Diablo 4’s art director on the grim tone: ‘Darkness does not mean darkness’

When Diablo II launched in 2000, was praised for its gruesomeness, which injected a sense of realism into an otherwise dark, fantastic area. With Diablo III, things went in a more expressive direction, with a style that art director John Mueller describes as ‘picturesque’. Now, with the coming Diablo IV, Says Mueller the goal is to combine these two approaches. “With the technology as it is now,” he says The edge, “We can have the best of both worlds.”

One of the challenges with a game like this is to create a world that feels dark and ominous, but also one that players want to spend hours and hours exploring. Diablo games are the kind in which players lose themselves, to search dungeons for the best loot and with friends to explore the more dangerous regions. In Diablo IV, Says Mueller one of the most important features is the new open world, with which the team can create different kinds of moments and feelings.

“When you are in the world, you come across very beautiful views,” he explains. ‘The world of Diablo is a medieval world, which means you go through the countryside or through the desert or the mountains. And although there are severe storms and rains and there is a living world aspect, there is still day and night. It’s beautiful in the morning – even if you may have killed only a few goats in the field. ‘

One of the most important inspirations behind it Diablo IVThe look is the Hudson River School of Painting, a mid-19th century movement that took landscapes and endowed them with a romantic era. It’s the same mix of beauty and darkness that Mueller and his team are aiming for next year Diablo – even though there are still some demons and skeletons of skeletons being thrown in.

“They had a darkness,” Mueller says of the Hudson River movement. “They were not pretty. And I think nothing in the world of Diablo is beautiful. It’s like when you see a mist in the field one morning, it’s hard not to appreciate its beauty, but it’s not necessarily like, ‘Oh, it’s beautiful, like a rainbow and sunshine. All the regions in the world have a lot of natural beauty, and when you go into the dungeons, it’s kind of gruesome. ‘

That new open world is also used as a storytelling tool. Mueller and lead game designer Joe Shely say they used this space to create Sanctuary, the environment of the Diablo franchise, in a more fully realized place. Different regions have their own unique cultures, ranging from the weapons and objects you will collect, as well as the characters you will talk to. “It’s great to have this persistent space where we can invest like that,” Mueller says. “This is something new in the franchise.” Shely adds: ‘One of the things it’s exciting about Diablo IV is able to see more of the world than ever before. ”

Diablo IV does not have a release date yet – Blizzard says it will not be expected this year, but it comes during a busy period for the franchise. Diablo expand to mobile with the upcoming spin Immortal, and this year the long-awaited remaster of Diablo II. With everything going on, it is especially important that the flagship title has its own particular flavor. And in the case of Diablo IV, it is balanced on balance. “Darkness does not mean darkness,” Mueller says.