It’s claimed that Vicarious Visions is working on a remake of Blizzard’s classic RPG Diablo 2. The news comes from a recent report by Bloomberg.
It’s believed that the studio will be assisting Blizzard’s Team 3, who is also working on the upcoming Diablo 4. This comes after the news that Vicarious Visions has been folded into Blizzard [via GamesIndustry.biz], despite the success of its Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 & 2 remake.
It’s claimed that Blizzard’s Team 1 was set to handle the Diablo 2 remake. This decision was overturned due to the shortcomings of its Warcraft 3 remaster, which led to Team 1’s dissolution.
As you can imagine, fans aren’t too pleased with Activision’s decision to reassign Vicarious Visions. The move means that the team won’t be working on games like Tony Hawk and Crash Bandicoot in the future, despite both titles being successful. (A Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 remake is now looking pretty unlikely).
After the news, games industry commentator Nibel said the following: “Vicarious Visions not only successfully revived the Crash Bandicoot IP, but also made one of the best remakes of all time with THPS 1+2. This industry continues to be ridiculous.”
This was followed by comments from Jason Schreier of Bloomberg, who retweeted Nibel. He added: “Weird! Vicarious Visions has actually been working on Blizzard projects for a few months now, but this restructuring is yet another example of Activision eroding Blizzard’s autonomy.”
Fans will no doubt be excited at the prospect of a remade Diablo 2, but it’s hard to ignore the cost it could come at. It would be a shame to see Vicarious Vision’s 25-year legacy vanish under a sea of Overwatch and Warcraft content. Perhaps being handed Diablo 2 will keep the team afloat for now. Only time will tell!
Are you disappointed with the news, or is this a great new beginning for Diablo 2?
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