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It’s been nearly 29 years since the release of the original Diablo, and 25 years since the release of the series’ best entry, Diablo 2. While the ARPG sequel is still beloved around the world by millions of gamers, series creator David Brevik still can’t get over the game’s unique stamina system.
Unlike every other mainline game in the series, D2 has a stamina system that stops players from running when depleted. For most, it’s not that annoying, although on frequent replays it can be a little frustrating when backtracking through the game’s sprawling dungeons. While I’m a fan, creator David Brevik absolutely hates it.
David Brevik hates Diablo 2 stamina
Speaking to Path of Exile co-creator Chris Wilson in a recent video interview, Brevik explained that he hates the stamina system because it feels too punishing for newcomers.
“I hate the stamina bar in Diablo 2, it makes me cringe every time,” the Diablo creator said. “It’s an irrelevant thing later in the game and it’s a punishing thing for the new player. It’s like a newbie tax almost.”
Brevik explained that the inclusion of stamina in Diablo 2 was to stop players from avoiding combat, adding in a mechanics that would “limit your ability to constantly run away”. Instead, it simply ended up restrcting players outside of combat, removing their ability to quickly jump to the next fight, which is where it gets annoying.
“People don’t want to pass up the enemies,” Brevik said. “They want to fight them and they want to get the items. It’s not a passive kind of game. So the idea that somehow you could run away all the time and never die, I thought that was kind of silly.”
Later, Brevik did admit that the Diablo 2 stamina bar isn’t entirely terrible, saying: “Right off the bat, it encourages combat. So in some ways it was good. But I don’t know, I still think that there probably could have been a better system to design there.”
If you want to read more about David Brevik, check out what his original vision for Diablo 3 was back in 2007. Additionally, listen to our podcast interview with the iconic game developer.
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