The wait is finally over, the hype and tension that has been building the past week has finally exploded in a flurry of fire and brimstone. Blizzard, at their Worldwide Invitational event in Paris, have officially announced that the third - and highly demanded - installment in their cult franchise Diablo is under development.

Diablo III will follow the traditional top-down, action RPG theme that has become a trademark of the series along with a colorful and rich multiplayer environment, something Diablo II did really well. Diablo III will also see the introduction of a new character class, the Witch Doctor, along with old favorites such as the barbarian. Hurrah!

The announcement comes in the wake of a week of rumor and speculation based on the appearence of a number of teaser images on Blizzard’s website. Opinion was devided as to whether the announcement was going to be related to Diablo III or a StarCraft MMO. Since the announcement, a new website has been launched for the game so you can go and gorge on all the demonic eye candy you like.

[See also: Diablo III gallery]