Diablo seems to be one of those franchises where the original games still carry significant weight decades later. Take this announcement, for example, a new ARPG called Darkhaven that comes from a new studio founded by Diablo veterans Philip Shenk, Peter Hu, and Erich Schaefer. Moon Beast Productions is claiming Darkhaven will be a next-generation action RPG that returns to the genre’s roots by pushing it forward with a fully dynamic, persistent world.
With the announcement of the game, Moon Beast Productions also shared plans for an upcoming Kickstarter campaign to help bring the project to Early Access. The game is focused on creating a procedurally generated, fully dynamic, and persistent world where players can adventure on their own or with friends, and engage in high-stakes PvP on certain realms. To make things a bit different than today’s offerings, Darkhaven will feature terrain and structures that are deformable and buildable, allowing players to do things like dig through the earth, drain lakes, and rebuild shattered fortresses.
In hopes of evolving combat, Darkhaven is adding the ability to jump, climb, swim, dash, and explore the world freely. The focus here is that gameplay is more than just stat progression and build choice, and it also rewards player skill since movement, timing, and terrain awareness will all play a role. As for itemization and progression, the game’s philosophy draws heavily on Diablo and Diablo II. Darkhaven is promising to reject the incrementalism that’s found in modern titles, and it will focus on bold and expressive loot, with items that feel powerful and capable of redefining builds.
“We’re incredibly excited to finally reveal Darkhaven and open its Steam page,” said Philip Shenk, CEO and co-founder of Moon Beast Productions. “This project represents everything we’ve learned about ARPGs over the last two decades, and what becomes possible when those ideas are combined with modern technology. We’re building a world that remembers what you’ve done, bears the scars of your victories and failures, and tells stories that only your playthrough can create. With the community’s support, we’re ready to bring Darkhaven to Early Access, which will allow us to continue to build the game into the incredible experience we all want it to be.”
