Blizzard North
Blizzard North business and news from across the web.
Are these the 100 most influential games of all time?Kitfox Games CEO Tanya Short discusses a list of the 100 most influential video games of all time, compiled by professional game designers. The list, assembled through the Polaris game design retreat, aims to serve as a tool for designers to improve their craft and create influential games.- DENMU ANNOUNCES $50 MILLION FUND DEDICATED TO VISIONARY GAME MAKERSDENMU, a new video game investment house, has announced its initial $50 million fund dedicated to supporting visionary game makers across various platforms and genres. The company emphasizes an 'auteur-first' approach, aiming to bridge Eastern and Western markets and provide flexible capital for AAA, AA, indie, and mobile projects. Founded by Michael Fan and Ryan You, DENMU's team includes industry veterans from companies like Blizzard North and Top Hat Studios.
Diablo creators worried "RPGs were so overwrought with statistics that the genre had shrunk to a tiny audience," so they wanted it to be like "how we'd played Dungeons & Dragons as kids"Max Schaefer, co-founder of Condor (later Blizzard North), discussed the early design philosophy of Diablo, aiming to simplify RPGs by focusing on core mechanics like hitting monsters and gaining loot, inspired by childhood Dungeons & Dragons experiences. This approach was intended to counter the overly complex statistics and penalties found in many contemporary RPGs, making the genre more accessible and rewarding for players.
Everyone knows Wolfenstein 3D made the FPS a phenomenon. What this mod presupposes is… what if it didn't?The Isowulf mod reimagines Wolfenstein 3D from an isometric perspective, prompting speculation about whether the first-person shooter genre would have emerged if this had been the original design. Despite the hypothetical impact, the mod is praised for its faithful recreation and the enduring quality of id Software's original design.
Former Diablo devs release demo for their Diablo 2-style action-RPG Darkhaven, but warn of "rough edges"Moon Beast Productions, a studio founded by former Blizzard North developers, has released a pre-alpha demo for their action-RPG Darkhaven. The game aims to capture the feel of Diablo 2 while incorporating dynamic world and terrain destruction mechanics. Developers caution that the demo has rough edges and is not a polished preview, but offers several hours of gameplay.
#5 Highly Compressed PC Games Under 20MB [Working!]This article lists five highly compressed PC games that are under 20MB, including classics like Tomb Raider (1996), Eye of the Beholder (1990), Diablo (1996), and Wolfenstein 3D (1992). It highlights their developers, publishers, and original release platforms.