DESCRIPTION

Lurking in the 16th level of an underground labyrinth, Diablo is hatching an ungodly plan to destroy the town of Tristram and eventually the world. Using his unsurpassed powers, the demon has resurrected an army of lost souls, skeletal warriors, undead zombies, and other unholy creatures. The town's inhabitants have summoned you; it is your objective to enter the labyrinth located under the church, fight through a massive amount of enemies, and ultimately destroy Diablo.

After enjoying a substantial success on the PC, Blizzard's Diablo has finally come to the PlayStation! Players are able to choose from three different character classes including the Warrior, Rogue, and Sorcerer. Each character differs in usability, effectiveness, and overall gameplay; whereas the Warrior relies on his brute strength, armor capabilities, and minimal magical abilities, the Sorcerer is weak but wields destructive spells. The Rogue is useful for long range bow attacks and disarming the labyrinth's various traps.

Broken into two different parts, Diablo starts off in the town of Tristram. It is here that players gain information about side quests in the labyrinth, gossip with various townsfolk, and buy magical items, weapons, and armor. As the only town in the entire game, it acts as a safe haven from Diablo's army of the undead and unholy.

The second part of the game involves clearing out the vicious monsters found within the labyrinth while collecting much-needed money and raising experience levels. Consisting of 16 randomly generated dungeons, players will slay creatures in dimly lit caves, strongholds, and ungodly pits of burning Hell. When the player's character has grown weary of combat and run out of health potions, it's time to head back to the town; shortcuts to the town are opened every five levels or so.

By destroying monster after monster, your character will become stronger in the fields of armor class, hit points, strength, and magical abilities. This is utterly important if you're to destroy Diablo! Special items can be either found or purchased; some rings increase the player's hit damage ratio and armor class while others have oddly negative effects. If the effect of the ring or item is unknown, the town's wise man will gladly identify it for a price.

Diablo can be played with one or two-players in a cooperative mode. Not only is the labyrinth progression savable, but each specific character can be saved to a memory card. This makes your built-up characters portable between friends' PlayStation consoles and saved games! ~ Matthew House, All Game Guide