Diablo II

aka: D2, Diablo II: The Calling
Moby ID: 1878
Windows Specs
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Description official descriptions

Knowing well that Diablo's spirit could never be truly destroyed, the hero of Tristram made the noblest sacrifice of all: he took the spirit of the Lord of Terror into himself, hoping that his strength of will could contain the demon within. He was wrong. Diablo's essence corrupted him, gradually taking over his human nature. He has turned into the Dark Wanderer, a mysterious being whose every step causes destruction and death. A nameless adventurer visits the Rogue Encampment and decides to help its inhabitants by slaying monsters surrounding the area, and eventually pursuing the Dark Wanderer himself.

Like its predecessor, Diablo II is an action role-playing game. The player may choose between five available characters classes: Amazon (a rogue-like class with ranged attacks), Necromancer (can summon undead and inflict status ailments), Barbarian (a powerful melee fighter who can dual-wield weapons), Sorceress (offensive spellcaster), and Paladin (fights with shields and can cast support spells). Much of the game takes place in randomized dungeon-like areas heavily populated by enemies. Unlike the previous game, the environments are not restricted to a single dungeon and include variously themed locations, each with its own town and quests.

The player character gains experience points from slaying monsters, and can be leveled up manually, increasing his or her primary attributes and acquiring abilities. Much of the customization relies on equipment and item combinations. Diablo's magic has been replaced with skills: class specific abilities that can be purchased with skill points as characters level up. For example, a Paladin's skills allow him to cover allies with a protective aura, while a Sorceress can learn to fire lightning bolts and frozen blasts from her hands. Skills can be purchased several times to level them up, and some skills, when purchased, will increase the effectiveness of other skills. A new item type, socketed, has been added as well. Socketed items can be modified permanently by adding magic gems to them, increasing their statistics or adding elemental properties.

Spellings

  • 暗黑破坏神II - Simplified Chinese spelling
  • 暗黑破壞神 2 - Traditional Chinese spelling

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Credits (Windows version)

1,450 People (295 developers, 1,155 thanks) · View all

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 88% (based on 64 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.9 out of 5 (based on 292 ratings with 19 reviews)

Fantastic sequel if you like the genre

The Good
Diablo II is the sequel to the sensation that was Diablo (obviously). The folks at Blizzard, staying true to their nature, have given the consumers a fantastic sequel to an already great game.

The basis of the game is this. At the end of the first game, your character defeats Diablo, and then stays in the town of Tristam. But after awhile, he leaves, and in his wake a onslaught of devastation occurs. It turns out that Diablo has come back - inhabiting the body of the adventurer from the first game. Your task is to defeat Diablo and his minions and set things right in the world again.

Graphically, the game is utterly beautiful. Even when all the special effects are turned off, there is enough eye-candy to make any jaw drop in astonishment. Spell effects, creature detail, the glow of the fire, all rendered in 800x600 glory. Even the cinematics rival those of the Final Fantasy Series (FF7 and up). The cinematics, although not required viewing to play, contain some of the coolest FMV I've seen in years. At the start of the game and inbetween the various acts, the story is progressed through the movies, and just enhance the game in itself.

The sound and music are excellent as well. Again, all the characters are figures with voice-overs and scrolling text (with the exception of the cinematics), and do well to further the plot. The technical quality of the voice acting is top-notch. The is no doubt in my mind that all the recording was done either at a professional studio or in-house (if they have the equipment for it). The music in the background is very sparse, but it kicks in at the appropriate time.

The controls haven't changed much since Diablo came out. With the exception of on-screen menus that pop-up when you right-click on specific icons, and the fact that you belt number are 1-4 instead of 1-8, the control is exactly like before. And it's good not to screw around with a formula that has worked before.

The automap, while not perfect, is good. Although I would have preferred and automap similar to Nox (with the automap tucked in a corner), Blizzard addressed the automap "clutter" and have different settings depending on your game-style. You can have it like the original (why you would, I have no clue), or you can have it fade out in the center. That way you can still see around you, but still be able to make out the automap to navigate.

The gameplay, after combining all the elements mentioned above, is awesome. The game mechanics are very natural after playing for just a little bit, so it's very easy to get into. The levels are humongous, and wandering around to scavenge everything is only half the fun. And for posterity, here's a small list of other things I found great with Diablo II:

1) The fact that there are only 2 type of Scrolls (Town Portal and Identify). Considering the massive number of scrolls in the first game, I find that this way is much more efficient.

2) The Waypoint system. I like the fact that the waypoints are listed ahead of time, and that while you are playing you can set a goal of how far ahead you what to accomplish. Makes for good strategic play as well. Especially in cases where you are low on potions and need to rush to find the next waypoint. Makes for some great "Evade and Find" gameplay.

The Bad
Although I love Diablo II, I do have a few things that I can't stand.

First, the save system. I like the fact in the first Diablo that you can save at any position and then start back up right where you left off. Especially while you are in the middle of a quest. No such luck in Diablo II. If you Save and Exit Game, your stats, equipment and money are saved, but your position is not. The only benefit from this is that when you start your game again, everything respawns - monsters and gold/chests,etc. But it's still real annoying.

Second, I've had glitches where I gotten stuck on a rock. I can't move and I haven't learn "Leap" yet, so I end up having to Save and Exit, and basically start the level over.

Third, The automap STILL bugs the crap outta me. I find playing with the automap is both a minus and a plus. A minus being if there is a lot going on onscreen, you can't make heads or tails out of anything. And it's a plus when you can see back to where you've been or ahead (somewhat) to where you need to go.

The Bottom Line
Even though it has it's faults, Blizzard did a top-notch job with this sequel. They are one of the few companies that will take a game and make sure it's right BEFORE going gold. A fantastic game. If you like the genre, it's a must have.

Windows · by Chris Martin (1155) · 2001

Fight the addiction

The Good
Diablo II. The most schizophrenic relationship I've ever had with a video game. I played it when it was first released, got addicted, started hating it, removed it from my collection. Got it again later - same story. Waited some more time until I became a fan of action RPGs - and this time around I tried to understand what keeps beckoning me back after the inevitable "hate phase" kicks in.

For most purposes, Diablo II is an expanded variant of its dad, Diablo. Now, that game had a huge influence on the development of role-playing games in the West. For years I've been asking myself: why? With the varied and complex RPGs the West had been producing, how could this mindless hack-and-slash fest become so popular? The answer: precisely because it's neither varied nor complex. Before Diablo, brain-dead entertainment was firmly entrenched in the action culture. You turned to RPGs if you wanted deep, slow, meditative immersion. If you just wanted to have adrenaline-loaded fun, you turned to action games. The achievement of Diablo was that it transferred that kind of pleasure into the world of RPGs.

Diablo was a distillation of the most primeval RPG elements, and that was the secret of its success. It opened the doors to the more casual players, those who wanted to get into a game right away and immediately get sucked into a simplistic, yet devilishly addictive RPG system. Speed was the key: you were thrown right into action and didn't need to work on any skills of your own to vanquish enemies with a simple click. King's Field, released two years earlier, had a similar dungeon-crawling, purely action-based role-playing, and was much deeper, better designed, and more evolved than Diablo in every possible way - but it was slow. Guess which of the two games became more popular. In addition to the fact pace, the maniacal, obsessive collecting of random items would deprive people of essential daily routines. Ys, released almost a decade earlier, defined action role-playing with its ease of gameplay, but came nowhere close in satisfying our collector's instinct.

Diablo II is very similar to its predecessor in design philosophy, but overall it's a more varied game. Choosing a character class means little on its own: you'll have to build up your character, not just by gaining levels but by developing skills. Each class has three skill trees in three different disciplines. These disciplines are diverse as well and essentially provide an equivalent of additional classes.

To illustrate: the Necromancer class allows the player to summon monster minions to assist the naturally weak character. However, that's not the only way to develop a Necromancer, since another skill tree takes him into the direction of sabotaging enemies by inflicting status ailments of them, while the third one is more defensive, with treacherous bone skills that would provide the much-needed protection. Each of these Necromancers requires a very different approach not only when you have to decide which skill to invest points in, but also in the gameplay itself. Playing the summoning Necromancer, for example, feels more like controlling a commander in a real-time strategy game. A good, steady build will allow you to stand and watch how your skeletons viciously tear enemies apart.

In addition to this, Diablo II enhances and multiplies everything that made its predecessor addictive. There are many more types of monsters and an absolutely mind-boggling amount of items. The randomization of items works better than ever before since there are so many new kinds of equipment, leading to endless ways to outfit your character. Matching sets, gems that can be inserted into equipment for additional bonuses, runes, charms - you'll see no end to that when you emerge from your computer, pale from lack of sleep. No two builds will ever be alike, and you'll feel compelled to keep playing just to see what your character grows into. It's almost like raising a virtual pet, which is another trait Diablo games popularized (along with very low learning curve) that found its way into today's casual gaming.

No review of Diablo II would be complete without mentioning its cinematics. They are quite stunning, and I doubt there was a game at the time that could complete with them. The spectacular intro overwhelms you before you even begin playing the game. Those movies are impeccably directed and convey a captivating, almost haunting feeling. Somebody here should consider a film-making career.

The Bad
Now it's time to share the reasons which compelled me to get rid of this game more than once. I guess that would be easier, since those who don't like Diablo II would probably not hesitate to state the reason: repetitive gameplay.

Yes, experimenting with skills and building up a character can go in myriads of ways. But the other part of playing this game, what most people would consider the actual gameplay, consists of killing enemies and nothing else. Throughout the entire game you'll be slaying ridiculous amounts of monsters with next to no skill involved in the process itself. The game almost completely automatizes the action aspect, reducing it to an elementary point-and-click activity that requires no real effort or investment from the player. It's nearly on par with the old Ys games in its purely mechanical approach to combat.

The hyper-simplified battles would have been less of a problem if the game offered some other challenges. Unfortunately, while introducing several towns and open areas, the developers didn't find it necessary to populate them with anything but signpost NPCs and monsters. This creates an unpleasant dichotomy that was absent in the first game. Diablo was a dungeon crawler and didn't strive to be anything else. Diablo II, on the other hand, seems to promise more, but doesn't really deliver the promise.

This problem leads to lack of focus resulting in disenchantment. Once you realize that, despite the drastic change of scenery, you'll be treated to the same gameplay all the time, you begin to feel disillusioned and angry. The gameplay becomes tedious and tiresome, forcing you to stop a playing session simply because you've been doing too much of the same. Playing Diablo II is not unlike going to a buffet that offers just one kind of favorite food: you are exhilarated in the beginning but want to throw up in the end. Diablo II is irritating because it has absolutely no ambitions concerning the basic gameplay mechanics even though its size has been greatly increased. It may come across as an inflated, over-bloated variant of the first game.

Lack of imagination in gameplay design is probably a result of randomization. I never liked randomly generated environments, and, while I can see the logic behind the random items of Diablo II, I don't understand why it was necessary to randomize the playing area itself. It's true that the scenery is nice, but you can't shake off an uncomfortable sensation when exploring those plains and corridors that will have a different layout next time you start the game. Random locations means no attachment to them: you can't get attached to something that was designed by a soulless machine and won't be there during another playthrough. There can be no puzzles, because puzzles demand hand-made locations with actual design involved. Exploration loses its meaning, because you can't really explore an area that doesn't actually exist.

Absence of any life-like activity in friendly areas is depressing. Most dialogues are dry and humorless, and no NPC makes you care for him. There is something annoyingly calculating in the way Diablo II presents those characters, whose sole purpose appears to be feeding you boring, uninspired quests and selling you items. There is no feeling of cohesion in the game world, as those isolated towns are lost in the ocean of vast areas populated by nothing but hostile creatures. There aren't even any wandering salesmen or anything of the kind, making the world strangely artificial. There is really very little charm in Diablo II. It can impress and absorb you, but it cannot quite enchant you.

The gorgeous cinematics form a nice little story when viewed one after the other, but that story has next to nothing to do with what we accomplish in the game itself. The next movie simply continues where the first one left off. Without understanding the game's lore you'll even find it hard to connect between the events depicted in the intro and the entire first act, where you run around and kill monsters for money and meet none of those enigmatic characters introduced there. There is a rather jarring discrepancy in tone and presentation between the movies with their dramaticism and vivid characterization, and the game itself, which has none of that. The actual in-game story is close to non-existing and involves killing four or five big bosses in the most formulaic way possible.

Diablo II is bound to repel most people who value creativity and attention to detail, because it does its own thing only and mercilessly removes anything standing on its path. There are no memorable moments, no sweet little details, and very little human touch behind its cold, calculating facade.

The Bottom Line
While the constant stream of addictively simplified upgrading can - and will - suck you into the game, the sensation will only last until the sobering reality of soulless, randomized design and skill-less gameplay kicks in. Diablo II may entice you with its distilled RPG mechanics at first, but ultimately reveals itself as a shallow, highly superficial product.

Windows · by Unicorn Lynx (181780) · 2016

Diablo II Is Better Than Diablo, But That's Not Saying Much.

The Good
In 2000, Diablo II, the long awaited sequel to Diablo hit store shelves. Considering how bad Diablo was it is surprising it sold well enough to warrant a sequel. Fortunately Diablo II is a much better game.

In Diablo II, the lord of terror lives! After his defeat at the hands of a young warrior, Diablo is reborn using the very soul of the warrior that dealt him his deathblow! Now Diablo is heading east to awaken his brothers. You cannot let this come to pass, if the three prime evils walk the earth, the world will surely be doomed.

In Diablo II you can play as five different warriors. The Amazon, The Necromancer, The Barbarian, The Sorceress, and The Paladin. The characters are not identical and all play quite differently. The Paladin and Barbarian are the easier, while the Amazon, Necromancer, and Sorceress are for an extra challenge. My personal favorite was the Necromancer. If you play him right he can also be quite a capable fighter, and become a fighting Necromancer.

The plot unfolds during amazing looking cut scenes. But other than that the plot is pretty non-existent. There are four Acts, each Act contains six quests, so there are a total of 24 quests. So this game is quite long this is both a good and bad thing. More on the bad later. The game can be quite fun and it is always rewarding when your warrior levels up.

Unlike Diablo, which only contained four dungeons, Diablo II has too many dungeons to count. There is also more than one main hub. The town changes with every new Act. One of the coolest is the large desert town of Act II. One of the worst is the jungle of Act III, the design is interesting, but the area has some really annoying enemies.

Some familiar faces return to help you. Like Cain, who sounds suspiciously like Sean Connery. There are many new features in Diablo II. One of the most unique is the use of The Horadrum Cube. You gain this item about midway through the game. It is a magic cube that lets you make items. You just place the components in the cube, and it makes a new item. Unfortunately the game does not provide a master list of things you can create. You either have to experiment like the game makers intended or get the info of the Internet, like most people did. You can also power up a slotted weapon by adding a gem, these add various effects and are permanent. There is also a skill system that was sorely lacking in the original game. Each Warrior has there own skill set.

The videos and voiceovers are amazing. The production values are high here. As they should be considering how much money Blizzard has. The graphics overall are a bit dated. They were dated in 2000! There are very few bugs, which is rare indeed.

The Bad
This game has got to be the only schizophrenic game I have every played. One minute you are loving it, the next you feel bogged down by repetition. Sometimes you just want hurry things up, but the game refuses to yield. Act III sucks. The monsters here are a huge pain in the ass. How many nights I cursed the jungles of Diablo II. It is the single worst area of any game I can think of. Diablo II is also very light on the RPG elements. Whereas most PC RPGS are very customizable, Diablo II’s only customization is what your warrior wears and what skills they learn. Pretty lame. Why is Blizzard considered such a great game maker? Black Isle, Ion Storm, and Looking Glass are all defunct, while all of there games were great. Blizzard, only has one excellent game World of Warcraft, but they still get to make games.

The Bottom Line
Fans of Diablo will love this game. As it is much better. RPG fans would have more fun with games like, Planscape Torment, Return to Krondor, or Oblivion.

Windows · by MasterMegid (723) · 2006

[ View all 19 player reviews ]

Discussion

Subject By Date
Why am I addicted?.. Unicorn Lynx (181788) Jul 2, 2013

Trivia

1001 Video Games

Diablo II appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Dungeons & Dragons

Diablo II was adapted into a set of two D&D rulebooks: Diablo II: Diablerie, published in 2000, and Diablo II: To Hell and Back, published in 2001, in addition to which a Diablo II set for the Dungeons & Dragons boardgame was released by Wizards of the Coast in 2000.

Promotion

Blizzard itself produced an action figure line, with figures depicting the Barbarian, the Unraveler, and of course, Diablo. They also released a whole stack of merchandise, including Zippo lighters, wristwatches and mouse pads, all in limited edition.

References: Diablo

The much rumored and non-existent secret "Cow Level" from the original game was actually added to Diablo II. It is just a flat plain, populated by bipedal cows, which go "Moo! Moo!" in deadpan human voices. The level also features a boss, "The Cow King", who looks just like all the other cows.

In Act I, the player can enter a portal to the town of Tristram, now destroyed by demons. Some characters from Diablo can be seen there. Decard Cain and Griswold the Blacksmith are alive; the former will help the player with his quests while the latter is possessed by evil powers. The remains of Wirt the Peg-Legged Boy can also be spotted; his leg allows the player to enter the cow level.

References

Once in a great while, one of the zombies can be heard uttering "brainsss". This is a reference to the numerous Living Dead movies, in which zombies hunger for human brains.

Awards

  • Computer and Video Games
    • 2005 - #25 "101 Best PC Games Ever"
  • Destructoid
    • 2009 - #7 "Top Video Games of the Decade"
  • GamePro
    • 2008 - #11 "The 32 Best PC Games"
  • GameSpy
    • 2000 – Special Award for Cut-Scenes
    • 2011 – #7 Top PC Game of the 2000s
  • GameStar (Germany)
    • Issue 02/2001 - Best Game in 2000
    • Issue 02/2001 - Best Multiplayer Game in 2000
    • Issue 03/2001 - Best Game in 2000 (Readers' Choice)
    • Issue 12/2008 - Special mention in the "10 Coolest Levels" list (for the secret level "The Moo Moo Farm")
  • IGN
    • 2009 - Issue 12/2008 - One of "Gaming's Top 10 Easter Eggs" (for the secret level "The Moo Moo Farm")
  • PC Gamer
    • April 2005 - #16 "50 Best Games of All Time"
    • 2007 - #82 "Top 100 Games"* PC Player (Germany)
    • Issue 01/2001 - Best Online Game in 2000
  • VideoGamer.com
    • 2009 - #49 "Top 100 Games of the Noughties"

Information also contributed by Ajan, Kasey Chang, Patrick Bregger, PCGamer77, phlux, Tibes80, and Scott Monster.

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by MAT.

Macintosh added by Xoleras.

Additional contributors: Blackhandjr, Zovni, Unicorn Lynx, Indra was here, Brian Jordan, Vaelor, Ajan, Pseudo_Intellectual, SharkD, Paulus18950, Cantillon, Patrick Bregger, FatherJack.

Game added July 4, 2000. Last modified March 23, 2024.