Diablo 3 gets team deathmatch, achievements and battle standards

Blizzard are introducing team deathmatch mode to Diablo 3's player vs. player scraps. It's playable on the show floor at Blizzcon, and players will immediately notice that the mode supports 4 vs. 4 battles, up from last year's 3 on 3 demo.

The rules are simple. There are two teams, red and blue. When you die you only have to wait three seconds before you're back in. The team with the most kills in ten minutes wins. You'll be able to port any of your characters over and send them into the arena, but once you've started the match, you won't be able to change your build. Tweaking your skillset before each battle will be necessary to improve your chances.

Achievements will also be making their way into Diablo 3. Many can be won by playing through the story on each difficulty mode, but there will also be rewards for what Blizzard call "extreme behaviour," like defeating every boss by punching them with your fists.

Achievements unlock new parts and designs for your character's standard. This flagpole is designed to be a way to show off your character's prowess without the need for an overly-long sword or ornate codpieces. Story achievements add extra tassles and accessories to the banner, hardcore achievements let you customise the base. A high level standard was shown during the presentation, rising from a hoard of gold and gems, steeped in ribbons and arcane designs. These standards will be visible in the game world. When playing in co-op you can fast travel to your companion in the field by clicking on their standard.

The panel also talked about Diablo 3's difficulty levels, revealing that 70% of the game's items are found beyond Normal difficulty . Blizzard also went over some of the incredible skill customisation options, saying that Diablo 3 has “ something like 2.8 trillion builds .”

Part of the UK team, Tom was with PC Gamer at the very beginning of the website's launch—first as a news writer, and then as online editor until his departure in 2020. His specialties are strategy games, action RPGs, hack ‘n slash games, digital card games… basically anything that he can fit on a hard drive. His final boss form is Deckard Cain.