Diablo is an ARPG, a term that is admittedly fraying at the edges like an overworn bag. We obviously mean different things when we talk about action RPGs like Diablo, and action RPGs like The Veilguard, but it's a genre descriptor we use nonetheless. It's like CRPGs—yes, CRPG means something specific (an isometric RPG with a big story that's typically either turn-based or uses real-time pause) but the words contained within the acronym are borderline useless. 'A roleplaying game you play on your computer' is about the broadest umbrella you can open without getting a call from NASA for mucking up their satellite images.
You could argue that, being the genesis of the genre, Diablo has the rights to a soulslike naming convention. Unless, of course, you're the general manager of the series at Blizzard, in which case wondering out loud about whether we could all pretty please start naming future ARPGs after you is, well, a little desperate. Cringe, as the kids might say.
Rod Fergusson, who manages Diablo at Blizzard, unfortunately committed this social faux pas on X recently, and it's gone down about as well as asking people if they don't have phones. "Feels like the genre of 'ARPG' is starting to mean a lot of different things. Much like 'Souls-like' and 'Rogue-like', I wonder if we could normalize "Diablo-like" for ARPGs that follow the Diablo formula…"
Fergusson has been well and duly ratio'd several times over in a dunking session that has me wincing. Some rapid-fire highlights: "How do you normalize 'Diablo-like' if no one likes Diablo 4?" replies Twitch streamer jungroan. "I don't think so," adds Empyrian gaming. "PoE-like," quips another. That's a hat trick, it's rough out there.
I think some of these people are being a little harsh on Diablo 4, given our own resident ARPGer Tyler Colp has positive words to say about the changes Blizzard has made since launch, but only a little. The audacity involved in walking into broad daylight and humming about whether your game should enter general terminology is textbook asking for trouble. Especially when you're a head honcho at Blizzard, a company that was bought as part of a $68 billion deal and is, consequently, big enough for people to comfortably punch up at.
It's also an attempt to manufacture something that's completely out of our hands. I don't like the inaccuracy of genre names at all. I have to use these terms as part of my job, and I have quickly developed a resentment for them. We all know what a JRPG is, but ascribing a set of loose mechanics to a country is downright silly. Soulslike games are now a clumsy catch-all for any third-person action RPG with a respawn point mechanic and a dodge roll. Life and immersive sims are incredibly different from each other, as are just straight-up simulation games. If you think too hard about any of this you'll lose your mind.
But I somehow think Fergusson isn't trying to uphold linguistic accuracy here, which is why the piranhas have swarmed him so thoroughly. The guy works for Blizzard, he oversees Diablo, of course he'd love it if we all referenced his game. And if there's anything gamers won't do, it's give you a compliment—especially not because you asked for one.
