Diablo III/Havok Technology Article

[GameBanshee News]

Silicon Republic has published an article detailing a new licensing agreement between Microsoft and Havok that leads into information about Diablo III's usage of physics and controversial artistic direction.

Havok’s core products basically do a few different things: Havok Physics, Animation and Behaviour make game characters both look and act realistically, while also reacting intelligently to objects around them in the game.

So when an object composed of brick is smashed, it falls apart in a different way to that of a glass or wooden object. Also, characters interact intelligently with surrounds, for example, a character falling off a cliff will grab the closest item to prevent this happening.

This cool, new, more ‘destructible’ and interactive environment will be in the upcoming and much anticipated role-playing game Diablo III from Blizzard, which has been getting a tough time from die-hard fans.

As Blizzard announced that it would not be bringing back the popular Necromancer character and showed off a decidedly more colourful landscape, some disgruntled fans began a petition to show their disdain for the game’s new artistic direction.

The Diablo universe is made up of “gothic and obscure scenarios, cryptic, dark and shadowy dungeons”, says the petition, which claims the new Diablo III is cartoonish and influenced too much by the popular World Of Warcraft online role-playing game.

[DesR85]

This cool, new, more ‘destructible’ and interactive environment will be in the upcoming and much anticipated role-playing game Diablo III from Blizzard, which has been getting a tough time from die-hard fans.

Well, duh. It's Havok. Besides, Starcraft 2 is also using Havok's physics but I don't hear anyone complaining about that.