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updated whimsyshire data
The most likely early contender for a secret level style of Easter Egg in Diablo 3 developed shortly after the game was announced. The early fan complaints about rainbows and bright colors that turned into the [[Art Controversy]] led to numerous jokes about rainbows, unicorns, happy clouds, and such. The D3 Team parodied this idea with their hugely-[http://www.diii.net/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=1982 popular Blizzcon 2008 t-shirts], and some months later, when Diablo 3 Community Manager [[Bashiok]] posted a photoshopped Diablo 3 screenshot featuring a unicorn apparently farting a rainbow that created a deadly "love combo" of slaughtered monsters, the "Secret Rainbow Level" rumors were off and running.
If this genesis seems unlikely remember that the {{iw|Secret_Cow_Level Diablo II Secret Cow Level}} got its start in similar fashion; it was a fan rumor in Diablo I that Blizzard ran with, first teasing the level through a humor April Fools' screenshot in 1999. The [[D3 Team]] is under no compunction to include a joke secret level, but Blizzard designers have always shown a good sense of humor, and as famous and enjoyed as the D2 secret level was, they've go to be feeling some pressure to live up to that standard with Diablo III.
Data-mining during the Diablo III beta uncovered numerous clues and strong hints that such a level was in the game, including a mysterious crafting recipe that can be seen below:
[[File:Easter-staff-herding-beta-code1.jpg|center|thumb|800px|The [[Staff of Herding]] crafting recipe, via the [[Blacksmith]], as seen in the Beta patch 10.]]
Blizzard did indeed add a secret level, called [[Whimsyshire]], accessed by bringing the [[Staff of Herding]] to the pink lights on the path between old and new [[Tristram]].
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[[category:Easter Eggs]]