TheDiablofranchise is a series full of dark themes, set in a medieval fantasy world, centered on the ongoing woes of humanity while a war rages between Heaven and Hell.It has been around for quite a while, with the first game in the series being released in 1997, but even then, there was plenty of inspiration to be found from the similarly themed manga,Berserk.Now, those worlds are colliding with a new collaboration betweenBerserkandDiablo 4andDiablo Immortal, offering lots of fun content for players to uncover in the games.
TheBerserkcollaboration eventswill take place inDiablo 4from June 10, 2025 to June 3, and inDiablo Immortalfrom May 1 to May 30. During these events,Diabloplayers will have the chance to earn manyBerserkcosmetics to use in the games, and defeat the forces of evil, including an appearance from Nosferatu Zodd inDiablo Immortal. In anticipation of these events,I had the chance to sit down with the Lead Artists for both gamesto discuss what it took to blend these worlds.
Diablo’s Berserk Collab - A Perfect Medieval Mix
Many Diablo Developers Were Influenced By Berserk
Talking toDiablo 4Lead Artist, Viviane Kosty, andDiablo ImmortalLead Artist, Emil Salim, it was clear that the teams working onDiablohave plenty of familiarity with the long-running manga,Berserk. Thecentral themes of humanity fighting the untouchable forces of Hellare concurrent with both franchises, and as Viviane pointed out, the teams were all excited about the opportunity as “Berserk was an influential piece of work that got them into the genre in the first place.”
Although the collaboration will, sadly, only involveBerserkcoming to theDiablouniverse and not the other way around, the visuals ofBerserk’s armor, weapons, and characters fit so seamlessly inDiablo’s Sanctuary that Viviane states"we refer to it as a good match made in Hell."
Emil and Viviane both praised the team atBerserkfor their contributions, which included many renders of character art and more. Emil said, “much credit goes to the Berserk team, they were very open to a lot of our creative ideas.”
What Diablo Players Can Expect In The Berserk Event
Diablo 4 And Diablo Immortal Each Have Different Berserk Content
Because the collaboration betweenBerserkandDiablois coming to twoDiablogames with many fans playing both titles, theevents and rewards are different for each game.Diablo 4encourages players to slay elite enemies in-game for a chance to earn Behelits which can be used to earnBerserkcosmetics, and also has several cosmetic items available for purchase from the in-game shop.
Meanwhile,Diablo Immortal’s content updatefeatures a fight with Nosferatu Zodd, and the infamous Eclipse. As Emil shared, The Struggler’s Bane event inDiablo Immortal"is themed to the Eclipse in Berserk. It’s a really, really huge moment in the manga, it’s almost like the climax in the first arc in the storyline. It’s this interdimensional space where all these monsters and demons arise and start killing off the main character’s friends and that instance triggered his entire journey for the rest of the manga series."
Emil shared that the battle with Nosferatu Zodd should be a meaningful experience for fans of the manga, as the team “tried to recreate the moment in the actual boss battle.” He went on to explain thatseveral key moments happen to Zodd throughout the battle, which are taken directly from things that happened in the mangaitself, including the culmination of the battle.
Diablo And Berserk Fans Should Explore Both Franchises
The Event Is Arranged To Be Friendly For Newcomers To The Games
As you can probably guess, the purpose of any collaboration is to help fans of one franchise discover the other, particularly in situations such as this with so many similarities. Therefore,Diablodevelopers are anticipating there will be new players to the games who are fans ofBerserk, sothe event content is primarily made to be easily accessible by newcomers.
InDiablo 4, Viviane explained that players can earn Behelits from regular activities,and there are some cosmetic items available in the in-game store.ForDiablo Immortal, Emil adds that players can immediately start experiencing the collaboration, but “players will have to play until they unlock some features in the game.Like the big boss fightagainst Zodd, players will get there by level 30. So they should be able to get there after an hour or so of gameplay.”
The Schnoz Pet And Golem Familiar Are Must-Haves
The Schnoz Is An Iconic Berserk Character, Despite Very Few Appearances
Not everything is doom and gloom with the unique content forDiablo’s collaboration withBerserk. InDiablo 4,players can get a unique pet modeled after The Schnoz(also known as Chimimoryo), which, as Viviane said, “Thinking about how dark and horrific Berserk is, The Schnoz offers a break to enjoy it.” The Schnoz has a comparatively small appearance inBerserk, but is such a memorable character that it was fun for the developers to include.
Similarly, on theDiablo Immortalside,players can receive a Golem Familiar that will follow the players around and is customizable. The customizations may not be exactly identical to the manga, but will give players more of a chance to personalize their Familiar.
Could Hello Kitty Be Coming To Diablo 4 Next?
Unlikely, But These Art Teams Are Up For Anything
Finishing up our discussion on theBerserkcollaboration,I asked both of these Lead Artists what collaborations they would like to do in the future, even it is something that would be highly unlikely. Emil laughingly responded, “Wejoke around a lot in Diablo Immortal about having a collab with Hello Kitty, which, you don’t know, maybe it might work? You don’t know!”
Viviane then interjected that she has a list of things she would love to bring toDiablo 4, and she has confidence in the team to make it work. “I feel like, regardless of which IP it is, we will probably be able to find a happy medium where we can experience both.I’m very confident in the passion of the devs in general. We’re already solution-oriented anyway. If we’re passionate about something, we’ll find a solution somehow. Hello Kitty might just happen!”
