Diablo III

[felix]

Dorms might also have ports blocked, so rather then a question of no-internet, you might just not have access.

[calorie]

How Diablo III's DRM Will Affect You on Rock, Paper, Shotgun

These Diablo III Beta impressions from the perspective of a solo player have totally discouraged me from ever playing this game unless something miraculously changes. With problems like the complete lack of the pause "feature" or bows that fire no arrows followed by annoying "game connection has been lost" message, one of the reasons why I've never liked MMOs much, I really can't imagine myself buying DIII. Only now, they've been made perfectly obvious to me.

Like Sofiel said two posts earlier, I really want to see where the story goes and experience DIII because it was a part of my childhood. There may not be much to the story but I still liked it and there's that nostalgia factor every time I think of it. How sad that the one game I am still interested in playing is turning out to be something...different.

[RedKey]

Originally Posted by Duo Maxwell

Disconnection/Unstable connection period.

Didn't read all of the discussion, but aren't we forgetting about who plays computer games but has no Internet connection whatsoever? I kow many people like that, and this will prevent them from ever playing the game, good as it may be. Then again, I guess that affects only a handful of people in comparison to the vast majority of players, so maybe Blizzard just doesn't care : |

[Ithekro]

So are we getting more story elements at Blizzcon?

[felix]

Besides the new Ultralisk prime-evil thing not much. Everything is still pretty tight.

[Vallen Chaos Valiant]

Originally Posted by calorie

How Diablo III's DRM Will Affect You on Rock, Paper, Shotgun

I find it horribe that in the comment section of the link you posted, there is still someone saying " oh, that's not a problem because people will still buy it".

The same comment applies to a comic done by Penny Arcade.

I just find it offensive. I have decided for months that I will not play DIII due to official decisions they made, and that hasn't changed. And yet I still keep hearing on both official and unofficial channels the same arguments about "It doesn't matter how horrible it is if it can still sell".

That's when you know a franchise is truly dead. When the only thing keeping it propped up is the good name of the predecessor. When "It will sell because it is Diablo, who cares if it murders your first born" is somehow accepted logic.

When selling a good product is no longer a concern because they think the franchise is too big to fail.

Because when they think it is too big to fail, that's when things go bad.

[Ithekro]

Or people don't care about the DRM and will just buy it to play through the normal levels for the story, never bothering with multiplayer or even Nightmare difficulty. Mostly because they are online all the time anyway thanks to cable or DSL connections.

[cors8]

In my own experience with D2, my friends and I only played offline like once or twice during the entire life of the game so far. It will most likely be the same with D3.

I am willing to bet Blizzard came to the same conclusion that although they would lose some sales from potential customers, the majority wouldn't care since they are not even interested in the offline aspect.

[Vallen Chaos Valiant]

Originally Posted by Ithekro

Or people don't care about the DRM and will just buy it to play through the normal levels for the story, never bothering with multiplayer or even Nightmare difficulty. Mostly because they are online all the time anyway thanks to cable or DSL connections.

That doesn't have anything to do with my complaint, which is the insulting proposition that those who are angry would still buy the game anyway because they are sheep.

I won't buy the game. And every time I am told that I will buy it because they say so, make me want to choke someone.

[barcode120x]

Soulstone cinematic (apparently they've been working on this soulstone thing or so I've heard)

[Rising Dragon]

Originally Posted by Scanner

Soulstone cinematic (apparently they've been working on this soulstone thing or so I've heard)

... god dammit, Blizzard, don't take my story ideas. >.>

[Ithekro]

Where did I say you had to buy it? I said, basically, that people will buy it to play though once or so because they want to, rather that becaues it is "too big to fail".

I'm interested in the story now more than the gameplay (though from what I've seen it looks fun blowing things apart with spells). I never played much of Diabo. I think I only played it once at my friends house a month or two after it came out and wasn't all that interested. Diablo II on the other hand had me interested, especially after the Lord of Destruction expansion came out. And from what I understand, Diablo III wil have something like two expansions. So I've very curious as to what they are doing now that they have a lore to follow and even more of a world to explore that even Diablo II did (much more than just Tristrum).

[Chaos2Frozen]

Originally Posted by Rising Dragon

... god dammit, Blizzard, don't take my story ideas. >.>

But lets face it, it's the next logical step to take now that the three prime evils are (apparently) dead Demon Lords are pretty easy to understand, evil for the sake of evil, but I'm curious how the Archangels would play a part in this story... As I've recalled (like years ago) the High Heavens would get involved in this game right?

[Ithekro]

I wouldn't put it past the High Heavens to what to destroy the planet to prevent Hell's hold on the place.

[TheForsaken]

Originally Posted by Vallen Chaos Valiant

That doesn't have anything to do with my complaint, which is the insulting proposition that those who are angry would still buy the game anyway because they are sheep.

I think it just means that most people won't care about small inconveniences or they don't even consider them inconveniences.
I doubt that someone who is really pissed off will buy the game.

[Rising Dragon]

Originally Posted by Chaos2Frozen

But lets face it, it's the next logical step to take now that the three prime evils are (apparently) dead Demon Lords are pretty easy to understand, evil for the sake of evil, but I'm curious how the Archangels would play a part in this story... As I've recalled (like years ago) the High Heavens would get involved in this game right?

My indignation was mostly about the Black Soulstone, actually, as a fic I had been writing (but have since dropped) involved a Black Soulstone. >.> And I had been writing that fic long before D3 came about.

Also would've involved Azmodan to a degree, but not as a major antagonist as this video implies.

[Ithekro]

We still don't know what the Falling Star brought with it. Be it the Black Soulstone or what. Unless of course the Beta expands out a little more into the story beyond slaying the Skeleton King (again).

[Rising Dragon]

Given the Soulstones originated from the Worldstone (at least, that's what I remember of the extended story), I don't think the Black Soulstone came from the Falling Star.

[felix]

^ Have you seen the Lore panel where they explain why the Burning Hells and High Heavens are fighting for? (how humans essentially are angel-demon hybrids who've got the power suppressed) Also supposedly there will be a lore book, the result of their refinement and consolidation of several elements in the story.

Anyway...

Highlights:

• Companions will be end-game viable! ("listening to feedback" section)
• In-combat skill swapping will be blocked. ("listening to feedback" section)
• Normal difficulty is free-farm/casual. Does not have all the items, nor enchantments, etc. (estimated at 30% content, items, spells, monster skills, monsters, etc etc; of course the beta is not even 30% of that)
• You can pretty much use the Money auction house for free if you want and don't even have to open your wallet or credit card to it since you can just use the money there as alternative gold and earn it by selling. There will be weekly limit of stuff you can put there.
• They are trying to make it so when farming you don't just farm a boss or any given area.
• Auction house (both I assume) will have an auto-matching system where it auto-finds items suited to your play style.
• Co-op is not mandatory, everything is soloable, it's just for-fun.
• When you find a set tome/book you actually learn all the pieces at once.
• They are trying to make all builds in the game viable (even if one is a little bit better then another). They are not trying perfect balance but rather to let you build anything you want and have it work. Video examples of no-pet Witch Doctor and Melee Wizzard. (There was also Axe-Wielding Palandin-style Demon Hunter at one point)
• They are targetting and removing synergy skills (example was counter attack activates on evasion, then you got a skill that adds evasion and another that gives evasion when you critical — so indirectly counter attack). They don't want you to feel forced in choosing X skill because you have Y skills, or feel stupid for not doing so.
• They are cranking up the half-moon physics on all the characters (ie. over-exaggerated effects). Something like what they did with barbarian to make him work.
• The beta is tweaked to give more or less unlimited mana since the regen items aren't in at that level.
• At higher difficulty monsters will rape the shit out of you. (Testimony from employees with video)
• Their philosophy (for the difficulty) is to start out casual and turn those casual player into the hardcore player. They also mention how if you are already a hardcore player you should be able to just breeze though the "casual" content so it's not much of an issue.

[Vallen Chaos Valiant]

Well, I am certainly not going to sulk or pretend I didn't say what I say.

I got two out of three issues fixed. That's two more than I expected after the Blizzard blue poster smashed me over the head with a hammer and spat in my general direction. The acknowledgement of solo gameplay in all difficulties (with multiplayer being optional) and viability of Followers past Normal.
Guess I wasn't the only one who was pissed off.

Unfortunately, the permanent on-line connection requirement is still a serious issue. So unless things change in my country concerning broadband proliferation, I simply can't play it.

On the bright side, I have changed my stance and will no longer consider Diablo III a bad game, gameplay wise. The downside is the Draconian DRM still prevents me from actually buying and playing it.

Not everyone gets stable internet connection.
It used to be that DIII was so bad I wouldn't play it even for free. Now with the changes, I would play it, if only I could.

Got to be considered an improvement.