While it might not be the big Diablo 4 announcement many were hoping for, Blizzard did reveal a rather exciting bit of news for Diablo 3 during today's Blizzcon - the Necromancer class! Fans of the skeleton-wielding and bonespear-flinging hero from Diablo 2 will be glad to hear that Blizzard is striving to make him as authentic as possible, while still improving upon his toolkit so that he can compete with the Witch Doctor for that prestigious 'spooky wizard' position.
If you're wondering what the Necromancer might look and sound like, wonder no more as Blizzard has also posted a brief teaser video showcasing some of his lore and abilities. Have a look:
And now for the bad news... the Necromancer will be arriving as a paid piece of DLC. While there is currently no price tag, I can tell you that the Rise of the Necromancer Pack will also bring with it an in-game pet, two additional character slots, two additional stash tabs (on PC), a portrait frame, pennant, banner, and banner sigil. Personally, I don't see myself grabbing this pack unless its around €5 because I've pretty much done everything there is to do in Diablo 3, and this pack does very little to remedy that problem.
On the positive side, we will soon be getting a couple of Diablo 1 inspired levels on the PTR (Public Test Realm), so there's at least something new and exciting to play around with. These won't be 'just any' levels, however, as they will feature much darker and serious visuals, as well as significantly restricted movement in order to better emulate the original classic. While I'm not sure whether that is going to be nostalgic fun or just plain ol' annoying, I must applaud Blizzard for their willingness to at least experiment with the concept!
Unfortunately, there is some more bad news... these Diablo 1 inspired levels will only last for one month before being shelved away until next year. If that sounds absolutely insane to you given how Diablo 3 is currently starved for content, you would be completely correct! If Path of Exile is able to put out an expansion each year while also releasing new and interesting pieces of free content every couple of months, surely Blizzard can at least attempt to do something similar?
To end all of this on a bit of a positive note allow me to just say that we're currently only on day 1 of Blizzcon, so there is still a chance Blizzard will pull a rabbit out of their hat and deliver some great news to the Diablo 3 community. I certainly hope they do because its a series I practically grew up with, so seeing it mostly ignored while Blizzard's other games flourish is quite tragic. That little tirade aside, here's a couple of screenshots showcasing the new and improved 'Diablo 1':
