Monday, June 19th 2017
Blizzard in Process of Remastering Diablo 2, Warcraft 3
After announcing their Starcraft remaster to fans (for free, I might add), which will count with remastered graphics, dialogue and audio, whilst keeping the original Starcraft play and feel, it seems that Blizzard is now looking towards remastering two of their other successful franchises. Diablo 2 stands as one of PC gaming's most recognized entries, helping pave the way for mainstream gaming and dice rolls. And Warcraft 3, while a tad less successful than the company's subsequent World of Warcraft phenomenon, still stands as a well-aged RTS entry (I remember seeing the CG cutscenes for the game at my local FNAC store at the time of its release and I was absolutely mesmerized.)
The clues pointing towards the Diablo 2, Warcraft 3 remasters come courtesy of Blizzard themselves, though not in a bells and whistles-covered announcement that one might expect. Instead, these come as job posts on Blizzard's Careers page. namely, Blizzard says "Compelling stories. Intense multiplayer. Endless replayability. Qualities that made StarCraft, Warcraft III, and Diablo II the titans of their day. (...) We're restoring them to glory, and we need your engineering talents, your passion, and your ability to get tough jobs done." And: "Classic Games is looking for a renaissance designer to harmonize that which was, with that which will be. Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo await your machinations." It is unclear as of now whether these remasters will be free or not at time of release. Starcraft was, but while history tends to repeat itself, it really sometimes doesn't. So there you have it. What do you think of this renaissance/remastering?
Sources:
Careers @Blizzard, Careers @Blizzard
The clues pointing towards the Diablo 2, Warcraft 3 remasters come courtesy of Blizzard themselves, though not in a bells and whistles-covered announcement that one might expect. Instead, these come as job posts on Blizzard's Careers page. namely, Blizzard says "Compelling stories. Intense multiplayer. Endless replayability. Qualities that made StarCraft, Warcraft III, and Diablo II the titans of their day. (...) We're restoring them to glory, and we need your engineering talents, your passion, and your ability to get tough jobs done." And: "Classic Games is looking for a renaissance designer to harmonize that which was, with that which will be. Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo await your machinations." It is unclear as of now whether these remasters will be free or not at time of release. Starcraft was, but while history tends to repeat itself, it really sometimes doesn't. So there you have it. What do you think of this renaissance/remastering?
45 Comments on Blizzard in Process of Remastering Diablo 2, Warcraft 3
Don't have to say much about Diablo II other than I look forward to revisiting the remaster!
No. 37296/70000 - back when I really liked getting the bonus items from collectors editions. Haven't done that in a long time, I think the last physical game I bought was Fallout: New Vegas.
Boy do I have some fond memories of WC3...though looking through the mods I'm hoping to find a hi-res mod to get me by until the official remaster releases. I am curious to see how this turns out and how long it takes them.
Also, nooo I don't want to fall to D2 again.
Also, SC Remastered will not be free. The original is, but I can't imagine the remaster being free.
SC, D2 and WC3 are all in my collection and I welcome a remaster to allow better support and playability on modern systems. Seeing that there's so many games released in those genres and these are still some of the best in their current forms says a lot IMHO.
Starcraft is simple, but when you play some 1v1, micro movements are important, which is complex on it's own. (as is the hotkeys)
etc etc