Fuck Blizzard and the Chinese government. I will keep saying it and I don't care about your feelings on it. People are dying and getting their organs sold and Blizzard is supporting that. No matter how much anybody try to hide it or try to forget about it so that their games will be "acceptable" again, I will still keep on saying it.
If you though the ruckus was loud about immortal imagine them releasing a non-isometric view mainline diablo game.
I mean, presentation isn't just about the visual design. The writing, worldbuilding, voice over direction, cinematic direction etc. matter too.
D3 is plenty violent, bloody and gorey, but it has no atmosphere due to it's cartooney art direction.
Whether D3 fits your personal definition of cartoony or not, the game still has hideous art direction compared to the previous games. game was ugly, and Blizzard has even acknowledged that the next game needs more gothic stylized art.
It was quite cartoony though, most likely because it was designed as console game first & foremost, they needed bright neon like colors to make it more visible when playing it on a TV.
Not positive, but the darker color grading of D1/2 would have been difficult on a TV from a distance, it's similar to how Doom 3 BFG made the game brighter.
To be honest, Light Radius would have made dungeons feel like actual dungeons. Such a simple thing to implement too. When you can see everything clearly in the depths of Hell it kind of diminishes it.
