'As Far as I'm Concerned, That's a Step in the Right Direction' — Path of Exile Dev Optimistic About Diablo 5
While Diablo 5 was announced at Blizzcon 2026 just a couple weeks ago, the game doesn't come out until spring 2029. But it seems like Chris Wilson, former co-founder of Path of Exile developer Grinding Gear Games, is tentatively excited for Blizzard's next ARPG. Wilson, who left Grinding Gear Games in 2023, released a video over the weekend where he broke down everything Blizzard has announced about the upcoming Diablo game, from its story to itemization and monster levels. And while he did have some nitpicks, it seems like he's cautiously optimistic that the Diablo series is headed in the right direction, because of the influence the seminal Diablo 2 seems to have on it so far. Wilson is particularly fond of the new character and inventory screen, where items once again boast different sizes, along with stats that are more in line with Diablo 2. However, there are some modern choices, such as a flat DPS number on weapons, that rub him the wrong way. Still, he recognizes that Diablo 5 can't fully embrace Diablo 2's at-times clunky design. "There's a bigger question if they're going to go all the way and risk alienating the modern audience that they've cultivated over the last couple of decades," he said. "I don't think they necessarily should. While selfishly it'd be amazing for them to make a new version of Diablo 2 just for me, I don't think they could justify an investment of that size for a game with a niche audience." Instead, Wilson expects that Diablo V will try to adopt the best of both worlds, with a "modern ARPG that borrows heavily from Diablo 2, rather than a true return to the design philosophy of Diablo 2." But even though the game is still a couple years away, according to Blizzard, Wilson thinks Diablo 5 is going to end up delayed. He says, "My best guess is the game won't be ready for spring 2029, but that's okay, delays happen and are normal in this industry. I can't count the amount of times I had to delay a Path of Exile League release and players were okay with it." If anything, delaying Diablo 5 would give Diablo 4 more room to breathe. Just like a lot of players, Wilson feels like the early announcement of D5 is a sign that Blizzard is abandoing Diablo 4 – even if Blizzard itself has denied that in an interview with PC Gamer. Instead, Blizzard is going to keep developing the story with new seasons, the latest of which is a 30-year celebration of the franchise. I've already spent almost 50 hours in Season 15 alone, and have been having a blast with all the nostalgic content Blizzard added this time around. Chris Wilson is less amused by it, saying, "To be honest, this event feels pretty distasteful to me," because "Diablo 4 was slowly building up to you being able to fight all the prime evils, then they introduce them all at once in a special event that isn't really tied to the games story." Regardless, new seasons will continue to filter out to Diablo 4 over the next year and a half. Blizzard will also be adding Diablo 2's Amazon class to the game in a DLC pack early next year. Speaking of classes, the company has also revealed a handful of the classes coming to Diablo 5, and that at launch the new game will apparently have more classes available than in any previous Diablo game. I'm just hoping they bring back the Demon Hunter from Diablo 3.
While Diablo 5 was announced at Blizzcon 2026 just a couple weeks ago, the game doesn't come out until spring 2029. But it seems like Chris Wilson, former co-founder of Path of Exile developer Grinding Gear Games, is tentatively excited for Blizzard's next ARPG. Wilson, who left Grinding Gear Games in 2023, released a video over the weekend where he broke down everything Blizzard has announced about the upcoming Diablo game, from its story to itemization and monster levels. And while he did have some nitpicks, it seems like he's cautiously optimistic that the Diablo series is headed in the right direction, because of the influence the seminal Diablo 2 seems to have on it so far.
Wilson is particularly fond of the new character and inventory screen, where items once again boast different sizes, along with stats that are more in line with Diablo 2. However, there are some modern choices, such as a flat DPS number on weapons, that rub him the wrong way. Still, he recognizes that Diablo 5 can't fully embrace Diablo 2's at-times clunky design.
"There's a bigger question if they're going to go all the way and risk alienating the modern audience that they've cultivated over the last couple of decades," he said. "I don't think they necessarily should. While selfishly it'd be amazing for them to make a new version of Diablo 2 just for me, I don't think they could justify an investment of that size for a game with a niche audience."
Instead, Wilson expects that Diablo V will try to adopt the best of both worlds, with a "modern ARPG that borrows heavily from Diablo 2, rather than a true return to the design philosophy of Diablo 2."
But even though the game is still a couple years away, according to Blizzard, Wilson thinks Diablo 5 is going to end up delayed. He says, "My best guess is the game won't be ready for spring 2029, but that's okay, delays happen and are normal in this industry. I can't count the amount of times I had to delay a Path of Exile League release and players were okay with it."
If anything, delaying Diablo 5 would give Diablo 4 more room to breathe. Just like a lot of players, Wilson feels like the early announcement of D5 is a sign that Blizzard is abandoing Diablo 4 – even if Blizzard itself has denied that in an interview with PC Gamer. Instead, Blizzard is going to keep developing the story with new seasons, the latest of which is a 30-year celebration of the franchise.
I've already spent almost 50 hours in Season 15 alone, and have been having a blast with all the nostalgic content Blizzard added this time around. Chris Wilson is less amused by it, saying, "To be honest, this event feels pretty distasteful to me," because "Diablo 4 was slowly building up to you being able to fight all the prime evils, then they introduce them all at once in a special event that isn't really tied to the games story."
Regardless, new seasons will continue to filter out to Diablo 4 over the next year and a half. Blizzard will also be adding Diablo 2's Amazon class to the game in a DLC pack early next year. Speaking of classes, the company has also revealed a handful of the classes coming to Diablo 5, and that at launch the new game will apparently have more classes available than in any previous Diablo game. I'm just hoping they bring back the Demon Hunter from Diablo 3.
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