Diablo III Preview

The guys at YourEMGN have cranked out a quick preview of Diablo III, though it appears to be based on existing information rather than a hands-on demonstration.

An enhanced quest system, a random level generator, and a random encounter generator are slated for use in order to ensure the game provides different experiences when replayed. Overall, the game will include both static and randomly generated levels. Additionally, there will be class-specific quests to go along with the main storyline quests. For the first time in the series, in-engine cutscenes will be employed during key moments. A new inventory system similar to World of Warcraft will be implemented, rather than the system of previous games where differently-sized items take up different amounts of space in the inventory. Two new armor pieces will be available: the shoulder plate, and the leggings.

Unlike previous iterations, gold can be picked up merely by touching it, rather than having to manually pick it up. Sidekicks, unlike Diablo II, are now distinct NPCs who join the player, rather than randomly-generated and endlessly replaceable hires. One of the new features intended to speed gameplay are health orbs that drop from enemies, replacing the need to have a potion bar, which itself is replaced by a skill bar that allows a player to assign quick bar buttons to skills and spells; previously, players could only assign two skills (one for each mouse button) and had to swap skills with the function keys. Players can still assign specific attacks to mouse buttons.