The Diablo IV Stress Slam weekend ended only a few hours ago. With only a couple of weeks left ahead of the game’s launch, though, Blizzard is continuing to share new information on the game.
In a new developer diary video, key members of the Diablo IV team discussed the main concepts behind the narrative. It had to appeal to existing fans and newcomers alike, and it would have to return to the series’ darker roots. In fact, according to Game Director Joe Shely, Diablo IV features the darkest story produced yet by the studio.
The story of Diablo IV kicks off roughly fifty years after the events of Diablo III: Reaper of Souls, where the Archangel of Death Malthael effectively culled half of the population of Sanctuary. Needless to say, these years saw quite a few changes in the population and the prevalent factions across the fragile world, which will be reflected in the storylines.
Of course, the main narrative thread will be all about the power struggle between the angel Inarius and the demon Lilith. After endless years of conflict, the two had come to the same conclusion – there was no point in the Eternal War between the forces of Heaven and Hell.
When Lilith managed to capture Inarius, she found out that Inarius shared her mindset on the conflict, and they became allies. Together, they stole the mountain-sized Worldstone that would allow them to create a world of their own, which they called Sanctuary by no accident.
Such different beings inevitably had very different ideas on how to run Sanctuary, which led them to clash multiple times throughout the Diablo timeline. Inarius banished Lilith away from the world, locking her in a realm of darkness. Eventually, though, he was captured by other angels and handed over to the slavemasters in Hell for punishment.
At the beginning of Diablo IV, both Inarius and Lilith have escaped their prisons and are back in Sanctuary. The problem for humankind is that they’re literally caught amid their feud for the world that they had created.
The game’s narrative features recurring characters, such as Lorath Nahr. Previously seen in Diablo III: Reaper of Souls as a member of the Horadrim, Lorath is now living as a hermit in the woods, but when the player character stumbles on his cabin and reveals to have connected with Lilith, he sends them on a quest to stop her from getting what she wants.
Another important character is Nyrelle, a young adventurer who used to travel the world with her mother to find long lost Horadrim artifacts. Blizzard’s Senior Manager of Lore Sean Copeland teased that it’ll be through her actions that the player character and Lorath are actually able to take the fight to Lilith.
Overall, Associate Writer Eden Trujillo reckons the story of Diablo IV includes characters who are trying to live their lives despite all of the darkness and danger surrounding them, grounding them as real people.
Diablo IV launches on June 6th for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S|X. Head to this article for more information on the Battle Pass, in-game Shop, and Season.
