One of the most acclaimed videogame sagas will soon be coming to mobile devices: Diablo Immortal is a new game from the franchise created by Blizzard that’s coming to Android and iOS. It’s a real milestone for the mobile world that demonstrates that it’s beginning to become the norm to see the most important videogame franchises end up having mobile representations. And it’s not just any sort of representation, no, we’re talking about high-quality titles with extremely high production values.
The new Diablo was first introduced at the recent 2018 Blizzcon. Among the typical announcements and surprises at Blizzard’s annual celebration, Diablo Immortal was introduced as one of the highlights of the event. A new game in the Diablo saga created alongside NetEase that takes place in the time between the excellent Diablo II: Lord of Destruction and the direct sequel, Diablo III. Blizzard presents a new lieutenant of Diablo named Skarn, who wants, once again, to resurrect the dark lord. Nothing we haven’t seen before, although now we can enjoy it on our smartphones and tablets.
The controls are similar to current MOBAs on Android: you move around with an invisible joystick on the left side of the screen and use your attacks and special skills by tapping the respective buttons. The similarities with MOBAs and MMORPGs is noticeable in the skills system, given that you have to slide them in the direction that you want and wait a certain time before you can use them again. In Kotaku, the writer points out that this replaces the traditional mana system that Diablo has always been known for.
It’s logical that the controls are simplified considering the touch screen can’t substitute a keyboard, mouse, or control pad. But one writer at Polygon claims that the very essence of Diablo is lost along the way. That said, the 15 minute demo that journalists were allowed to play may not have been enough to fully unwrap Diablo Immortal, especially when it’s still in development.
This announcement has created controversy, a lot like what happened with Command & Conquer: Rivals. A good number of fans of the saga from Blizzard feel offended by this future release for mobile devices. This type of reaction is becoming a fact of life when renowned sagas come to the mobile world. But that’s no reason to lose hope. The example of Command & Conquer is clear: it may not be the game fans were hoping for, but it is a really fun title with endless possibilities. In the case of Diablo Immortal, this could be even more aggravating considering the development team is working its hardest to make the experience as accurate as possible, without giving up the features of the medium where it will be released.
Diablo Immortal brings us a relentless world where you get to create teams with other players from around the world in order to successfully complete quests. To do this, you’ll have six types of players to choose from (barbarian, monk, wizard, crusader, demon hunter, and necromancer), each one offering its own unique abilities. We’ll have to wait a while longer to discover more about Diablo Immortal, but pay attention because it could be here before we know it. If you want to know more about the game, and download it when it finally becomes available, check out its catalog page on Uptodown.
