Diablo II and Icewind Dale 10-Year Anniversary

Today marks the ten-year anniversary of the release of both Diablo II and Icewind Dale, and while there doesn’t seem to be any celebrations for the latter, Blizzard Entertainment has kicked up a page devoted to the Diablo II milestone. The page comes complete with some celebratory text atop the limited edition artwork Keith Parkinson created for the game, a handful of screenshots, and the original Diablo theme song that we all recognize.

Join us as we proudly celebrate the Diablo II 10-year anniversary! Released on June 29, 2000, Diablo II was built on the foundation established by the original Diablo, which combined classic role-playing game design philosophies and fast-paced demon-killing action.

Diablo II did more than just expand on the core feel and mechanics of the original game. It took a traditional dungeon crawl and opened up the game world with vast exterior zones and intricate, randomly generated dungeons. Diablo II took players from desert sands to the darkest jungles on a quest that would ultimately lead them into the depths of the Burning Hells.

Players were given a wider selection of unique character classes to choose from, including iconic archetypes like the Barbarian. Expanded character customization systems provided greater depth, starting with new abilities, an ample selection of loot to collect, and the option to enhance these treasures with sockets and runes.

Blizzard’s popular Battle.net platform also provided the game with robust multiplayer that remains popular years later. The game was patched earlier this year, has a lively community of players on Battle.net every day, and regularly hits the top 20 in PC game sales charts.

We’d like to express our gratitude to the community for your support over the years — thanks to your enthusiasm, Diablo II is still going strong.

I remember happily picking up both titles in what was probably the best $80 I’ve ever spent at a store in a single day. A great time to be a PC gamer.