Diablo III Wild Speculation and Rumor Mongering Abounds

[kildorn]

Some day, someone will look back and figure out that they could have released these design iterations as Diablo 3, 4, 5 and 6 instead of just rebuilding the core mechanics so frequently under the same title. :P

[Fabricated]

To be honest the precision stat didn't make a whole lot of sense because I don't recall ever missing like you did in D1/2. Limiting the stats makes things less confusing but it also makes it a bit more boring.

I hated distributing stats every level but with both that taken out and the simplification of stats (and subsequentially non-special item properties) I'm kinda...eh.

I kinda don't get forcing me to sell white items, and making me run back to town to unload shit now. Didn't Runic Games prove that cutting out some of the town runs made things more enjoyable? Why not just put a slowly recharging meter on the cauldron and cube, where every item you break down uses "energy"? That way you can keep on actually playing if you feel like it when your inventory fills up, but you still have to go back to town once in a while to unload.

[Malakili]

I kinda don't get forcing me to sell white items, and making me run back to town to unload shit now. Didn't Runic Games prove that cutting out some of the town runs made things more enjoyable? Why not just put a slowly recharging meter on the cauldron and cube, where every item you break down uses "energy"? That way you can keep on actually playing if you feel like it when your inventory fills up, but you still have to go back to town once in a while to unload.

It seems like after all was said and done they just decided "Diablo 2 did it fine."  I actually don't really disagree. Throw in not having to carry around TP or ID scrolls, and it seems like item management is going to be a non-issue.   In the beta I've been breaking stuff down using the cauldron pretty often and mainly going back to town only for quest reasons or to visit the artisan, I don't mind spending a bit more time in town.  I should say that I say this as a person who played Diablo 2 with friends and most of in LAN or VOIP situations, so that downtime of going back to town and discussing who wants what loot was a enjoyable part of the multiplayer experience for me.  I think slowing down the pacing a bit isn't a bad thing for this kind of game.  Being out adventuring 100% of the time with very little downtime in the old (current? I haven't seen any of these changes in the beta yet) version was/is optimal, and I think being able to work in some downtime is fine.  Also, leaving some stuff to be "not worth picking it up" is a good idea.  Playing in beta I felt very obligated to pick up EVERYTHING since I could melt it down right away, and it got to be a chore sometimes.    I think the new system here is going to lend itself to better pacing.   Could it be improved upon? Sure.  Torchlight for example lets you send your pet back to sell off, something like that would be a happy middle ground.

[Hawkbit]

Some day, someone will look back and figure out that they could have released these design iterations as Diablo 3, 4, 5 and 6 instead of just rebuilding the core mechanics so frequently under the same title. :P

I had the same thought.  Not unlike WoW, they could just put the game out there and change mechanics on the fly.  Then release content expansions every 18 months.  Instead they seem to be trying to create the perfect game that will "live up to our expectations in a decade after it is released".

Personally, I'm of the opinion that there are few perfect games, and to create one the simplest design must be implemented (pong). 

[Maledict]

Some day, someone will look back and figure out that they could have released these design iterations as Diablo 3, 4, 5 and 6 instead of just rebuilding the core mechanics so frequently under the same title. :P

I had the same thought.  Not unlike WoW, they could just put the game out there and change mechanics on the fly.  Then release content expansions every 18 months.  Instead they seem to be trying to create the perfect game that will "live up to our expectations in a decade after it is released".

Personally, I'm of the opinion that there are few perfect games, and to create one the simplest design must be implemented (pong). 

This is how Blizzard do their games. There's nothing unusual about these changes for a blizzard beta, it's just we can see all this stuff happening a lot more clearly than in previous games. This is how they make their money - by iterating repeatedly, well beyond what other companies would do, focussing in on even small things they don't think are fun.

[Yegolev]

Well, my fears are assuaged.

[Fabricated]

Diablo 3 Patch 1.03.144
-Diablo has been removed from the game.
-The action RPG element proved to be too overly-complex and baffling in our opinion, clicking the "start game" button now opens a browser to farmville.
-New icon for Arcane Orb.

[Malakili]

The new beta with those major changes is out.  I am streaming now @ www.twitch.tv/snugglezhenya if anyone is interested.


Edit: Alright, all done for now.

[Yegolev]

[Draegan]

I expect to see the announcement that Blizzcon is back on this year to debut the new Diablo game.

[Fabricated]

So far I don't really see a difference outside of the stat changes making it harder to get crafting to produce useful items. I could pretty much wear anything my crafter shit out and it was great before; now I keep getting dex gear on my barbarian when it does literally nothing but give me dodge.

[Thrawn]

New wave of beta invites, just got in.

[MuffinMan]

Strange time to send out invites. Especially since I have to go back to work tomorrow.

[kildorn]

Strange time to send out invites. Especially since I have to go back to work tomorrow.

... It's the first of the month?

[Rendakor]

Fuck yea, finally got in!

[Furiously]

Damn you. you made me check my email.

Thanks. I got in.

[Rendakor]

For those who are still waiting, check your B.net accounts. I got no email but I got access in my account.

[K9]

Still nothing, bah

[Numtini]

I got in.

[Merusk]

Huh, me too.  I'll check it out  for free, expecting to be bored and quit about an hour or so in like I've always been.

[K9]

Damn you

[Merusk]

I know. I feel bad in not being able to pass it along to someone who's more hyped.  Not granting access to my b-net account to anyone else, tho.  That way lies madness.

[Fabricated]

Reminder that the beta is literally like 15 minutes of content if you're playing with a full group, start to finish. It's maybe an hour or two solo if you're exploring everything.

Also they're never going to add any more content to it because of "spoilers" I guess.

[Rendakor]

15 minutes is better than 0 minutes.

[WayAbvPar]

Got in, went to d/l the client and realized my authenticator is on my old phone, so I have to call Blizz to unfuck my account. Argh.

ETA- can i just say kudos to Blizzard for staffing a useful and competent customer service center? It is almost a pleasure dealing with them.

[Selby]

I'm annoyed that I don't have access.  Come on Blizzard, what's up with that?

[ezrast]

I know, right? :(

[Numtini]

Jesus that was short. Not sure how they can tell anything from that.

[Fabricated]

Jesus that was short. Not sure how they can tell anything from that.

That's my question. I mean, you can get useful feedback on UI and very base game systems from this, but I wonder if they're honestly planning on using just their internal testers to balance later content and abilities.

I mean, you don't even get half of the skills that are going to be in the final game. The thing that they keep saying is that they want to keep the plot under wraps...but every aspergers-level Diablo fanatic has ripped all of the data out of the client; we know where all of the acts take place, we know which major characters reappear/died/die/survive, we know half the plot twists, etc.

[Lakov_Sanite]

I don't see how hard it would be to make a few 'test' levels and just throw in random monsters with boosted stats or substitute bosses etc for all the varying levels in the game.

[waffel]

Played beta, don't really see what the hold up is. Looks a lot better than pretty much every other action RPG out there right now. Stop polishing the fucking thing and just release it. They are almost smug about this "We're blizzard so it has to be perfect" mantra.

[Fabricated]

I think they're probably trying to bulletproof the game from exploits in addition to just content polishing. I'm still not 100% convinced there won't be some horrific hack/dupe bug/exploit that results in the AH being down 5 seconds after the game drops.

[Ironwood]

I guarantee it.

[Malakili]

I think they're probably trying to bulletproof the game from exploits in addition to just content polishing. I'm still not 100% convinced there won't be some horrific hack/dupe bug/exploit that results in the AH being down 5 seconds after the game drops.

Its going to be iffy for sure. 

[Paelos]

I think they're probably trying to bulletproof the game from exploits in addition to just content polishing. I'm still not 100% convinced there won't be some horrific hack/dupe bug/exploit that results in the AH being down 5 seconds after the game drops.

The real funny thing will be if it dupes and they can get the sales off before shit hits the fan. Then you have some asshole posting about how he made $10k on day one, losers!