Diablo's overall design could be divided into three areas.
Story and Quests: This was to lay out the framework of the story, as well as arrange each story so that the players could experience the story smoothly.
Map and Level Design: This was to create the various scenes in the story based on the story. Each scene had a different theme, so the models and textures used were different as well.
Moreover, one of Diablo's specialties was its randomized maps. Every time the players entered a battlefield, the locations of the various elements in the battlefield would be randomized, such as dungeon entrances and altars. This made exploration one of the most fun aspects of the Diablo series.
Character Combat System and Monster Types: This was to plan out the combat skills of the characters as well as the characteristics of the monsters in each level, making the combat system more varied.
After these three areas were done, the rest were minor details that could be slowly improved.
Apart from that, Chen Mo's changes to Diablo 3 were mainly on the art style and gameplay.
In terms of art style, Chen Mo considered using a dark, sinister, and creepy style when designing the concept draft. Horror and blood would make people feel depressed and depressed when they saw the image.
In terms of gameplay, it would also greatly increase the players' sense of danger.
First, reduce the players' stats and increase the damage dealt by the bosses, making it more dangerous for the players to fight against large groups of monsters and bosses, increasing the chances of losing the game.
The most unreasonable thing about Diablo 3 was that as the stats increased in the later stages, the bosses wouldn't pose much of a threat to the players, and it wouldn't matter if they didn't dodge their skills.
The real threat to the players were the Elite monsters. However, the way to defeat the Elite monsters was not through positioning and maneuvering, but purely by relying on equipment (stacking up all Elemental Resistance). This greatly reduced the tension in the game.
Therefore, Chen Mo considered reducing the stats increase in Diablo 3 to allow the players to play more cautiously.
Second, continue Diablo 2's field of view. The players' field of view would be reduced, making it more likely for them to encounter powerful enemies, especially in dark caves.
Thirdly, he could refer to the design of Diablo 2 in some of the scenes.
For example, in the character selection interface, the background of Diablo 2 was a dark and gloomy town. The hero was hidden in the darkness, and the person you chose would walk to the campfire from the shadows. Only then would you be able to see the hero's face.
Diablo 3, on the other hand, was set in a moonlit setting, which greatly reduced the atmosphere.
Chen Mo also considered replacing the features and scenes that didn't fit the style of Diablo 2.
Fourthly, in terms of the game's narrative and the players' emotions, it followed the same style as Diablo 2.
Diablo 2 was a master at manipulating the player's emotions. Take the first act for example, the entire game was a complete cycle of safety, danger, nervousness, anxiousness, depression, explosiveness, and relaxation. The player's emotions were perfectly controlled.
The general flow of the first act was as follows:
Town (Safe) – Den of Evil (Dangerous) – Eliminate all enemies, vision enlarged (Safe)
Icy Plain (Safe) – Blood Bird (Nervous) – Graveyard (Very Dangerous)
Rocky Wilderness (Safe), Underground Passage (Dangerous), Dark Forest (Nervous), Underground Prison (Anxious)
Inner Corridor (Temporary Respite), Cathedral Graveyard (Extremely Depressed), Kill Andariel (Explosiveness, relaxation)
Throughout the entire process, the player's emotions fluctuated along with the story, with tension and relaxation as they were immersed in the game.
However, Diablo 3 didn't do this very well. Evidently, they didn't take the player's emotions into consideration when they were designing the levels.
Chen Mo decided to follow this pattern and tweak the sequence of Diablo 3's story to better manipulate the player's emotions.
Apart from that, Chen Mo planned to make some changes to the "Blizzard style" of balancing, weakening the homogenization of some of the classes. This would allow the seemingly chaotic system to be more orderly within the system, rather than imposing a restriction on the system to make it conform to his expectations.
After finalising the concept for Diablo, Chen Mo decided to make a trip to the Game Committee to talk to Qiao Hua to make sure there weren't any problems with the review process.
… …
On the eighth of January, the new employees officially started working.
The new workplace had already been arranged. All kinds of office equipment such as computers and drawing tablets were already in place. The coffee machine, refrigerator, microwave oven, snack rack, and so on were also in place.
Su Jinyu came back yesterday and had been busy with the new employees.
Chen Mo came back at 11pm.
"Manager, the new employees are here, why don't you go welcome them?" said Su Jinyu.
Chen Mo nodded, "Alright."
The new workplace was right next to the experience store. It was originally a coffee shop, but after some renovations, it gave off a comfortable feeling.
Everyone stood up as soon as they saw Chen Mo.
"Come to the meeting room, I'll brief you guys on what to do next," said Chen Mo.
There was a conference room in the studio that could fit twenty people. The new employees all sat around the conference table. Chen Mo sat in the center with his three assistants on either side of him.
Chen Mo was quite satisfied with the new employees.
Most of them had a lot of work experience. Since they were chosen by Chen Mo himself, they were definitely capable.
Chen Mo looked around and said in a serious tone, "I'm a straightforward person, so there's no need for pleasantries. As for the salary and benefits, I've already discussed it with everyone when I first joined, so I won't repeat it. Basically, it's much higher than the industry average.
"I only have one request for you guys, and that is to complete the tasks I've given you. I don't know what it's like in other companies, but here, I'll be asking you all about the details of the game, and I don't want to get an ambiguous answer.
"Under any circumstances, even if you guys don't understand my design intentions, I hope that you guys can follow my instructions to the letter. You'll understand my intentions when the game is completed.
"Similarly, as long as you guys do your job well, I can promise you that I'll give you a salary that no other company can give you. Don't worry about money, we're a company that doesn't lack it. "
The new employees all had looks of anticipation on their faces.
Many of them were older than Chen Mo, but none of them dared to question Chen Mo's words. This was because Chen Mo's experience over the past two years was enough to shock most of them.
Considering Chen Mo's ability to make money from developing games, his reputation, and his speed of growth, not a single employee dared to underestimate this young boss.
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