Diablo III is the long awaited sequel to Blizzard’s best selling title, Diablo II.http://www.gamesfirst.com/articles/diablo2_sales.htm The announcement was made official on June 28, 2008 at the Blizzard Entertainment World Invitational following several days of widespread speculation in regards to a mysterious splash screen that appeared on the company’s main website.

According to Jay Wilson, the game’s lead designer, the project has been in development for four years.http://www.diabloii.net/wiki/Diablo_3#Diablo_III_Takes_Place_in_Heaven However, co-founder Frank Pearce later admitted that it was still very much in its infant stages and gave no indication as to whether it would be released in the near future.http://kotaku.com/5020516/blizzard-worldwide-invitational-diablo-iii-in+depth

Diablo III takes place two decades after the events of Diablo II: Lord of Destruction in a location known as Sanctuary. By now, the atrocities of the past have been largely forgotten by the populace, becoming little more than mere myth and legend. Those who managed to survive the invasion of Hell’s armies either were driven completely mad by the horrors they witnessed or attempted to cope by pretending to forget it ever happened.

A long and peaceful existence free from danger has afforded many people the luxury of ignorance. However, unbeknownst to them, a dark looming presence lurks not far beyond the horizon and threatens to send the world back into chaos once more.

In order to modernize the series, the developers plan to mesh several new features with the trademark hack-n-slash gameplay that the franchise is renowned for. Havok physics middleware has been incorporated to allow for environmental destructibility and levels will be designed in 3D rather than 2D, although the traditional perspective will remain unchanged.http://www.worldofraids.com/news/170.html

Of the five classes that will be available, two have been announced so far: the Barbarian and the Witch Doctor. The former has been completely revamped with all new abilities and skills http://www.blizzard.com/diablo3/faq/#1_2 while the latter appears to draw many parallels with the Necromancer class due in part to the similar nature of the character’s summoning and defensive skills.http://www.blizzard.com/diablo3/characters/witchdoctor.xml