.

 

[Hawki]

It's probably preplanning for Diablo 4.

I want less grinding, more story, more dark&edgy, and definitely a higher difficulty level.

But it may not be what the fans want...

The way they tell a story in the diablo franchise is never very good. Just audio tracks playing while you run around. D3 is primarily about grinding. Its a grind simulator for those who wanna grind.

Oh I dunno.

Sometimes you can tell an awesome story even if almost nothing actually happens.

In fact, I should make a thread analyzing Diablo's themes...

Whether that counts as a "story" is subjective though. Diablo I barely has a story for instance. It has four actual plot points - hero arrives, hero slays Lazarus, hero slays Diablo, hero plunges soulstone into forehead. The rest of the story is effectively side material and worldbuilding.

I would argue though that Diablo III is a thematic game though...sort of. I've done some thematic analysis of Diablo III back in the day, where I've argued that the core theme of D3 is "humanity" - Acts I to IV take a positive, uplifting view on the human spirit, in Act V, it takes a dark, cynical view (i.e. as Westmarch falls, multiple people turn on each other, and Malthael's actions are largely justified in the context of the larger picture). It's not that deep of a theme or even conveyed subtlely, but it's a theme nonetheless.

And yes, I'm aware that I'm likely in the minority for thinking that D3's story is good, but hey, I can live with that.