Diablo 2 Remake Class Speculation

It’s only a matter of time before we see Paladins “Zealing” everywhere all over again in Diablo 2’s remake.

While the greater portion of the fans out there are seeing various snippets from Blizzard and screaming about how it’s “Not as dark as the original” we’re going to take a more constructive look at the upcoming remake. We must ask “What about the classes and mechanics from the old isometric 2.5D Experience and how will it work out on modern hardware?” to get the right answers.

We’ve already seen how a modern version of the game plays out. Resource mitigation in place of mana and different resources for different classes. However a remake of Diablo II would have to cut it down to Mana and target priority management with only Mana and Health to manage across every class. In addition the players would have to work tirelessly on their specific play-style for their designated class.

We already know the Core Classes will all be included as per the original release but the question of “How will they change?” remain. 4 months ago Blizzard Entertianment were hiring “Testers for unnamed Project” along with designers, writers, scriptwriters, level designers, 3D modelers, QA Testers and a plethora of other specialists for Diablo 4. Heck, I even applied and got a “Thanks but we filled this position…” email despite having fully published my own Tabletop RPG and authoring dozens of pages of lore and content solo acting as Writer/Producer/Art Director but that’s a story for another time. Balance for the game took months if not years and the Lord of Destruction Expansion added more mechanics to the mix.

We’ve got an Insider at Blizzard who’d not willingly spill the beans but what we have heard is the following:

If they were to “remake” Diablo II (2) they’d have to go from the ground up with a lot of the content. The assets are still there on multiple master file copies but we’d need to “upscale” everything due to the changes in technology. We’d need to use models, not sprites or isometric animated vector images and while there are assets we could use from Diablo 3 and Diablo Immortal or Diablo 4 much of the Diablo 2 content would need some TLC to be true to the game itself with mechanics, atmosphere, and presentation. If it happens, expect the whole “staircase firing down” or “using different levels to act as a barrier” so many people depend on in D3 to be gone and the frantic slaughter with hit and run tactics to be in full swing for D2 just as it was intended.

-Blizzard Insider

While that quote alone tells us a lot it still does not clear up what classes we’ll be having to re-adapt to. Will we be getting Diablo 2 + LOD with the Assassin and the Druid or just D2 with the Necro, Barb, Sorc, Pal, and Zon? We have some data that might help:

Amazons: Long-Range physical damage will be key, the mechanics are pretty basic. You’ll want to spec in Vitality, then Dex and lastly Strength for gear requirements. You’ll be taking up the old “Strafe or Multishot” with the piercing ability while working crowd control on your targets.

Barbarians: Will retain the age-old standard of the Tank and Spank with a high dependence on Strength, Vitality, and Dex. Whirlwind, Mana Mitigation and Life Leech will be the longstanding mainstay of the Class depending upon your build. Some prefer a “Throwing Barb” but the idea is you’re going to to toe with most of the enemies you come across.

Necromancer: On modern Systems the Necromancer with Skeleton AI Pathing “nerfed for classic feel” may be a little janky at first. You’ll be focusing on Strength, Energy, then Vitality, and lastly Dex (You’ll need dex for some items). You’ll be depending upon your spells and mobs to smash through the glass wall beyond “Normal” difficulty.

Paladin: Much like the Necromancer you’ll be filling your vitality, second you’ll be tapping Strength and lastly Dex. You’ll need to be able to soak some damage while landing every hit and smashing with those hits. The Classic version was very “Aura Heavy” when operating as a team but when soloing content you’d be pounding potions while plowing through crowds of mobs.

Sorceress: The build like the other’s star’s with Strength so you can equip better gear later in the game but you’ll want to use your other points in Vitality and then thirdly Energy. The mechanics will be very much exactly like Classic D2 but you’ll want to remember you can’t “Lag Pull” like Classic so you’ll probably be running cold and chaining or dragging NPCs through it.

While much of the mechanics will stay the same from classic people will have to unlearn what they have learned in Diablo 3 and as it seems to be a baseline “return to basics” the game itself could very well be the escape many have been looking for. You can hear more about what we think over at our last article.