Diablo II

1001 Video Games

Diablo II appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Dungeons & Dragons

Diablo II was adapted into a set of two D&D rulebooks: Diablo II: Diablerie, published in 2000, and Diablo II: To Hell and Back, published in 2001, in addition to which a Diablo II set for the Dungeons & Dragons boardgame was released by Wizards of the Coast in 2000.

Promotion

Blizzard itself produced an action figure line, with figures depicting the Barbarian, the Unraveler, and of course, Diablo. They also released a whole stack of merchandise, including Zippo lighters, wristwatches and mouse pads, all in limited edition.

References: Diablo

The much rumored and non-existent secret "Cow Level" from the original game was actually added to Diablo II. It is just a flat plain, populated by bipedal cows, which go "Moo! Moo!" in deadpan human voices. The level also features a boss, "The Cow King", who looks just like all the other cows.

In Act I, the player can enter a portal to the town of Tristram, now destroyed by demons. Some characters from Diablo can be seen there. Decard Cain and Griswold the Blacksmith are alive; the former will help the player with his quests while the latter is possessed by evil powers. The remains of Wirt the Peg-Legged Boy can also be spotted; his leg allows the player to enter the cow level.

References

Once in a great while, one of the zombies can be heard uttering "brainsss". This is a reference to the numerous Living Dead movies, in which zombies hunger for human brains.

Awards

• Computer and Video Games
  • 2005 - #25 "101 Best PC Games Ever"
• Destructoid
  • 2009 - #7 "Top Video Games of the Decade"
• GamePro
  • 2008 - #11 "The 32 Best PC Games"
• GameSpy
  • 2000 – Special Award for Cut-Scenes
  • 2011 – #7 Top PC Game of the 2000s
• GameStar (Germany)
  • Issue 02/2001 - Best Game in 2000
  • Issue 02/2001 - Best Multiplayer Game in 2000
  • Issue 03/2001 - Best Game in 2000 (Readers' Choice)
  • Issue 12/2008 - Special mention in the "10 Coolest Levels" list (for the secret level "The Moo Moo Farm")
• IGN
  • 2009 - Issue 12/2008 - One of "Gaming's Top 10 Easter Eggs" (for the secret level "The Moo Moo Farm")
• PC Gamer
  • April 2005 - #16 "50 Best Games of All Time"
  • 2007 - #82 "Top 100 Games"* PC Player (Germany)
  • Issue 01/2001 - Best Online Game in 2000
• VideoGamer.com
  • 2009 - #49 "Top 100 Games of the Noughties"

Information also contributed by Ajan, Kasey Chang, Patrick Bregger, PCGamer77, phlux, Tibes80, and Scott Monster.