Before the appearance of the Olympian Gods, the Titans ruled over the primordial darkness. After a great war, the titans were exiled and imprisoned, ushering in an age of mortals. A trio of the lesser titans, Telkines, break the connection linking Olympus to the mortal world, allowing them to unleash armies of monsters and unforeseen chaos to the mortal realm. At the village of Helos, the player must begin their quest to restore the connection between the mortal world and Olympus before the emergence of the titan Typhon.

Titan Quest is, much like Diablo, an action RPG. Players gain experience through defeating enemies and completing quests. Experience points are then used to improve the player’s skills and upgrade attributes such as dexterity and health. Like in Diablo, NPCs offer players quests, which present fresh opportunities to earn experience. Combat, yep, you guessed it: hack & slash, like Diablo.

In the war-torn world of Cairn, the human race has been driven to the brink of extinction and Cairn has become the location of an eternal war between two supernatural powers, one of which wants to use human bodies as a resource, the other simply seeking the destruction of the human race. This war has taken its toll on reality and it has birthed a new kind of horror. Forced to live in fear of these supernatural entities, human settlements are few and far between, hidden from plain sight. However, for some reason, some surviving humans have begun exhibiting otherworldly powers. Some fear them, others revere them and to some, these “blessed” individuals are humanity’s only hope of reclaiming what is theirs.

Like Diablo, Grim Dawn is your classic hack & slash. Loot, equipment, and about as much replay value as a Rubik’s Cube, Grim Dawn mirrors Diablo quite well. Its dark and horrific plot matches the same sense of urgency, depravity and death that the first Diablo game brought to the table. But Grim Dawn doesn’t exist solely to copy Diablo – Grim Dawn has mastered the use of the “Diablo template” in order to create a world uniquely immersive and frightening. And it does that well.

The once-prosperous continent of Wraeclast was the centre of a powerful empire, but now it is a cursed land, a place where criminals are sent from the nearby island of Oriath. As one such individual, the player must trudge through the unforgiving terrain, wilderness and the dangerous inhabitants, amidst the dark secrets of the Eternal Empire which once called the continent home. Do you have what it takes to survive?

Path of Exile is a free-to-play online action RPG set in a dark fantasy world, much like today’s hot topic, Diablo. Players pick one of six character classes and are put against a plethora of different types of opponents – dozens of unique monsters. The game, like Diablo, boasts a randomised item system, encouraging players to bring out their inner explorer and collector and well, collect. Again, like in Diablo, Path of Exile makes use of the system wherein players complete quests in order to gain experience in order to improve the stats of their character.

Centuries ago, a dragon emerged which plunged the world into chaos and brought humankind to the brink of destruction. However, the valiant efforts of several brave heroes, with assistance from the public, saw the dragon banished to the fiery depths from whence it came. Peace was restored and the dragon’s evil was reduced to nothing but a legend. However, after a century of peace, evil threatens to return as war breaks out in the north, a prince vanishes without a trace and a certain cult has been revived. The turmoil, a sign of the dragon’s imminent return, spurs a new fight for survival, a new reason for warriors to bear arms and a new age of heroes.

Released in 2011, Drakensang is a Persistent Online RPG title noted for its interesting story and similarity to the Diablo franchise. It is also one of the few MMORPG titles developed in the European Union, and it currently boasts an approximate 35 million accounts. Players choose from four character classes – Dragonknight, Ranger, Spellweaver and Steam Mechanicus, each with its own set of base stats and attributes. The game also allows players to either play solo or participate in a guild system, where players can organise themselves into alliances. The game’s world, Duria, is based on medieval Europe and can be explored freely, encompassing eleven regions complete with cities, dungeons and wilderness. Much like Diablo, Drakensang is played from an isometric view.

On the outskirts of the quaint town of Grove, exists a Dungeon Gate; a pathway to multiple levels of fame, fortune, and of course a high chance of death. The Gate sends adventurers to random maze-like floors which are teeming with monsters and treasure. The player, after several days of travel, happens upon the forest town of Grove and becomes aware of the dungeon on the outskirts. Enticed by the prospect of fame and riches, their adventure begins!

The ten years after Diablo’s release spawned several games which attempted to recreate its gameplay or atmosphere. Out of all the games in that period, FATE is probably the one which did it best, as it holds fast to the hack & slash RPG status assumed by the Diablo franchise. FATE’s isometric gameplay, emphasis on dungeons and undead creatures, as well as the host of treasures, treats and trinkets which the player can equip. Diablo’s influence on FATE is clear; but FATE’s beauty comes in how it so faithfully reflects what Diablo was, while maintaining its own uniqueness.

Ember: a rare and mysterious ore which is capable of either enchanting or corrupting everything it touches. The town of Torchlight owes its very existence to the discovery of Ember; however, danger looms as hordes of horrific creatures, all emboldened by Ember threaten to decimate the town and possibly, the world. A lone explorer appears in the town of Torchlight, could this be the one who’ll put an end to the Ember-bolstered madness?

When we talk about games that are reminiscent of Diablo, Torchlight never misses the conversation. The idea of ember corrupting people, creatures and even inanimate objects is quite similar to the story surrounding the Archbishop Lazarus and of course, Diablo himself, whose essence was contained in a stone (Ember, anyone?) and subsequently embedded in the player’s forehead at the game’s conclusion. Like Diablo, Torchlight is a hack & slash RPG which is loot driven. The player selects their character’s class and of course, each class has its own quirks, base stats and even items that are of exclusive use to them.