Diablo is not really a game series you see making a good comic, but Sword of Justice is a pretty decent one compared to all the terrible or mediocre adaptations I have been reading lately. The story follows a boy named Jacob, who is part of the Barbarian tribe guarding Mount Arreat. However, one day his father executes his mother in a fit of rage about justice and law. It turns out that there’s some sort of rage and blood curse pouring out through the Barbarian tribes, and this specific tribe has isolated itself from the others, claiming they are better due to their righteous laws and justice.
Of course, this leads Jacob to travel the world trying to find a way to stop all this, and this is when he runs into a mage who helps him along the way. He picks up Tyreal’s sword of justice and tries to stop this blood curse. Without spoiling anything, the 5-part series does a good job bringing out the characters and fleshing out an interesting story in just a meager 100 pages. The art is fantastic and dark, and each character feels unique and likeable in some way.
What I love about this series is that it takes a small part of the Diablo timeline and shows you what these people are going through on a daily basis due to the demons from the Burning Hells. The onslaught is never-ending, and what Jacob has to go through is something that would break most people.
With that said, if you can find it, Sword of Justice is a fantastic comic series and does Diablo justice.
If the game’s story can’t explain itself well enough or with enough depth, always leave it to a book. The Book of Cain does this in a very unique way by telling Diablo’s entire history via a tome written by Deckard Cain himself. The tome is beautiful, with handwritten notes to Leah at the beginning and end of the book, which is actually quite touching. The illustrations and the way the book is written make it feel ancient or just border-lining on the words of a mad man.
The book actually makes a lot of sense and answers so many questions about Diablo’s universe that the games didn’t quite get across well enough. While this book is more of a sum total of all events in the timeline, it still brings to light many things. starting with how the universe was created. A diamond exploded; this diamond was the original god Anu, and its many faces turned into demons and angels. The book goes into great length about explaining each of the Prime Evils as well as the Lesser Evils and the Archangels as well.
After explaining how all this began, the book goes into explanations of the many wars throughout history, such as the Sin Wars, The Search for the Three, and even the Darkening of Tristram. Many major characters in all three games are talked about in depth and their roles in Sanctuary’s dark history. I just love how well-paced this book is and how Deckard’s writing style just sucks you in. Sometimes the book gave me goosebumps with how morbidly macabre and dark it was. Deckard’s constant fear of the end times and knowing it will happen just sends chills down my spine.
The book even talks about many areas in the games and the many realms you trek through. After finishing The Book of Cain, I am just glad I don’t live in that universe. There’s no happiness, no hope, and always fear and hate. With that said, if you are a fan of Diablo, this book is a must-read, if not for the great information but for the beauty of the book itself.
The PC mainly had better ports of console games this year with DirectX 11 visual upgrades. There were some solid PC exclusives this year, probably the most next to the handhelds. The best PC game usually has amazing visuals or is just extremely unique and something you can only get on PC.
Guild Wars 2
Guild Wars 2 is just amazing. The game looks fantastic and the fact that you don’t have to pay a subscription is a huge seller. The combat system is enjoyable, and the loot, abilities, and combat are just superb. This is an MMO experience that shows years of dedication and time can perfect a series.
Best RPG can be either full of action, slashing, or a JRPG. What defines the best RPG is a game with an excellent story, memorable characters, and a very fun combat system, or an element that revolutionizes the genre.
Xenoblade Chronicles
Xenoblade is so great because it finally breaks the typical JRPG formula that everyone has been tired of for the past 10 years. With an awesome story, memorable characters, and an extremely fun combat system what is there that you can’t like? Mass Effect 3 was a close second, but it feels a lot like the last game, and Xenoblade actually breaks a seemingly never-ending curse on JRPGs. The biggest achievement is hundreds of side quests that don’t grate, and there’s no level grinding!
Diablo III is one of the most long-awaited games in history. StarCraft II and Duke Nukem Forever are in the same boat, but Diablo III is something else. Everyone who played the last two games was either in high school or college at the time and is now in their 30s and 40s. 12 years in the making with so much turmoil and history to write a novel about. Now that the game is finally out, is it any good? Blizzard surprised us with StarCraft II and how good that game is, but can they do it twice in a row? The answer is yes. The game has its fair share of problems, but they were mainly during launch with a plethora of glitches, balancing, and server issues. Most of the major problems have been patched now, so I won’t spend time complaining about that because I didn’t experience any issues apart from the occasional server error.
The story in Diablo III is fairly good, but only people who played the last two will truly appreciate it. I found the middle of the game to be pretty uneventful, but the ending was great, with a few plot twists. You play as one of many hero classes who are trying to stop the Prime Evils from taking over the world. Not just Diablo, but Azmodan, Mephisto, Belial, and many others. One of the best things about the game is the many different locales, from indoors to outdoors. The art style is absolutely beautiful, leaving you with plenty of great scenery to look at.
Of course, a dungeon crawler isn’t one without a lot of loot, and Diablo III has an endless amount. The best loot is at higher levels (60 is the cap) and on Nightmare difficulty. This is really a game for people who want loot. You can blow through the story and reach around level 30, but it will take another play-through to get the best loot. Why do you want this loot so bad? To sell in the auction house for in-game gold or real-world cash. That’s right. Cash. People can bid on it or buy it outright, but don’t expect anyone to bid on the crappy stuff. Only level 60 loot is really being fought for. I tried selling dozens of rare items throughout my playthrough and only sold one for $1.25. Really sad.
The best loot comes from bosses, which are highlighted in gold. Main bosses give you the best stuff, but they can be tough as nails. Some bosses were pretty easy, such as mid-level bosses or blue sub-bosses. There were a few that just kept killing me, but I didn’t die all that often. The penalty isn’t very severe, with just 10% durability of all your equipped items taken away, but you can always repair it at a town center. One thing I didn’t do at all was buy items. I always found the best ones as drops rather than at shops. I didn’t even craft any items, which is a shame. I found this to be sorely wasted. I did like the new gem ability, which will raise the stats of items significantly. Weaker gems can be crafted into more powerful ones as well.
Of course, you can take a buddy with you, but you really don’t have to. This is only recommended for Nightmare difficulty, but most people will probably want to take a long break from the game and come back a few months later when the game feels a little fresher. After I finished the game, I felt I needed a long break because you are just clicking around madly while using 1-4 keys for your attacks. I sure wasn’t disappointed here because there are plenty of abilities to learn; I just wish you could hotkey more of them instead of just four. I even wish there were some better AoE attacks because the last two acts throw a ton of tough enemies at you, and you are constantly boxed in. I managed, but it would have been nice.
At the end of the day, you are just clicking around furiously at everything that moves and trying to find the best loot in the game to sell in the auction house. This is a game for people who are dedicated. Sure, you can enjoy the single-player mode, but if you really want to experience the way Diablo was built to be played, you must continue on with a second playthrough on a harder difficulty. Sure, the game has good voice acting, some of the most beautiful pre-rendered cutscenes I have ever seen, lots of abilities, and tons of loot, but in the end, this is all this game is about. Looting, clicking, and selling. If you don’t like that, then you will hate this game.
My biggest complaint would have to be that the layout of each level is nearly the same. There is a fog of war on the map, and you have to discover where everything is. There may be some side quests, hidden chests, and sub-bosses, but I found this tiring and kind of boring. What’s here is great; I just wish there was a little more variety. Another thing I will complain about is the game’s DRM. You need to be online at all times, or it will boot you and you will lose your progress. I hated this more than anything, but Blizzard has successfully sidestepped pirates, and I applaud them for that. It’s probably the only video game ever made that isn’t pirateable. Other than this, the game is great and well worth a purchase.
thebinarymessiah.com 
Yep! The fact that I forgot about this game until you made a comment proves that.