Blizzard developers say “there is no cow level” in ‘Diablo 4’

Blizzard Entertainment has shared that there “is no cow level” in Diablo 4, though long-time fans of the series will have good reason to suspect they’re not being entirely honest.

The topic came up when, Joe Piepiora, associate game director for Diablo 4, was asked how Blizzard had approached creating over 150 dungeons for the game.

“We have a dungeon team that has been focused on creating these experiences for years, and the sorts of things we’re able to come up with and – [in terms of] gameplay, and little narrative beats here and there, are really fun,” shared Piepiora.

Piepiora added that Diablo 4‘s dungeons also offer “opportunities for us to touch back on dungeons that may have appeared in previous games,” and will “reference lighter” elements of Diablo.

When asked if one of the dungeons that Diablo 4 will “touch back on” is the Secret Cow Level – an infamous hidden level from Diablo 2, and referenced with a pony level in Diablo 3 – Piepiora said “I don’t think there is a cow level?”

“There is no cow level,” added Naz Hartoonian, associate game producer for Diablo 4, before Piepiora repeated Hartoonian’s answer.

Although nearly every Blizzard Entertainment game since Diablo 2 includes a reference to the cow level – even World of Warcraft has a secret cow level – the studio has long denied the level’s existence, and “there is no cow level” has become a long-running joke at Blizzard.

While Hartoonian and Piepiora stuck to the line, they did tease that there will be some familiar faces for long-time Diablo fans to find in Diablo 4.

“Diablo 4 takes place years and years after the events of Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls,” explained Piepiora. “Everything is still happening at Sanctuary, and we don’t want to say who you might see…but there may be returning faces, potentially, as you’re going through the world.”

In other gaming news, staff at Bethesda Softworks’ parent company ZeniMax Media have become the first workers at Microsoft to launch a union.