Hell is coming to tabletop after Blizzard announced Diablo: The RPG and Board Game, the franchise’s first TTRPG adaptation.
Revealed during Blizzcon 2023, the Diablo TTRPG is a collaborative effort between Blizzard Entertainment, Glass Cannon Unplugged, and Genuine Entertainment. While little is known about the gameplay, players eager for a more physical loot-grinding experience can join the pre-order campaign over on Kickstarter when it goes live on an as-yet-unspecified date. The game is expected to officially launch in fall 2024.
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Per Glass Cannon Unplugged’s description of the Diablo TTRPG, fans of the iconic franchise can expect to “experience the mythos of Diablo with all its unbridled potential,” with a core rule book laying out how to best take advantage of the land of Sanctuary and the various demonic hordes that dwell beneath down in Hell. The developers have also promised a faithful adaptation which “will further explore the overworld and underworld of Sanctuary,” which will allow players to strike out on “adventures above and below with fan-favourite mechanics torn straight from the screen.”
Blizzard and Glass Cannon have also insisted that the board game and TTRPG systems will be related to one another. “The Core Rulebook is thematically set alongside Diablo 4, with future tabletop supplements planned throughout Diablo’s timeline,” Glass Cannon Unplugged CEO Jakub WiÅ›niewski. “Moreover, the TTRPG is a direct companion to the upcoming Diablo: The Board Game, a co-op adventure board game slated for fall 2025.” The two separate games will share accessories, game components and also feature complementary expansions.
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Based on the descriptions provided by the involved studios, it sounds as though Diablo: The RPG and Board Game is designed with longevity in mind. Beyond that fact that “expansions” implies that the developers are planning multiple post-launch content drops, Glass Cannon Unplugged has described the endeavor of bringing both products to life as a “long-term tabletop gaming programme.” Which seems like a businessy way of saying, “We’ve got plenty of Diablo gas in the tank.”
Diablo is the latest video game franchise to make the jump to tabletop, beaten by fellow monolithic series such as Fallout, Doom, Resident Evil, Street Fighter and XCOM. Even smaller indie games like This War of Mine and Eastward have received board game adaptations, suggesting that while a controller is always great, nothing beats sitting down with your mates and rolling some dice.
