Diablo
Diablo was Blizzard's first big venture away from Real Time Strategy games, and it became quite a hit. It even spawned Battle.net, the online gaming service where players could play with or against each other via Blizzard games, for free. Any way you look at it, Diablo was rather revolutionary.
Diablo pits you, as one of three character classes (a Warrior of exceptional strength, a bow-mastering Rogue, or a Sorcerer with innate magic power), against the Lord of Terror, Diablo. But there's also an army of hell's minions in your way, which makes for a simple yet powerful multi-leveled action/RPG battle against evil.
The story of Diablo, as per Blizzard standard, can be looked at in two different ways. One, the short way, goes by the simple plot of the game; an occasional side-quest may interrupt, but the only noteworthy thing is that you must battle your way down through the 16 levels of the Monastery in Tristram and destroy the Lord of Terror. He was locked away long ago, but has released himself, and must be defeated. The deeper story, however, is revealed in the game's documentation and dialogue; while functionally unimportant, it shows that great care was put into the writing of this game. It tells of the war between Heaven and Hell, of angels and demons, of a well-meaning archangel and the seven great evils, and of an arcane group of mortal magi known as the Horadrim, and their involvement with the mystic Soulstones. Diablo's manual describes this deeper, fuller story in great detail.
The gameplay of Diablo is rather simple: hack and slash, fire arrows, and cast magic to defeat enemies and gain experience (and thus levels). You'll need all the power you can get to conquer the Lord of Terror. Along your way, you'll pick up items; some will be magical, and once identified, can imbue upon your character certain enhancements. Some are Unique, the cream of the crop - these items have more and more impressive magical enhancements than 'ordinary' magical items. A character's items are a vital part of his power, whether they're for power enhancement or sheer physical strength. You'll also find spellbooks, which (if you're the required level) will allow you to learn, or increase the level of your already-learned, magic spells. Diablo has dozens of spells, each of which has its use, be it shooting a fireball, summoning a hydra, or teleporting across a room.
Diablo's graphics won't stun the modern player, but are by no means bad. Character models change depending on what you have equipped, making for some interesting appearances. The sound effects blend in nicely with the game, and the ambient music is typically creepy - just the right mood for this game.
Because each level of the Monastery's dungeon is randomly created every time you make a new game, and because of the sheer amount of magic item modifications, Diablo has significant replay value, and can keep one's attention significantly. Additionally, Diablo can be played online, and is supported by Battle.net, where you can play with or against up to three other people.
If you're a fan of hack 'n' slash, you owe it to yourself to at least look at Diablo, and see some of the now-popular genre's roots. With its current competition, Diablo doesn't stand much of a chance, but it's still a nicely done product.
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