Diablo's world of Sanctuary isn't a top tourist destination, thanks to roaming monsters and demonic forces looking to corrupt humanity, and in Diablo 5, everything has gone to hell--quite literally! Unlike the previous games in the series, which revolved around saving Sanctuary from Diablo and his Prime Evil Kin, Diablo 5 kicks off long after the Lord of Terror has conquered the land. In a world this bleak, how will players find the motivation to keep going when evil has already triumphed?Speaking to GameSpot at BlizzCon, the Diablo team discussed the grim setting of Diablo 5, as well as the glimmers of hope that still exist even during Diablo's post-apocalyptic reign. Human strongholds are no more, survivors are scattered across the land, and things look bleaker than usual for players when they set foot in that world. According to Blizzard, not only is Diablo 5 keeping the grim, dark atmosphere of Diablo 4 intact and doubling down on it, but the landscape will also reflect humanity's fall.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blmyIDbxN2o&pp=0gcJCf4LAYcqIYzv"We need to tell a story of this apocalyptic Sanctuary, executive producer Matt Zitterman said. "Sanctuary is already a pretty dark place. How do we double down on that darkness and go even further? That's where the ideas of thinking about our world as being built in layers--a layer about the past, a layer about the present, and a layer about the future--really came to light. And with that, you know, the past is all about telling the stories of what happened to humanity when Diablo overtook Sanctuary.""A lot of games do this extremely well. There are little vignettes and stories that are told visually about how humans were trying to survive and ultimately failed, and we want those parts of the world, those parts of Sanctuary, to really tell that story."Zitterman added that Sanctuary's state in Diablo 5 is akin to a forest fire, both during and after a devastating blaze has swept through an area. "We use the metaphor of a forest fire a lot," Zitterman explained. "A forest fire ravages through a place and leaves behind a changed landscape. And we see that as kind of the parts of the world that represent the battlefields of where demons were fought, and ultimately, humans lost. But the landscape was forever changed by that invasion. And then there are the areas where there is still an active invasion.""We talked about the Dread Commanders as being the lieutenants in Diablo's army, and they are kind of roaming the world and controlling different parts of Sanctuary. When a Dread Commander is in an area in Sanctuary, it is an active invasion zone. It will feel like the forest fire is raging now. That represents the future of Sanctuary, should the player not succeed in kicking Diablo out. As you know, that's what Sanctuary will be forever. And so that's how we think about the world, as kind of three different layers of visual storytelling."But there is still some hope during these dark times, as senior production director Tiffany Wat outlined how the game's story about a march to reclaim a lost legacy will eventually push players to become the saviours of humanity. "Humanity is worth fighting for, and as the heir to Westmarch, not only are you fighting for humanity, but you're trying to claim back the kingdom that is yours," Wat said."And that is where it's a little bit different from the past, where, as the Wanderer, you may not have as much of a personal stake in trying to defeat Diablo. But now, as the heir of Westmarch, this is your land; somebody else has conquered it, and that person happens to be Diablo. And so, as you're trying to survive and you're on the run, in the campaign, you're going to be meeting some survivors and forming that caravan, and it's going to start very small.""As you progress through the story and you find the opportunity to meet other survivors of the apocalypse, and hopefully they're trustworthy enough to join you in your caravan. There's a lot of great visual storytelling there as you're progressing through the game, fighting back the darkness, and your campfire is growing because your caravan is growing, right? So if a jeweler joins you, they're going to bring their wagon. If a blacksmith joins you, then the wagon circle will grow. And I love Oregon Trail, so I think this is a really cool metaphor. I think as you're traveling through the dark world, just the idea that you are making progress and that you're going to hopefully have an opportunity to become victorious in the end, I mean, that's what you're fighting for."Blizzard has big plans for Diablo 5 ahead of its 2029 launch, as it seeks to bring the best of previous games in the series to this new adventure. Fans of the loot grind can look forward to chasing down set items, and with so many classes to choose from, expect plenty of reasons to start a fresh run in Sanctuary.