"Simple yet addictive style of play."

Many people have been tainted by the excellence of the sequel to this title: Diablo II. However, since I have yet to play Diablo II, you'll be getting a (somewhat) unbiased review of the game and what it has to offer. Diablo is a point-n-click role-playing/adventure game released for the PC/Macintosh back in 1996 by Blizzard Entertainment and is still a very popular title to date. With its addictive gameplay style and free access to Battle.net's servers for online multi-player, Diablo won the title ''Game of the Year'' back in 1996 according to Computer Gaming World magazine.

Graphics: 6/10

I'd have to say the only category Diablo lacks in is graphics - mainly because nearly everything in the labyrinth is too dark and blurry to distinguish. I've sometimes found myself being attacked by goat archers or other monsters and not being able to retaliate in time because I couldn't find them. The only 'light' part in the labyrinth is your character's light radius - which isn't very big. Some argue that the darkness signifies 'evil' but I just find it to be annoying. However, the opening cinema is superb as are the item icons. Monsters and animations are good, but too repetitive. I'd like to have seen more types of monsters in the game.

Sound: 8/10

Labyrinth background music is nearly non-existent and the town music isn't all that appealing either. I gave the sound an eight mainly because of the voice acting, which is amazingly very good. Each character's voice matches their personality perfectly and the sound effects are very nice and detailed. You don't hear your character talk very often - the only times I can recall are when you try to pick up an item with full inventory or you don't have sufficient mana to cast a spell. More variety could have been added to the phrases, but still good neverthless. If music is what you're looking for, you won't find it here.

Story: 8/10

Some claim that Diablo has no plot - this is not the case. The game's story is very interesting and detailed if you read into it, but I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll just sum it up: Diablo was banished to the mortal realm and resides under the church of Tristram and is plotting to make his return, causing total destruction to the town of Tristram and its inhabitants. Your job is to travel through the labyrinth under the Monastery until you reach the very bottom where Diablo waits and kill him off before he has a chance to regain power. Sure, it lacks depth, but there is a plot, despite what people may say.

Gameplay: 9/10

Diablo consists of two areas: the town and the labyrinth. In town, you can buy items, sell items, heal yourself, gossip with the townsfolk and a few other things. However, all the action is down in the labyrinth under the church. The labyrinth is basically just one very large dungeon that is 16-levels long, divided into four areas: dungeon, catacombs, caves and hell. You go through each level of the labyrinth, kill off all the monsters that reside there, collect all the items you can and stop back in town to heal/purchase items when necessary.

Not much too it really, and some feel it's too repetitive having the game take place in only one large dungeon, but I disagree. While it may sound simple, Diablo's gameplay is very addictive and fun - though you may get bored with it after finishing the game with all three character classes. You also have a handful of optional side quests to play if you want, but these get old after finishing them once or twice since there's only one way to finish each. To summarize things: Diablo has fun and addictive gameplay, but a few more areas to explore wouldn't have hurt.

Replayability: 10/10

This game is now five years old and there are still a ton of active Diablo players out there. The single player mode is quite addictive and will provide hours upon hours of fun times, but the multi-player mode on Battle.net is probably the thing that keeps so many players active. With it, you can join up with friends or other players and venture into the labyrinth to kill Diablo as a team and trade items too. Be warned, however, there are a lot of cheaters and PKers (Player Killers) out there who just want to ruin the game for you, so it's best to play with people you know and trust. There is no secure way to trade items in multi-player mode, meaning you can easily be ripped off if you drop an item. Overall, the replay value for this game is very high.

Rent or Buy?

For 10 dollars, there is no reason not to buy this game. Don't be deceived by the low price, however, just remember that the game was released in 1996. Besides, I don't know of many places that rent out PC games and even if you find one - you'd be paying half the cost of the game just to play it for a few days. Any place that sells computer games should have this one in stock - check Office Depot or an online store if you're having trouble finding it.

Overall: 8/10

Anybody with a computer and love of video games will enjoy this title. It may be a bit simplistic, but don't be turned away because of that. Despite the flaws the game has, the gameplay and replayability really make up for it all. If you are already a current Diablo owner and are looking for something more, try the unofficial expansion pack, Hellfire or the sequel to the game: Diablo II and its expansion, Lord of Destruction.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/31/01, Updated 08/31/01