Diablo III was released over six years ago and until the announcement of Diablo Immortal, the franchise has been strangely silent. The announcement of the mobile Diablo title drew some curiosity and and a lot of negative feedback from fans wondering if this is all the franchise is to become for the future. A recent report has arrived detailing the development of Diablo IV, revealing a few interesting details surrounding the troubled journey for the title.

According to the Kotaku, the title began as a project called “Hades” and looked into different ways developers could take the franchise –  including returning to the gothic aesthetic of the early Diablo days. In addition to this, the developers toyed with the idea of ditching the isometric camera for an over the shoulder camera, that would have made the game feel a bit more like the Dark Souls franchise. According to anonymous sources, the direction was also clearly likened to that of the brutally unforgiving franchise, which would have made the fourth installment drastically different, which would have furthered the perception that Diablo has changed too much. 

Unfortunately, by 2016 the project was scrapped and Josh Mosqueira, who was helming the new title, left Blizzard. The game itself is not dead as developers have expressed that rumors of Diablo IV being cancelled are false, explaining that multiple projects are still on the way. According to those same sources, the new vision for Diablo IV is under the codename Fenris and is currently well underway. What direction the game will go from here is unclear, though Blizzard promises an announcement is on the horizon.

Diablo III on the other hand has recently arrived on the Nintendo Switch complete with Amiibo functionality, Nintendo-themed skins and more. Would you have liked to see an over-the-shoulder view and gothic atmosphere for the next title? Let us know your thoughts on Diablo IV and the direction of the franchise in the comments section below. As always, don’t forget to follow Don’t Feed the Gamers on Twitter for 24/7 coverage of all things gaming and entertainment.