While some may not like the idea of followers in Diablo 4, love them or hate them, (un)useful companions have become an important part of RPG combat. I asked Blizzard what their plans are for helpers in Diablo 4 and while they didn’t say much, it sounds like subscribers might join the list at some point.
In a conversation with Lead Class Designer Adam Z. Jackson, after seeing a gameplay preview of Diablo 4, I asked if the tracking system would be more similar to Diablo 2 or Diablo 3, if at all. .
For those who don’t know, in Diablo 2 you hired followers to bring down the gates of hell with you, but when they were killed you had to rehire them for money. Each area spawned a new follower, which means some of them were outright better than others – the Halberd Warrior Loot Golein remains at the bottom of the list, don’t worry.
This expanded into Diablo 3, where instead of hiring mercenaries, you acquired three different companions during the story campaign. You had Scoundrel, Sorceress, and Templar representing ranged DPS, tank, and magic user respectively.
In my adventure in Diablo 4, I only found useful NPCs who stayed for a few dungeons and then left when the sun went down. When I asked Jackson how the game’s escort feature would work, they said, “For the launch version of the game, we have several locations in the story, specifically where you’ll have certain named NPCs that will follow you around and help you when you figure out what to do.” Lilith made in the world.
“We have no feedback on the Diablo 2-like follower you hired, we’re using it in the campaign right now.” Focus on for the moment.
With a wry smile, they continue: “Stay tuned, we may have something to announce in the future, but no promises.” This immediately sparked a reaction from dungeon producer Ash Sweetring, who channeled his inner Mr. Burns with an “interesting” hand wave in the background. That’s what I call his.
If any iteration of the tracking system appears in Diablo 4, I’d rather it be a Diablo 2-style mercenary than the ubiquitous companions. I liked the wide range of different abilities fans introduced to Diablo 2 (aside from Lute Golein, the Halberd Man) and would like to see this as an innovation. This opens up even more room for different builds, as well as awesome demon-slaying skill chains.
In the meantime, you can read more about the classes in Diablo 4, as these are the ones we’ll be playing with first. However, in a separate interview with game director Joe Shelley, it was hinted that this range could be expanded; after all, nothing is forever in Sanctuary.
Source : PC Gamesn
