Diablo
Blizzard's action RPG with loot and steady ability unlocks.
Where Diablo comes up1 episode or test
Diablo's steady drip of new abilities and power proved so addictive that the approach spread to almost all games. Its combat was planned as turn-based before going real-time, and Diablo and its sequel became smash hits that made action RPGs the dominant Western take on role-playing. Lesson: pace rewards in small, frequent unlocks, and consider speeding up a slow format.
- 1PlayFight on toward the next reward
- 2Unlock new abilitySkills arrive slowly, never all at once
- 3Gain powerEach unlock makes the character stronger
- 4Next reward in reachAlways something close to unlock
From Diablo page note
What was said about Diablo
1Diablo's drip-feed of abilities and power
Diablo kept players hooked by slowly handing out new abilities and power. Diablo showed that doling out new skills, abilities and power on a slow drip-feed is incredibly addictive. The lesson spread beyond RPGs to almost all games played today.
Diablo and its sequel were smash hits and made action RPGs the dominant Western take on role-playing. The takeaway for builders is to pace unlocks so users always have a next reward within reach.
2Making Diablo's combat real-time
Blizzard turned Diablo's planned turn-based combat into real-time. Diablo's combat had been planned as turn-based before Blizzard made it real-time. Changing the pacing constraint of an established format can open a new market.
The source compares this to Westwood's Dune II, which forced strategy players to react on the fly instead of planning at length. Dune II led to Warcraft, Command & Conquer, Age of Empires and StarCraft.
The History of Every Video Game Genre
Diablo showed that slowly handing out new abilities and power is incredibly addictive, a lesson that spread to almost all games. Its combat was planned as turn-based before being made real-time.
Diablo kept players hooked by slowly handing out new abilities and power. Diablo showed that doling out new skills, abilities and power on a slow drip-feed is incredibly addictive. The lesson spread beyond RPGs to almost all games played today.
Diablo and its sequel were smash hits and made action RPGs the dominant Western take on role-playing. The takeaway for builders is to pace unlocks so users always have a next reward within reach.
Blizzard turned Diablo's planned turn-based combat into real-time. Diablo's combat had been planned as turn-based before Blizzard made it real-time. Changing the pacing constraint of an established format can open a new market.
The source compares this to Westwood's Dune II, which forced strategy players to react on the fly instead of planning at length. Dune II led to Warcraft, Command & Conquer, Age of Empires and StarCraft.
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