10-06-2004, 02:11 PM
In addition to "StarCraft: Ghost", Blizzard North is also working on a not yet announced project.
Theme-wise, the next game should be in the "Diablo" universe. We recently had "WarCraft 3" and "The Frozen Thone", and currently "World of WarCraft" and "StarCraft: Ghost". The chances that the next big Blizzard game is a "StarCraft 2" RTS are close to nil, so I've heard. I seem to remember that Bill Roper said something along these lines too, before he left the company for Flagship Studios. The "Diablo" franchise still has HUGE potential, no matter how the next "Diablo" game will turn out. Prequel or sequel to the "Diablo" story, (MMO)RPG or FPS/RPG - anything that carries the "Diablo III" title should sell gazillions of copies. "World of WarCraft" - although surrounded by strong MMORPG competitors - will probably be the MMORPG of the next couple of years and Blizzard's financially most successful title ever with oodles of cash flowing into the company's wallet, so the money for the next adventure of epic scale will be there. Can you imagine anything better for an epic game than "Diablo"? I can't :)
Regarding Flagship Studios, I think they are currently too small to produce something of the scale of "Diablo II" in a reasonable time frame. They have something nice with the "Dark Fantasy" theme under development, but it will for sure not be something that can be considered a successor to "Diablo II". And buying the "Diablo" franchise with all its rights is certainly out of question for such a young company with limited financial resources.
Theme-wise, the next game should be in the "Diablo" universe. We recently had "WarCraft 3" and "The Frozen Thone", and currently "World of WarCraft" and "StarCraft: Ghost". The chances that the next big Blizzard game is a "StarCraft 2" RTS are close to nil, so I've heard. I seem to remember that Bill Roper said something along these lines too, before he left the company for Flagship Studios. The "Diablo" franchise still has HUGE potential, no matter how the next "Diablo" game will turn out. Prequel or sequel to the "Diablo" story, (MMO)RPG or FPS/RPG - anything that carries the "Diablo III" title should sell gazillions of copies. "World of WarCraft" - although surrounded by strong MMORPG competitors - will probably be the MMORPG of the next couple of years and Blizzard's financially most successful title ever with oodles of cash flowing into the company's wallet, so the money for the next adventure of epic scale will be there. Can you imagine anything better for an epic game than "Diablo"? I can't :)
Regarding Flagship Studios, I think they are currently too small to produce something of the scale of "Diablo II" in a reasonable time frame. They have something nice with the "Dark Fantasy" theme under development, but it will for sure not be something that can be considered a successor to "Diablo II". And buying the "Diablo" franchise with all its rights is certainly out of question for such a young company with limited financial resources.
"Man only plays when in the full meaning of the word he is a man, and he is only completely a man when he plays." -- Friedrich von Schiller