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A Diablo 3 mechanic discarded because “it was not fun” found the perfect place in World of Warcraft
A combat mechanic designed for Diablo 3 was dropped after internal testing found it unfun, but later became central to a World of Warcraft raid encounter. Former Blizzard game director Wyatt Cheng says the idea worked once it was moved into a game where players could better notice and respond to enemies’ abilities.
The original concept gave each of four enemies an ability that passed to the others when it died, but Diablo players often focused on fast kills and loot, so the transfers went unnoticed. In World of Warcraft’s Temple of Ahn’Qiraj, Cheng adapted it for the Anubisath Sentinels, each of which randomly selected from eight abilities, encouraging players to assess the encounter.
In short
- A rejected Diablo 3 idea found a better fit in World of Warcraft.
- Four Anubisath Sentinels each chose from eight abilities.
- The encounter worked because players could pay attention to enemy abilities.
Explained simply
Diablo 3 and World of Warcraft are role-playing games made by Blizzard, but they play differently. Diablo 3 centres on fighting groups of enemies and collecting loot, while World of Warcraft lets players team up to tackle longer challenges called raids.
Wyatt Cheng, a former Blizzard game director, worked on both games. The idea at the centre of this story was for enemies to pass their abilities to one another when one was defeated; in the World of Warcraft raid Temple of Ahn’Qiraj, players faced Anubisath Sentinels with abilities that could vary from one fight to the next.
The story illustrates how a game mechanic can work differently depending on how players encounter it. In a fast-paced fight focused on defeating enemies quickly, players may miss changes between them; a raid can give a group more reason to watch enemies and respond to their abilities.