As we near the Diablo 3 PC release on May 15, Blizzard is "continuing to explore" Diablo 3 on consoles.
"We think that the way we built it for PC may need some tweaking, but it will ultimately be the type of game that can really make sense and be really fun, well polished and a true Blizzard-level experience on a console," said Blizzard COO Paul Sams.
Sams emphasized that the motivating forces behind a console version of the action RPG has nothing to do with business models or platforms.
"We get a lot of questions about why we haven't made a game for consoles before and I tell them the same thing I tell them about business models: we don't let business models or platforms drive our decisions. Those are secondary to what's the most important aspect for us which is the gameplay."
"We have to make sure the game is great and it's something that everyone wants to play. If we provide a great game, a great experience, the business model – if we're being fair with you – will work," he continued. "Same with the console; we don't decide up front that we want to make a console product. We just want to make a great game. If the best experience involves a mouse and a keyboard, we'll put it on PC. If it plays better with a controller, that's the route we'd take. If it works on both, and we don't have to make any meaningful alterations or compromises to the experience, we'd make it for both."
Sams did admit that strict platform requirements played an "impactful part" of thDie studio's decision to bring Diablo 3 to consoles.
"If I've got to jump through 17 different hoops and pay a lot more money to be on a console, that causes you to pause," he explained. "But that doesn't mean we wouldn't do it if we thought we could deliver a Blizzard-quality product on the platform and it was right for the game in question."
"That's why we're looking at it for Diablo 3; we think that we can have a really exciting and compelling experience that will play well on console in addition to PC We do feel it's an exciting opportunity. If we feel we can have a game on multiple platforms, then we'll do it. We're not afraid to – that's for sure!"
Diablo 3 is currently slated for a May 15th release, but I wouldn't expect a console version of the game anytime soon. The latest installment of the popular RPG will release initially without PvP. The company has plans to add it via a patch once it meets Blizzard's expectations. I'd expect the studio to primarily focus on the PC version before officially working on a console version.
