The Classes...is that all?

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I haven't heard about a lack of heavy armor for barbarians, and I'm pretty sure that some of the gameplay footage I've seen has them in heavy armor (or what appears to be heavy armor). So as far as I know Barbarians will be wearing heavy armor.

And since armor no longer has a str requirement to wear it (only a level requirement) I'm guessing that most other classes will be able to wear heavy armor as well.

 

I'm sorry, i should've mentioned i spoke from an aesthetic viewpoint. Character's avatar appearance, not inventory armor icons. The way assassin would never look armored on the screen, despite wearing full plate, keeping her iconic look. Similar with other classes.
I haven't heard anything about it, but i rather suspect they won't go restricting armor types based on class. If revamped weapon system is anything to go by, they seem to be taking the opposite direction - cutting down on class restricted items. Which is a good thing IMO, not much excitement to the armories of loot dropping you can't use.

IMHO not true.
Of course, there's a whole definitional abyss of good and evil to go down to, but roughly speaking, i've trouble seeing Necromancers being inherently good, as monk in D3 and Paladin in D2 are described. Shadow hunter seems to pursue Machiavellian end justifies the means rather deep into murky territory as well. If evil fights Evil, it doesn't make it good.

 

According to the info I've seen, there's actuallly MORE armor pieces than in D2. In addition to the helm, gloves, boots, and belt, body armor is now divided into three parts - actual body armor (protects the torso) and additional pieces for the thighs and shoulders. According to the screen shots I've seen (and I concede this was only done for the barbarian - not all classes) every item you placed on your character changed the avatar's appearance.

To me this point is more semantic than anything - there's no means of roleplaying a character (for good or bad) in Diablo 1 or 2, and I suspect the same will be true in D3. Regardless of whether you consider your character to be good, evil, or neutral, there's only ever been one way to complete a quest. It's not like in Baldur's Gate where there were options for good and evil ways to go about it.

And that's just the nature of the game. At its heart, the Diablo series is the classic dungeon crawl - even if the areas aren't technically in a dungeon - some are outside. But it's an area where you kill stuff and pick up loot. There's also a linearity imposed in the game which is also very different from most classic RPGs. Because the areas in each act are sequential, have to do them in that order. The RPG element is in making your character and developing your skills. Alignment considerations aren't really applicable in the Diablo series, either in terms of character development or gameplay.

EDIT: And I should point out that I don't necessarily disagree with your central premise - a paladin seems inherently more "good" than a necromancer. I'm just pointing out that alignment classifications are not implemented in the game in any way.

 

Agreed, Diablo world simply doesn't respond to morality. Doesn't give a choice of it as a matter of fact. I believe there are a few different NPC lines in D2, tailored to specific class (Nilathak act5 to Necromancer iirc), but it doesn't actually change anything.

There's a minor argument in gamestyle and skills imbuing your character. Mace-in-the-head tactics preceded by an issue of a traditional challenge by a paladin could be considered more virtuous than sadistic curse assisted Necromancer Revival strategies. But, as before, game doesn't recognize a moral difference between them. It's solely in player's head, read into as much as one wants.

So i guess.. we agree on no meaningful, objectively discernible moral ambiguity aspect of Diablo series? What a revelation eh?

 

That's an excellent way of putting it. I think we subscribe moral characteristics onto certain characters, even subconsciously at times. To be fair though, I always considered the Barbarian in D2 to be a character of good as much as the paladin - it is their homeland, afterall, that is under attack in Act 5.

 

I am not impressed with the class selection but I will have to wait to play them to decide if Diablo 3 will be good. Diable 1 and 2 are awesome, but I was hoping for some new classes rather than some of the same and combining of others.