Making Diablo II Was Pure Hell

David L. Craddock is the author of more than a dozen books about video games, including Break Out, about the history of Apple II games, and Rocket Jump, about the history of first-person shooters. "I tend to write a lot about games made in the '80s, '90s, and early '00s," Craddock says in Episode 481 of the Geek's Guide to the Galaxy podcast. "I love to write about creative people who had big ideas but very, very tight restrictions, and I think that from that comes some of the most enduring products--most enduring experiences--ever made." One of Craddock's most recent books is Stay Awhile and Listen: Book II, about the making of Blizzard's classic action RPG Diablo II. Craddock says this volume was a much bigger undertaking than Stay Awhile and Listen: Book I, about the original Diablo. "There was just so much more to juggle in terms of timeline, in terms of game," he says.