Diablo 4 art director talks about the bold tone: ‘Darkness doesn’t mean desolation’

When Diablo II launched in 2000, it was praised for its courage, injecting a sense of realism into a dark and fantastic kingdom. With Diablo III, things went in a more expressive direction, with a style that art director John Mueller describes as “pictorial”. Now, with the next Diablo IV, Mueller says the goal is to combine these two approaches. “With technology as it is now,” he says The Verge, “We can have the best of both worlds.”

One of the challenges of a game like this is to create a dark and foreboding world, but also one that players want to spend hours and hours exploring. Diablo the games are the kind where players normally get lost, scouring the dungeons for the best loot and teaming up with friends to explore the most dangerous regions. At the Diablo IV, Mueller says that one of the main characteristics is the new open world, which allows the team to create many different types of moments and feelings.

“When you are in the world, you are faced with many beautiful landscapes,” he explains. “The world of Diablo it’s a medieval world, which means you’re going through the countryside or the desert or the mountains. And although there are strong storms and rain and there is this aspect of the living world, there is still day and night. It’s beautiful in the morning – although you may have just killed some kids in that field. “

One of the main inspirations behind Diablo IVThe visual is the Hudson River School of Painting, a movement from the mid-19th century that took the landscapes and infused them with a vibration from the Romantic Era. It’s the same mix of beauty and darkness that Mueller and his team wanted in the next Diablo – albeit with a few more demons and skeleton warriors.

“They had darkness for them,” said Mueller of the Hudson River movement. “They were not beautiful. And I find nothing in the world of Diablo It’s beautiful. It’s like when you see a foggy morning in the countryside, it’s hard not to appreciate the beauty of it, but it’s not necessarily like, ‘Oh, this is beautiful, like a rainbow and sun.’ All regions of the world have a lot of natural beauty, and when you go to the dungeons, that’s where we get a bit horrible. “

This new open world is also being used as a tool for storytelling. Mueller and game designer Joe Shely say they used this space to make Sanctuary, the setting for Diablo franchise, in a more fulfilled place. Different regions have their own unique cultures, which extend to the weapons and items you will collect, as well as the characters you will speak to. “It is great to have this persistent space where we can invest like this,” says Mueller. “It’s something new for the franchise.” Shely adds: “One of the things that is exciting about Diablo IV is being able to see more of the world than ever. “

Diablo IV still doesn’t have a release date – Blizzard says it shouldn’t wait this year – but it’s coming during a busy period for the franchise. Diablo is expanding to mobile devices with the next spinoff Immortal, and this year we will also see the launch of the long-awaited remastering of Diablo II. With all of this happening, it is particularly important that the main title has its own distinct flavor. And in the case of Diablo IV, it’s flavor built into balance. “Darkness does not mean desolation,” says Mueller.