If you’ve played the original Diablo 2, and you have a save file from it, then hang on it. According to a new interview with the developers of the upcoming remaster Diablo II: Resurrected, you will be able to use your old save files with the new game when it releases sometime later this year.
The detail was revealed at the very end of an interview IGN Middle East did with Andre Abrahamian and Matthew Cederquist, a designer and producer, respectively, on Resurrected. The final question in the interview was, “Can we import original save files into Diablo 2: Resurrected?” Cederquist responded, “Yes! Yes, keep those!” to the joy of everyone present.
Cederquist elaborated in the interview: “Back when we were working on [the remaster], we wondered if the old save files would work and we kind of shoved it in and it worked! And we were like, ‘okay, that’s the best feature ever’. So yes, your local single-player save files will carry over.” This makes sense, considering the game is supposed to be identical to the original underneath the next-gen glow-up. Rod Fergusson, the executive producer of the franchise, told Polygon, “We’re not reverse-engineering it; we’re not rebuilding it… This is [Diablo 2]…. It’s right there, underneath the surface.” You can even press a button and the game will revert to the original Diablo II graphics.
It’s actually a bit surprising that this came out so casually in an interview. After all, the remaster’s promotional footage from BlizzCon was steeped in nostalgia, aimed clearly at the fans of the original, and Blizzard officials were talking up how faithful the remaster was to the original game. You’d think they’d want to toss this in, even just as an, “Oh, and one more thing…” gag at the end of the show. Talk about burying the lede.
Source: IGN Middle East