Summary
There are plenty of ways forDiablo 4to go in terms of class design, as Lead Live Class Designer Adam Jackson sat down and discussed what players could expect forVessel of Hatredand beyond. The opening ceremony at BlizzCon 2023, and the subsequentDiablopanel, offered fans a first look at the long-term future ofDiablo 4, though it very much felt like Blizzard wasn’t quite ready to discuss the next expansion or the upcoming Season 3 just yet. The community has a general idea ofwhat to expect fromDiablo 4: Vessel of Hatred, which takes place in the Torajan Jungles and the city of Kurast, but the new class still remains a mystery.
IfrecentDiablo 4expansion leaksare to be believed, then the new addition to the campfire would appear to be the Spiritborn, a glaive-wielding class that will cover the other side of the Nature coin opposite Druids. Though many fans were hoping for Paladins or Crusaders due to the lack of a knight archetype inDiablo 4, Adam Jackson had a few words to share that may allay their anxiety.
Any Class Archetype Is In Play for Diablo 4, Even Immortal’s Blood Knight
In agroup interview at BlizzCon 2023, Jackson discussed how his team handled class balance for a live-service title, always being mindful of which skills worked, which ones didn’t, and how they could be buffed or redesigned without falling into a “pretty tight box” where classes start to feel too similar. However, when asked about thenew classes that could come toDiablo 4, Jackson had more to say: “Without giving anything away in the future, because I don’t want to promise things like that, but I don’t think there would be any, I personally, and this is me speaking for myself, I don’t see a hurdle to bringing something like the Blood Knight or anything new thatDiablo Immortalor other games make into [Diablo 4].”
While Jackson stated that the team was more focused on making archetypes that fit into the world and narrative ofDiablo 4, instead of just bringing classes back fromDiablo 2orDiablo 3, the developers had an opportunity to do something new. “When is the right time to bring something that we know people want? And when is the right time to really challenge the norms of even the ARPG space and try to push it, push the genre forward with something new? And I think our game needs to do both really well.”
“I don’t see a hurdle to bringing something like the Blood Knight or anything new thatDiablo Immortalor other games make into [Diablo 4].” - Adam Jackson
Players can expectat least twoDiablo 4expansionsas part of the game’s post-launch support. Given thatVessel of Hatredis set for a late 2024 launch, the developers seem to be aiming for an expansion launch every 18 months. While Spiritborn is all but confirmed forVessel of Hatred’s Kurast setting, Blood Knights and Crusaders would be an easy win for Blizzard once the narrative crosses the Twin Seas.
