Diablo News

[B]Cutting Through the Dung-Pile[/B] It isn’t easy coming up with topics sometimes. In fact, it can be really difficult. You see, I have this philosophy about Garwulf’s Corner: I believe that you, my dear readers, are intelligent human beings who want to read about something just a bit more important and insightful than another strategy … Read more

[B]Staring at the Top Rung[/B] Finally able to discover the wonders of Battle.net with my USWest barbarian, aptly named Garwulf, I ventured online during a snowy New Year’s Day to stretch my character’s legs and have a look at the new ladder rankings. Ever since I first began playing Diablo II on Battle.net, I have … Read more

[B]I Am NOT Harlan Ellison[/B] “I am NOT Harlan Ellison” It was on a strangely warm day in January, while coming home from picking up a new volume of Ellison stories (which I will no doubt use to induce insomnia, regardless of my best intentions), that I came up with the subject and hook for … Read more

[B]Emails from the Edge[/B] Right before I begin, I have a bit of administrivia for you. For those who would like to meet me in person, I will be a panelist at the Ad Astra convention in Toronto, February 23-25. This is a literary convention, and promises to have quite a few rather good fantasy … Read more

[B]Walking with the Dead[/B] I see dead people. They wander around, pass me in shopping malls and on the street, not even aware of what they are. They may still have breath in their lungs, but they are dead. There are two kinds of death: there is physical death, which can only be reversed by … Read more

[B]Millennial Thoughts[/B] What a remarkable year this has been. It is quite literally the last year in the millennium, and not only are we seeing the return of mythical fantasy to the screen (in the form of the recently released Dungeons and Dragons movie), but we can also gaze at the maturity of fantasy in … Read more

[B]Films for the Diablo Fan[/B] Right before I get to the meat of this installment, I’d like to harken back to Garwulf’s Corner #2 (The Royal Circlet and the Hacker). This particular column managed to generate a fair bit of reader response, most of which complimented me on the column and shared a story about … Read more

[B]Revelations from The Exorcist[/B] Although it will be an event that occurred a couple of months ago by the time you read this, recently I did something fairly stupid. You see, my little brother was in for a brief break from his incredibly exciting life at the University of Waterloo (a life that I am … Read more

[B]The Royal Circle and the Hacker[/B] Sometimes, it’s enough to make me wonder why people are playing. Perhaps I should explain. I was on Battle.net venturing through a Diablo I dungeon, when a player (who shall remain nameless) entered the game. He came down to the caves to join me, there was a moment of … Read more

[B]Harlan Ellison, Diablo, and Insomnia[/B] Someday I’ll learn: no more Harlan Ellison stories right before going to bed. It isn’t that they are poor stories; indeed, I wish I could write like Ellison. Unfortunately, they’re just too good. I read a story or essay by this wonder of modern SF, and my mind starts to … Read more

LONDON, ENGLAND – September 1, 2000 – At the European Consumer Trade Show starting today, Blizzard Entertainment® announced plans for the Diablo™ II Expansion Set for its number-one selling game, Diablo II. Diablo II has sold nearly 2 million copies worldwide since shipping just two months ago, making it the biggest PC game this year. In … Read more

[B]The Ninth Circle[/B] was written from 2002-2006, by David Kay, and with 58 installments it was the longest running column in Diabloii.net’s history. The Ninth Circle covered computer gaming, RPGs, fantasy novels, the gamer’s life, and other related issues. Full column listing: A Patch or a Crutch?—Nov 12, 2002 Baang: Or Why I No Longer … Read more

[B]The Ninth Circle[/B] was written from 2002-2006, by David Kay, and with 58 installments it was the longest running column in Diabloii.net’s history. The Ninth Circle covered computer gaming, RPGs, fantasy novels, the gamer’s life, and other related issues. Full column listing: A Patch or a Crutch?—Nov 12, 2002 Baang: Or Why I No Longer … Read more

[B]Garwulf’s Corner Columns:[/B] Full column listing: Harlan Ellison, Diablo, and Insomnia—October 31, 2000 The Royal Circlet and the Hacker—November 14, 2000 Revelations from the Exorcist—November 30, 2000 Films for the Diablo Fan—December 11, 2000 Millennial Thoughts—December 29, 2000 Walking with the Dead—January 8, 2001 Emails from the Edge—January 22, 2001 I am NOT Harlan Ellison—February … Read more

IRVINE, Calif. – June 28, 2000 – Blizzard Entertainment® announced today that Diablo™ II, its highly anticipated real-time action role-playing game, has started shipping to stores worldwide. The game, which has initial orders of 2 million copies, will start arriving at retailers by the end of the week. In Diablo II, players return to a … Read more

June 27th, 2000: Havas Interactive, a global leader in interactive content. The second largest publisher of entertainment software for PCs and the second largest publisher of educational software is pleased to announce Diablo II street date of June 30th. Diablo II returns to a world of dark fantasy. As one of five distinct character types, … Read more

IRVINE, Calif. – June 7, 2000 – Gamers should start clearing their calendars and stocking up on caffeinated beverages now. Blizzard Entertainment® announced today that Diablo II, its highly anticipated real-time action role-playing game, has gone gold. The game, which has initial orders in excess of 1.5 million copies worldwide, will start shipping to retailers … Read more

IRVINE, Calif. – April 28, 2000 – Blizzard today announced plans for Diablo™ II‘s Battle.net® stress test — the final phase of Diablo II beta testing and the company’s largest public beta test to date. Starting Monday morning, hardcore gamers around the world will have the opportunity to register for their chance to be one of up to … Read more

Blizzard Entertainment announces a one-time production run of Diablo II Collector’s Edition. Available only during Diablo II’s initial launch, this special edition will be offered in limited quantities. The Collector’s Edition will include Diablo II on four CD-ROMs, a 24-minute Diablo II cinematic on DVD in wide-screen letter box format, the Diablo II soundtrack with … Read more

IRVINE, Nov. 12, 1999 – Blizzard Entertainment has gone Hollywood. Known for building high-quality cinematic movies into its popular video games, the company announced today that it has produced a short portion of its Diablo II cinematic film for the silver screen. The film, which runs approximately eight minutes, is entitled Diablo: The Calling, and … Read more

The release date of Diablo II has been the subject of great speculation in recent weeks as the result of delays in starting the beta test. After discussing the time needed to fully play-balance, polish, beta test and debug the game, we feel that it is important to let the gaming community know that we … Read more

Battle.net dominates on-line gaming with more than 4.5 million active accounts; international markets spur growth. Blizzard Entertainment’s online game service, Battle.net, continues to gain momentum as the world’s largest Internet playing venue. The number of active users has surged to more than 4.5 million active accounts that log more than 1.3 million games daily. Peak … Read more

Los Angeles, May 15, 1999 – At the Electronic Entertainment Expo starting today, Blizzard Entertainment® announced a series of strategic licensing partnerships for its three number-one selling game properties, Diablo™, StarCraft™ and Warcraft®. Line extensions include novels, paper-based games, strategy guides and action figures. Blizzard is in final negotiations with a major book publisher to … Read more

Los Angeles – May 13, 1999 – At the Electronic Entertainment Expo starting today, Blizzard Entertainmentâ previewed DiabloÔ II, the sequel to its top selling role-playing game of 1997, featuring 3D accelerator support via Glide 3 and OpenGL . Blizzard for the first time showed Diablo II’s perspective scaling and parallax, a new display option within the game’s suite of … Read more

IRVINE, April 14, 1999 – Blizzard Entertainment®’s unveiled today some new details about the status of Diablo II, the much-anticipated sequel to 1997’s highly acclaimed role-playing game, Diablo. Blizzard has finished developing Diablo II’s five new character classes: the Amazon, the Paladin, the Necromancer, the Sorceress and the Barbarian. Each character can develop 30 unique, class-specific skills and … Read more