60 Second Preview of…
Diablo II Expansion
The Specs
The as yet officially unnamed expansion for Diablo II will add
another act to the game with six full quests, set in some battle-torn
highlands populated with over a dozen new creature types. There
will be two new character classes: 1) a lithe female assassin with
kung fu moves, two handed blade attacks, psychic blasts, and traps
she can set, and 2) a towering druid who can transform into beasts,
summon creatures, and cast offensive spells based on the natural
elements. Both were going to be included in the initial release
-- indeed, enterprising players were able to dig out vestiges of
code for these classes in Diablo II long before Blizzard announced
them. The expansion will also include more unique item sets, more
room in the stash, and new bonus abilities for certain classes using
certain items.
The Speculation
Tom's Comments: It's not like I need another
reason to keep playing Diablo II. Really. There's still plenty
of variation in the classes and skills for me to experiment
with. Maybe Blizzard should just stop already. To quote one
of the monologues of a fellow named Joe Frank: "Some
is enough. Enough is sometimes too much. A little bit is more
than you need. And too much is more than you can bear. Or,
put another way, a little of some is good. Some more of a
little is better. And though more of some is perhaps better
than some of more, the sum of its parts is probably more than
it's worth." I'm not entirely sure what all that means,
but it puts me in mind of the expansion pack for Diablo II.
Mark's Comments: I'm pretty sure Blizzard's
Bill Roper has "I Luv MOTS" instead of "I Luv
Mom" tatto'd on his arm right next to a tatoo of a mermaid
whose seashells jiggle when he flexes his muscle. More of
the same seems to be what Blizzard does best, though I like
to think that they innovate within the familar framework they
present to us. I expect Blizzard to use this expansion as
an opportunity to polish the gameplay of Diablo 2 as well
as add new content. Don't expect the save system to be altered
or the resolution to be enhanced, though. You'll also have
to play the two new character classes, assassin and druid,
through all the previous acts to get to use them in the new
act, which might bother some.
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Publisher: Havas
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Developer: Blizzard
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Genre: RPG/Action/Time sucker
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Release Date: Q2, 2001
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