The creator behind two of the best action RPGs ever.

David Brevik is the creator behind two of the best action role-playing games ever created. The first is Diablo I, a dark fantasy action RPG with unmatched music and atmosphere. And the second is Diablo II, the best loot-based action RPG of all time.

Between the two games, Diablo II reigns supreme, as it became a template for all future loot-based games, even if they are in a genre different from that of Diablo.

Millions have played and loved the games David Brevik created, and now even after more than 20 years since these two games were released, players still cherish them as among the best achievements in video game history.

The Childhood of David Brevik

David Brevik was born on Feb 14, 1968, in Madison, Wisconsin. As a child, he played a lot of Dungeons & Dragons. This was his life as a kid, often sacrificing homework or studies to have more time playing D&D. He would play this game with his friends and stay up late every night.

During this time, video games were also popular in the form of Arcades, where you have to pay a coin to get a chance for a round of play. David and his friends played these coin-operated games, the most popular of which were Pac-man and Asteroids.

David Gets an Atari

David’s father is Colin Brevik, a salesman for U.S. Leasing. He is not very strict with his son regarding his passion for Dungeons & Dragons or arcade video games.

In fact, one day, he brought home a gift that David would surely love, an Atari Video Computer System. David enjoyed this console a lot, and his favorite game here is a game called Adventure.

So between playing Dungeons & Dragons and video games, young David’s life is bliss, a path that can lead him in the future to a possible career in video games.

David Meets the Apple II Computer

After getting his Atari, another big event happened in David’s life. One day, one of his teachers brought to his classroom an Apple II Plus. The children all loved it, and they took turns in playing with it. David saw his teacher run the game The Wizard and the Princess from the disk drive. He wished to have one!

In the same year that this brand new computer was released by Apple, Colin bought one for his son. David’s life was about to change in having his own Apple II Plus in 1979. He was only 11 years old.

As soon as he had the Apple II, he no longer wanted to go outside and play. He wanted to stay inside and play video games.

The Internet was just starting at that time to get popular. David’s new computer came with a modem with it, and as smart and curious as he is, he used the Internet to download hacked versions of video games.

One of his favorite games during this time was Wizardry. He also bought the games Ultima I through IV.

David the Programmer

Colin’s buying a personal computer for his son is the catalyst for David’s wanting to become a computer programmer. Because David loved video games, he wanted to know how they were being created. He wanted to learn how to make a game of his own.

By the time David reached high school, he was already writing small video games. He wanted them to get published and even sent them to an Apple computer magazine.

At this stage in David’s life, as young as he was, he already knew his passion and what he wanted to do with his life. And he is earnest about it.

I knew in high school that I wanted to make games. I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my life. I mean, almost anything else in my life wasn’t as important as anything that had to do with games or computers.

David Moves to California

David’s father, Colin, was a salesman, and part of this job was to travel where the work was. The family was always moving house, and David had to change schools regularly. This can easily disrupt people’s social lives, but in the case of David, his passion for video games and computers allowed him to connect and meet new people who share the same interests.

The Birth of Diablo

In 1984, David’s family moved to Danville, California. Now 16-year-old, he had to enter Monte Vista High School. This new town where he would live is near the base of a mountain called Mount Diablo. This move will have a lasting impact on David.

He learned about the meaning of the mountain’s name, the devil. And thus, Diablo was born.

The idea for Diablo came about when I was in high school. I lived at the base of Mount Diablo. That’s where I got the name from.

Continue reading David’s journey in the creation of the Diablo series.