Our approach for classes in Diablo III is that we donÂ’t have a strong desire to bring back classes from the previous game. The goal is to try and give people new gameplay and not just re-hash old gameplay. WeÂ’re not just making a Diablo II with updated 3D graphics.

If [the Necromancer] dealt damage, it was through corpses laying around or through his pets. The Witch Doctor, his pets are a little more transient. If you watch the gameplay video, you really notice his pets come and go like crazy. ThereÂ’s a wall of zombies that go away fairly quickly or pets that just kind of blow up willy-nilly. That was intentional - to try and make him different than the Necromancer.

But after weÂ’ve established Diablo III as its own game with its own type of gameplay and experiences, I wouldnÂ’t be opposed to looking at old classes. We are trying to design [the Witch Doctor] class so that if we did bring back the Necromancer, thereÂ’s room for him. WeÂ’re looking out ahead of time at what our expansions are going to be, so weÂ’ve got to keep room open for some of those other classes down the road. ThereÂ’s a lot of people on our team who arenÂ’t happy with our class choices.

Via MTV Multiplayer