Erich Schaefer Joins Moon Beast Productions

Moon Beast Productions is an independent Texas-based studio founded by Phil Shenk and Peter Hu, a couple of Blizzard veterans, with the intention of transforming the way video games, and action-RPGs in particular, are played.

And while at this point we know next to nothing about this studio’s debut project, apart from it being a fantasy RPG of some description, this here VentureBeat interview lets us know that Erich Schaefer, one of the key people behind such series like Diablo, Hellgate, Torchlight, and Rebel Galaxy, has joined the Moon Beast team.

Here’s a couple of sample paragraphs to give you a better idea as to what they’re going for with their mysterious project:

“We started Moon Beast to take a fresh look at ARPGs. So much of what we see today is a fairly linear evolution from the original Diablo,” said Hu. “Going back and reinventing the isometric ARPG genre with Erich is like a dream come true for me. In this short time since we’ve reunited, we’ve generated some of the most incredible ideas and it’s sparked a creative drive that I haven’t truly felt since the Diablo II days.”

It’s a bit risky to play around with the models for the genre. The team wants to make something familiar for players, but not make them feel like they’re starting something over from scratch. But Erich Schaefer liked the ideas at Moon Beast so much that he decided to come out of retirement.