Sam “Samwise” Didier has been an Art Director at Blizzard Entertainment since 1991 and is responsible for creating and directing the artwork for all franchises that the company has produced, including StarCraft, WarCraft and Diablo. He remains a popular figure in the video game industry and has a reputation with Blizzard fans as being a down-to-earth, approachable face of the company. Gaming Illustrated was granted some time with Samwise Didier hours before the launch of StarCraft 2: Heart of the Swarm to discuss topics such as his art style, what he looks for in an artist, advice for aspiring artists as well as touching on the StarCraft and Warcraft franchises.
Blizzard reveals plans to speed up Diablo releases with more frequent expansions and updates as the franchise moves toward a live-service future.
All I want is a physical disc release of remastered D2 that doesn't require online check-ins.
I've lost complete interest. Too much FOMO with seasons as it is, now it's expansions? No thanks.
what fomo? everything gets reset each season and you start new characters unless you're playing on the regular servers and then you're already maxxed anway and just need to participate in the new season stuff.
i played only during launch and i found the ones in that battlepass to be absolute dogwater, the only ones that looked somewhat cool were the paid ones in the store and i wont bother with either. The game itself was just so hollow, there were no cool builds cause every synergy was just "x or y skills does more dmg or has this extra effect" almost no experimentation needed, couldnt give a rats ass about armor if the core of the game is boring af.
A strong majority of quality assurance workers at Blizzard’s Albany and Austin locations overwhelmingly voted to ratify a union contract at Microsoft, ensuring lasting protections in the workplace.
Blizzard has revealed their showcase schedule for 2026.
Great interview!
awesome