If you've never experienced the original 1996 click-and-pwn sensation known as Diablo, I reckon there has never been a better, more accessible time than now. Thanks to the contributions of a few programmers whose nostalgia-fueled endeavors helped preserve a time when Blizzard wasn't a total sellout, anyone can play the first Diablo (or at least some of it) from the comfort and convenience of their favorite browser.
Aside from the obvious benefits of having a playable version of Diablo essentially on-demand from any browser, the journey leading to its fruition is actually quite fascinating. There were several moving pieces involved prior to Rivsoft - the group responsible for the browser port - spearheading this evolution of what is otherwise a rather substantial project. Basically, Diablo's source code became available through some shady corporate-level misappropriation of assets when Sony was porting Diablo to the original Playstation way back in 1997. As a result, let's just say some sensitive data was perhaps legal-adjacently distributed and some many years later was reconstructed by a digital-preservationist known as GalaXyHaXz to create the Devilution project. Without getting too much into the weeds of its backstory, Devilution is now an active repository of Diablo's original code - bugs and all. That way, other enterprising developers can pull from the source and potentially reuse it in some meaningful way. For instance, the browser port that is now available for all to enjoy.
Mind you, this particular iteration of Diablo is actually the shareware version, which is a fun word from the 90's for software that is essentially being distributed on a demo basis. That is to say, you'll need the full game in order to unlock the ability to play in its entirety, but without you can still experience a couple of the dungeons as the barbarian warrior class.
While Diablo is without a doubt as much a classic as it is genre-defining, chances are that it won't hold up to modern standards and will likely be best enjoyed by us older folks as a trip down memory lane. Though, with so many games owing their existence to its legacy, perhaps it would be enlightening even for newcomers to see why Blizzard was once synonymous with PC gaming.
