So...Diablo 3?

[firehawk12]

We're getting to a point where you can pay real money for items in game. In order not to ruin that economy, they need to protect player accounts by storing them server side and checking for player exploits and such.

Remember that with D1, people could just edit their characters offline and then bring those characters online!

 

[Itisnotlogical]

In D2, offline characters were totally separate from online characters. Offline characters were stored client-side, while online characters were server-side IIRC. I don't see why that system wouldn't work here

 

[Silent_Bob]

We're getting to a point where you can pay real money for items in game. In order not to ruin that economy, they need to protect player accounts by storing them server side and checking for player exploits and such.

Which ultimately reveals the actual reason for this necessary connection: Greed. Activision-Blizzard don't want people buying used copies and they want people to spend real money on virtual items in game rather than going through gold sellers or editing their single player save game.

For every item sold on the Auction House, Activision-Blizzard will get their cut. And ultimately there is no need for a real life currency AH beyond this desire for extra revenue. So the economy they "need" to protect isn't even one that need exist in the first place.

Remember that with D1, people could just edit their characters offline and then bring those characters online!

Remember when players actually had control of when and how they chose to play the games they had paid for?

 

[Itisnotlogical]

Remember that with D1, people could just edit their characters offline and then bring those characters online!

Remember when players actually had control of when and how they chose to play the games they had paid for?

And $60 is quite an investment for a game that you can only play when Blizzard says it's OK, and eventually that you won't be able to play at all when the game gets too old and the servers shut down for good.

 

[Kelthaz]

^ Oh, I'm sure that won't be a problem. By the time Blizzard shuts their servers down I'm sure they'll be a "Windows 7 Box" or something that we can use to bypass the online requirement.

 

[Silent_Bob]

I've ended up with a copy thanks to a friend mistakenly ordering two (he ordered a collectors edition from Game yonks ago, then they looked to be going tits up so he ordered another copy not expecting the original order to be fulfilled).

I've played till Act III, so far it feels rather samey and pretty much less Diablo 3 and more Diablo 2.5. I'm not keen at all on how they've recycled old bosses for most of the first act, it's only on the last boss of Act II that it has a stand out fight and does something new.

And that's not bringing in the online connection thing. It's simply ludicrous to be playing single player and suffer random disconnects. Or when my net connection is playing up, terrible lag like this morning.

 

[Shurik]

I've played till Act III, so far it feels rather samey and pretty much less Diablo 3 and more Diablo 2.5. I'm not keen at all on how they've recycled old bosses for most of the first act, it's only on the last boss of Act II that it has a stand out fight and does something new.

I've managed to get to Act 2 at my parent's house, where the game actually sort of worked (with small lags and all). Even the locations seem the same - first act near Tristram, second in the desert. The bosses were the same, the creatures are mostly the same, and it indeed feels like Diablo 2 with a better graphics. The only new thing I liked is the guy who can craft new items.
And yeah, getting hit by monsters that are half a screen away from you is stupid.

 

[Ayelbourne]

Even the locations seem the same - first act near Tristram, second in the desert. The bosses were the same, the creatures are mostly the same, and it indeed feels like Diablo 2 with a better graphics.

It baffles me why people here get so worked up over this.
For me, that's a good thing.
I mean, wasn't that the point? To keep all the good stuff? To use traditional sounds and monsters? All those are staples of the ip. A Diablo without Fallen or Undead just isn't Diablo.

 

[Shurik]

It was just an observation, not an actual nitpicking or something ... There's much better stuff that was cut or changed.

For example, cooldown while using health potions is probably my least favorite change from Diablo 2.
Small amount of mana (arcane power or smth like this) for wizard is also baffling - provided I'm only at the beginning of Act 2 on normal, but I doubt there's stuff that can raise it from 100 (base amount) to, say, 1000 or more. That plus ridiculous cooldowns on almost everything make wizard just another melee character. Again, I don't know if it changes on higher difficulty levels, but for now it looks pretty stupid ...

 

[Silent_Bob]

Even the locations seem the same - first act near Tristram, second in the desert. The bosses were the same, the creatures are mostly the same, and it indeed feels like Diablo 2 with a better graphics.

It baffles me why people here get so worked up over this.
For me, that's a good thing.
I mean, wasn't that the point? To keep all the good stuff? To use traditional sounds and monsters? All those are staples of the ip. A Diablo without Fallen or Undead just isn't Diablo.

There is being true to the IP and then there is just repeating yourself. Seriously Act I and Act II are basically reskins of Diablo 2's Acts I and II. Even if they absolutely had to go to a desert in this game, could they have not at least varied it a bit? We're even traipsing about in sewers again.

Another fun experience with the online connection this afternoon. Battle.net is currently down in Europe at least, leaving me unable to play my completely single player game. Good stuff.

 

[Cutter John]

I'm another whos turned off by the 'online only' thing, as well as the pricetag.

I plan on holding out for Torchlight 2. Looks more fun, and for only 1/3 the price.

 

[StalwartUK]

Count me in as another one who was dissapointed to here about the always-online thing and decided to (quite wisely it seems) to give Diablo 3 a miss.

 

[Shaytan]

The always-online thing doesn't bother me. Actually, I like that my characters and progression are saved on their servers because I'm very bad at backing up my own hard drives and I often lose datas.

 

[Ayelbourne]

There is being true to the IP and then there is just repeating yourself. Seriously Act I and Act II are basically reskins of Diablo 2's Acts I and II. Even if they absolutely had to go to a desert in this game, could they have not at least varied it a bit? We're even traipsing about in sewers again.

They did vary. We got a desolate wasteland (with awesome looking doodads), an oasis, and those mystical ancient vaults.

Another fun experience with the online connection this afternoon. Battle.net is currently down in Europe at least, leaving me unable to play my completely single player game. Good stuff.

"Single player" doesn't mean you can play while being offline. It just means you can beat the game solo.

 

[CaptJimboJones]

Haven't played this game, I'm just curious, how exactly does the "always online" requirement work? If I start the single-player game and my PC isn't online am I literally unable to play? Or is it more a case of storing player stats, etc, on the cloud?

 

[Shurik]

Haven't played this game, I'm just curious, how exactly does the "always online" requirement work? If I start the single-player game and my PC isn't online am I literally unable to play? Or is it more a case of storing player stats, etc, on the cloud?

First you connect to the Battle.net servers and only then you can enter the game and start single player. I think that player stats and the whole mechanics of the game (monsters, loot and such) are also stored on the servers.

 

[FordSVT]

I already play WoW and SC2 and do 100% of my gaming at home. I like the battle.net integration and the online features and I really don't care if I need to play online.

 

[PurpleBuddha]

So yeah I have played D1 and D2 and almost did not get this, because I didn't know if I would have fun. I decided to get the game but only play hardcore from the beginning. So far on hardcore I beat the game on normal and just recently finished act 1 on nightmare. I have to say that hardcore is a lot more fun. It makes leveling and getting good gear feel like it really does have a point.

 

[firehawk12]

Haven't played this game, I'm just curious, how exactly does the "always online" requirement work? If I start the single-player game and my PC isn't online am I literally unable to play? Or is it more a case of storing player stats, etc, on the cloud?

Also, if your PC loses connection, you will be disconnected from the game and returned to the login menu.

 

[Leroy]

I don't understand the whining about online only, Blizzard announced this almost a year ago and people complain like they had no idea, check out meta critic you see "reviews" where people claimed that Blizzard "tricked" them into buying the game. The fact is that people should have known about online only and if they don't they've been living under a rock. The legit complaints are from those who were well informed and decided to not purchase the game and that is ok. I wish there was an offline mode but Blizz needed a way to prevent cheating and item duping, something very necessary when a real money AH is involved.

I've never seen so much whining and complaining about a perfectly decent game in my life, everything ranging from "too much like the previous game", "too different from the previous game", "graphics are too cartoony", "can't distribute any stat points", people expected a game that would fundamentally change their lives and redefine gaming but I'm sorry all it is, is a slick update of Diablo 2 and that's all it was ever supposed to be.

It seems like all the hype, Blizzard's reputation, and unrealistic expectations is what contributed to peoples disappointment. Has any online game had 100% perfect launch? Does anyone remember what WoW was like when it first came out?