Blizzard Really Tried Hard to Recapture Diablo 1 in Diablo 3's "The Darkening of Tristram"

Blizzard is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Diablo series with in-game promotions in all their current games, however the most notable promotion is the new “The Darkening of Tristram” event in Diablo III.

The new event, coming in patch 2.4.3 for the game, will bring a reimagined dungeon based on the original game’s sixteen floor cathedral, as well as all four of the original bosses.

Featured above, you can view a new trailer showcasing the new update, with narration by lead designer Kevin Martens, senior designer Zaven Haroutunian, and senior designer Joe Shely.

It’s clear Blizzard put a lot of work into this anniversary celebration, going as far as applying a pixelated filter so the in-game assets look like pre-rendered sprites and such, as well as locking the camera in its classic, original position. They even reduced movement to the original eight directions, changed sounds to behave more like the older games, and even redid the UI.

With all this love put into a small easter egg, it makes you wonder how much more would be needed to just fully remake the original Diablo, with modern visuals? Would you like to see a Diablo remake, or is viewing it through rose-tinted glasses a better option? Sound off in the comments below!

Owner and Publisher at Niche Gamer and Nicchiban. Outlaw fighting for a better game industry. Pronouns: Patriarch, Guido, Olive, Catholic

15 comments

R.Hoffmann
January 3, 2017 at 4:31 pm

I read this dungeon will only be available during the January of a year, is that true?
dogmentation
January 3, 2017 at 5:30 pm

Too bad Crate already beat them to it.
Duc Duc Duc
January 3, 2017 at 5:53 pm

“Blizzard Tried Really Hard”, sounds better.
Feniks
January 3, 2017 at 6:56 pm

I’m sure the teacher will give them a nice sticker.
Chuck Finley
January 3, 2017 at 7:25 pm

I think that is true, yes
Chuck Finley
January 3, 2017 at 7:27 pm

There is a great mod called Belzebub that lets you play the original Diablo in widescreen and at any resolution. The full Diablo 1 game can be found – For Free – on Archive.org. Enjoy. Will be interesting to compare it to what they’ve done in Diablo 3.
Madbrainbox
January 3, 2017 at 10:03 pm

Crate or GGG?
Madbrainbox
January 3, 2017 at 10:03 pm

January of every year.
Yaya
January 4, 2017 at 2:05 am

https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/7efba58cd7bcf024c20e279eeeb347f10ba6370f917f06bc6d82d09a32fa8ffd.jpg
R.Hoffmann
January 4, 2017 at 2:47 am

ewwww
ScarredBushido
January 4, 2017 at 3:15 am

honestly Diablo 1 and 2 still hold up today.
Madbrainbox
January 4, 2017 at 5:55 am

No D4 in the near future by the looks of it if they are doing stuff like this.
Feniks
January 4, 2017 at 5:05 pm

Not financially though. Nowadays games are all about online and microtransactions. The days were people payed 60 dollars for a complete game that they can enjoy for a hundred hours are gone. At least in the Western games industry.
Stephen Nguyen
January 4, 2017 at 6:16 pm

I thought it was Diablo 1 in Diablo 3 graphics…. Finding out that its the other way around seems a tad disappointing,
Phasmatis75
January 7, 2017 at 2:39 am

Yeah Activision/Blizzard keep thinking that, but each of their mainstay franchises have been in the decline for years, and it’s only a matter of time before the company is going to need to release a new IP.