Diablo II is rarely featured on lists of the best horror games, but its dire atmosphere, disturbing narrative and devastating enemies remain affecting 25 years after its debut. Still stuck in my mind are the scurrying Quill Rats, malicious Catapults, wormy Putrid Defilers and a seemingly endless parade of ghouls.
In 2000, booting up the first of three CD-ROMs delivered an opening cinematic that was as pulse pounding as it was realistic. The actor Frank Gorshin, known for his over-the-top Riddler in the 1960s “Batman” television series, voiced the game’s burdened narrator, Marius, with such nuance and passion that it felt like the demonic evil onscreen had taken over the real world.
Early in the game, the high priestess Akara warns of demons and an abiding curse on the land. Background synths rise over acoustic guitar-based compositions to add gloom. The looming malevolence begins to become palpable. A review in Eurogamer raved about the writhing enemies who died in a messy smattering of blood and the “spine-chilling groans” heard in dungeons before players even saw an enemy.
Diablo II was far more polished than its predecessor by Blizzard Entertainment, and was a significant development in action-oriented role-playing games. The story of horror and woe unfolded in five acts (if you include the expansion pack), compared with one for the original, and there were more character classes to choose from before making your way through the towns and dungeons of Sanctuary.
The original Diablo sold more than 750,000 copies in its first six months; Diablo II hit a million copies in two weeks.
Diablo II’s savvy addition of skill trees — which are now common, appearing in games as different as The Last of Us and Donkey Kong Bananza — was perhaps the most memorable innovation. I was obsessed with acquiring all 30 skills in the Necromancer class, which at Level 6 allowed for the release of a Golem to fight for me. It later becomes the bulky Blood Golem, taking life force from the dead to replenish my health during battle.
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