Diablo 3 almost landed with this cut content 14 years before Diablo 4

Edition Diablo 4: Sir of Hatred later this year will mark a significant point in the series' history. With the expansion taking place in the Skovos island chain, Diablo 4 will officially introduce a new region never seen before in the series. However, Skovos almost made his debut in Diablo franchise nearly 14 years ago, but was eventually cut from the final release Diablo 3.

In general, Diablo 4 combined several popular elements Diablo 2 throughout its life and across its two expansions. Vessel of Hatred brought back the mercenary mechanic to the Nahantu region, located in Diablo 2 Act 3 and Lord of Hatred have already reintroduced the Paladin to the series and are set to bring back the Horadric Cube crafting mechanic from Diablo 2 also. Now, Diablo 3 gets a chance to influence Diablo 4 with the debut of Skovos, finally correcting the piece of edited content that has been missing from the series for so long.

Diablo 4's paladin accomplished something the necromancer couldn't do in 11 seasons

With the release of Paladin in Diablo 4 Season 11, Necromancer suddenly fell behind the curve in terms of one meta build.

Skovos almost debuted in Diablo 3 instead of Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred 14 years later

Despite not yet appearing as a place in Diablo Skovos plays a major role in the lore of the series. It is the oldest area in the entire sanctuary, where Lilith and the children of Inarius, the Nefalu, created the first civilization. It has since been developed under Askari, which has ties to Diablo 2with the Amazon class representing the warrior order from the region. Originally, the tradition and design of Skovos was developed with the intention of emerging as the main place in Diablo 3 before being placed in the pipeline for release.

How could Skovos fit into Diablo 3

Although the playable Skovos does not end in the final version Diablo 3he is still mentioned in Act 5 when Lorath and Tyrael discuss the Horadrim expedition that was sent to the region but did not return. This footnote suggests that players may have had the opportunity to go in search of this Horadric quest sometime before the finale Diablo 3which may take place after defeating Azmodan at Mount Arreat in Act 3 and before leaving for High Heaven in Act 4. Diablo 3 Showing a location as important to the franchise as High Heavens for the first time, it might have been overkill to include another region as central to the series' lore as Skovos in the same game.

Why Diablo 3 finally discontinued Skovos as a region

Diablo 3 Cinematic Reveals Villain Azmodan

According to Blizzard's Wyatt Cheng, who served as a senior designer on the Diablo 3 and is now the lead designer for Diablo ImmortalThe main reason Skovos was cut was because the team felt he didn't fit the rest of the game. The visual design of the region included a lot of architecture inspired by ancient Greece, which not only clashed with other regions Diablo 3 but it was very similar to a competitive ARPG at the time, Titan Quest. The overlap between Greek mythology Titan Quest and the Skovos design was the nail in the coffin for the region emerging in Diablo 3despite its lore and visuals being expanded upon.

Interestingly, Titan Quest 2 is now available in Early Access and has been out for less than a year Diablo 4 is about to debut Skovos in Lord of Hatred.

Titan quest title card and soldier fight

Diablo 3 Fans who missed out on seeing Skovos in-game 14 years ago will finally get a chance to experience the region, and its role in the Lord of Hatred expansion couldn't be more fitting to be positioned as central to Diablotradition is what it is. The Age of Hatred arc is about to close with Lord of Hatred Diablo 4bringing back a piece of clipped content from Diablo 3 is a fitting way to wrap up the main story.