Just over a year afterDiablo Immortalinvaded millions of mobile devices and PCs like so many demons surging through a Hell Portal, Blizzard’s mobileDiablogame is gearing up to add an all-new class to its roster: the Blood Knight. UnlikeDiabloImmortalor evenDiablo 4’s current characters, the Blood Knight is an unprecedented class in theDiablofranchise, which gave the team free rein to develop its kit, class fantasy, and lore without any ties to previous iterations.
In an interview with Game Rant,Diablo Immortal senior narrative designer Ryan Quinn and lead UX designer Chris Liao spoke about why the team landed on the Blood Knight as their first choice for a new class. In addition to wanting to bring in another class with a darker fantasy theme, they also felt that the class’s vampiric melee gameplay allowed for a distinct playstyle that both complements and contrasts with the game’s existing roster.
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Diablo Immortal’s Blood Knight Stands Out Thematically
One of the most important considerations forDiablo’s many classesis their sense of class fantasy and theme, as these are often the main reason players decide on one class or another. Before even fully understanding a class’s gameplay strengths, players can almost immediately determine which class they’d like to play because of the iconic aesthetics and themes inherent to them. The Blood Knight’s vampire-inspired buckets-of-blood style holds a distinct identity even among the darker-themed classes like the Necromancer, and the concept will likely be a favorite among players.
I think conceptually for us, we knew we wanted another “dark” class. Diablo runs the gamut between classes that are kind of light in tone – like Monks and Crusaders – and classes that are darker in tone – like the Necromancer and the Demon Hunter – and we had this opportunity to make a class that felt very dark. It has a sort of vampiric element but also expresses that darkness in a way that is distinct and still feels iconic, unique, and worthy of standing around the campfire. We took the opportunity to bring something kind of supernatural to the roster and something that felt like a new addition toDiablo Immortal’s identity, specifically that we hadn’t seen in previousDiablogames. I think that was the driving force from the creative side.
Since the Blood Knight is abrand-new class for theDiabloseries, its inclusion also paves the way for new lore throughout Sanctuary. The class comes with a fleshed-out narrative as well as voice lines recorded for all ofDiablo Immortal’s campaign, and a new Elite Quest for Hell 1+ players of all classes will have them working with a “very, very old Blood Knight” to hunt down one of her fallen companions.
The Blood Knight’s Playstyle Is Distinct From Other Classes
Of course, the gory aesthetics and tragic backstory alone aren’t enough to justify a new class if it only plays out as a reskin of an existing class. It was important toDiabloImmortal’sdevelopersto leverage the Blood Knight’s vampire theme into a kit that stands out and opens up new playstyle opportunities. The Blood Knight is a hybrid melee class with lots of survivability-boosting life drain capabilities in addition to a few tools that help it tackle opponents at a distance. It’s abilities seem to favor a relentless harassing playstyle, staying at the enemy’s heels and outlasting them through attrition.
In terms of the actual gameplay of the Blood Knight, we wanted to create a class that embodied a lot of these awesome thematic elements – like how they’re not vampires but have vampiric-themed elements – and bring them to life. In terms of how they play into the meta, they’re quite different from the other melee classes. We wanted to make sure that they have their own unique space so they are still very melee focused, but also have several ranged abilities and gap closers to help them differentiate from the other classes in the game.
In a way, the Blood Knight’s kit is reminiscent ofWorldofWarcraft’s Blood spec Death Knight, which relies on life-draining abilities to stay in the fight and has a number of ways to deal with ranged opponents and spellcasters. There’s something undoubtedly satisfying about draining opponents to fuel one’s own strength, andDiablo Immortal’s Blood Knight is shaping up to be an attractive choice for fans of that approach.
Diablo Immortalis available on Mobile and PC.
