In the latest quarterly report, Blizzard showcased new gameplay for Diablo 4. The developers also talked about the dungeons of the upcoming action RPG. There will be over 150. MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus is skeptical.
Finally, we know more about what Diablo 4 will look like! In 6 videos, the developers show that the new Diablo installment will be beautifully dark. No pink unicorns, no cuddly bears, and no rainbows.
A bit exaggerated, yes, but Diablo 3 is quite colorful for a Diablo game, even though it was supposed to be darker. As a fan of dark Gothic games and oppressive atmospheres, I welcome all of this.
And even more: in the new blog post, it is stated that Diablo 4 will feature over 150 dungeons! A great number, isn’t it? This is now also spreading through the press and community.
Unfortunately, this is a bit misleading. Sure, Diablo 4 will have that many dungeons. Even more, all of which are unique. But it’s absolutely ridiculous that this exact number is being widely circulated. It means nothing.
The dungeons of Diablo are all unique yet also generic
Why does this statement bother me so much? Quite simply: it creates a false impression. The developers are less to blame with their wording than those who interpret too much into it.
What was presented to us are so-called “tile sets.” These are not finished dungeons, but components that will later become dungeons, towns, and outdoor areas. Think of it like building blocks that you assemble into your own creations.
In Diablo, worldbuilding works in such a way that maps are created randomly and partly procedurally. The game connects components with specific requirements that fit together in some way. However, the exact layout is never the same, but calculated through changing variables.
So yes, Diablo 4 will have 150 dungeons and even more. But they consist of the presented “tile sets” and are scattered across the randomly generated maps. You won’t necessarily find every dungeon in every run – at least, if it stays the way it has been.
In a way, Diablo 3 already has countless dungeons since each one is newly created. However, calling them individual dungeons would be… strange. You also don’t play an infinite number of rifts, even though they are randomly created as well.
Blizzard has merely shown how the dungeons will look in the new videos, conveying their atmosphere. The moving images are quite appealing and promise wonderfully dark dungeons.
150 “real” dungeons? That would be utopian
As an MMO gamer, you probably know dungeons as instances that always play out the same. In that corner back there stands the boss Schmirgelfax, and at the final boss, you find the Hammer of Eternal Suffering if you’re lucky.
Dungeons in Diablo are simply caves or catacombs that can be found in the randomly generated world. Certain bosses can only be found here, and such bosses may drop special loot.
If they were all unique, it would require an enormous amount of work. For comparison: World of Warcraft has accumulated over 200 dungeons in its 18 years of existence. Many of these are no longer accessible, have been reworked, or are double counted, so the actual number is significantly lower.
But Diablo simply does not have such dungeons.
I cannot say with 100% certainty that Diablo 4 will really not have 150 dungeons like World of Warcraft. Maybe that’s why the development is taking so long. But it’s unlikely, and the statement is misleading.
If Diablo 4 were to feature such a number of unique dungeons that do not follow a chance factor, it would likely be bigger than any established MMO at launch. And that’s not what the game wants to be in the first place:
Diablo 4 reassures fans: Don’t worry, we are not an MMO – but…
