I wouldn't be surprised if we see patch 2.5 with something interesting at Blizzcon and then a PTR one week after Blizzcon, for a 2 month testing period (Season 8-9 transition end of January). But of course could also be completely unrelated, and more likely this is just another sign that Diablo 3 is going into "long-term maintenance" mode and although small features might still come every now and then, development of the Diablo franchise is moving on to something else.
Would a simple Yes or No kill them regarding whether they're going to be adding anything more? It's not like letting us know they're cooking something up would kill the hype.
I guess that "Blizzcon will be cool!" tweet is a sort of answer, but... ugh.
I still doubt we are heading toward maint mode anytime soon, this game does not resemble a game in that stage even one bit.
If we get to a point where seasons are done, era's are the main objective, yada yada, then yeah, maint mode.
But even a soft reset into a new season take a lot of resources, something games simply do not do in maint mode, no even close really.
Your idea of 2.5 announcement at Blizzcon and PTR immediately after is the most likely scenario to me. I think it will come with an announcement that seasons are getting a complete overhaul starting with patch 2.5, details forthcoming.
But even a soft reset into a new season take a lot of resources, something games simply do not do in maint mode, no even close really.
Blizzard has been doing this (soft reset) for 16 years in Diablo 2, so are you telling me Diablo 2 is not in "maintenance mode"? ;-)
The game was constantly patched for 2 years after it's release, then after 2 more years (2005) Pandaemonium was added, and another 5 years later (2010) was another sort of "bigger" patch with 1.13c. D3 might be at a similar state, where we might not see a "bigger" patch like 2.5 for another 1-2 years. Of course I hope I'm wrong and we get some awesome features at Blizzcon. We'll see, it's not too long of a wait anymore
I guess if the game is going into maintenance and there is going to be no new content, you may as well do 2 month seasons instead of 3 month seasons. Paragon grinding for 2 months sounds way better than paragon grinding for 3 months. Lets face it, anyone who isn't paragon grinding is probably doing 2 week or less seasons anyway.
I suggested on reddit for seasons to last for 1 week.
This way, in a couple of months i will get enough stash space to unload all mules. Haven't played my DH for over a year. I don't even have space for a single drop.
didnt see any info about how long this next season will last... although apparently any info they give wouldnt mean much anyway now would it.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
NA servers - add me if ya want - ysoserious#1178. - i run a clan if anyone wants an invite. no requirements to join - as long as your nice and friendly your more than welcome
didnt see any info about how long this next season will last... although apparently any info they give wouldnt mean much anyway now would it.
They said before that every season is going to last about 3 month (give or take). S7 was shortened to avoid having a season end/transition/season start exactly during Blizzcon (which would've happened normally). So unless a similar exceptional reason appears, S8 is going to last 3 months at most. Anything longer is really bad, Blizzard knows this; so S8 is very very likely to last until the end of January.
Here's my crazy ass, probably wrong, conspiracy theory on why the season is restarting early.
I think there may be an internal contest or bonus program at Blizzard based on time played in a game in the month before Blizzcon, so the D3 leadership correctly realized the best way to pump up playtime was to release a brand new season, even if there was no new content. Starts of season are very popular, and then it goes back to being dead after a couple weeks.
My proof for this? None. However, I've noticed this week that while playing Heroes of the Storm, I've gotten the "Play 8 games" daily 5 days out of the last 7. That seems pretty statistically unlikely, unless the odds of getting that went way up for some reason, like they were trying to get people playing Heroes more hours per day.
Anyway, I figure it was time for another crazy conspiracy theory, much like Rhykker's d4 theory.
I imagine the sun rising is an indicator to some folks that something big is coming at Blizzcon.
hehe, yup their wallets are burning, but they haven't noticed the massive brain drain out of the devs and think the ones left (that haven't fixed anything) can whip up something 'NEW'. I see these folkes in the local casinos all the time. I'd say the highest bosses are winding down everything outside of the 'magic money machine of WoW'. As a former middle manager, the job openings mean nothing, positions get filled when it's important and lay around idle when just fishing
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Conversation enriches understanding....most of the time
But even a soft reset into a new season take a lot of resources, something games simply do not do in maint mode, no even close really.
Blizzard has been doing this (soft reset) for 16 years in Diablo 2, so are you telling me Diablo 2 is not in "maintenance mode"? ;-)
The game was constantly patched for 2 years after it's release, then after 2 more years (2005) Pandaemonium was added, and another 5 years later (2010) was another sort of "bigger" patch with 1.13c. D3 might be at a similar state, where we might not see a "bigger" patch like 2.5 for another 1-2 years. Of course I hope I'm wrong and we get some awesome features at Blizzcon. We'll see, it's not too long of a wait anymore
Times change, looking at what happened 10 years ago and saying it is the same now just is not educational deduction.
I simply doubt a company will spend resources on something like maintaining D3 when it is dying off, when they can take those resources to upgrade their new and sexy toy. Welcome to 2016!
However, one thing you referenced is likely the path we will be on with D3. That path is a large patch, followed by NOTHING (small bug fixes etc for maybe the first year) which is what happened from 2010-early 2016 with D2.
Soft resets really don't take much resources though. You can pretty much write a script to do it if there are no PTR changes. Then you just run the script every time you want to change seasons.
This notion that doing that "spends resources when the game is dying off" just misunderstands how databases work. It takes almost no resources to change seasons. It takes considerable resources to upgrade the code and graphical assets.
You could leave a script running that rolled seasons every few months for eternity without additional resources after the script was written and tested, a process much easier than writing new shiny changes and addons to the existing game.
Soft resets really don't take much resources though. You can pretty much write a script to do it if there are no PTR changes. Then you just run the script every time you want to change seasons.
This notion that doing that "spends resources when the game is dying off" just misunderstands how databases work. It takes almost no resources to change seasons. It takes considerable resources to upgrade the code and graphical assets.
You could leave a script running that rolled seasons every few months for eternity without additional resources after the script was written and tested, a process much easier than writing new shiny changes and addons to the existing game.
Fair enough, but keep in mind this thought process overlooks very basic yet essential business models such as TVM and Opportunity Costs.
Leaving a script running is fine and dandy, but when you have seasons, the script runs off the key at X days when the season should end, and new season begins. Key word is, SHOULD. But what if it does not? Then you send more staff to fix an issue on a game you are not expecting revenue returns from anymore. Thats a failing business model when instead, you could end seasons entirely, run a 12 month era, and have less OPPORTUNITY for there to be a problem.
Maybe the cost is small, but basic theory says money is worth more now than later, due to investment interest. In the case of making games, the interest comes from the fanbase and their expectations and patience. If two employees are pulled away, that could add a few months to development, which would cost way more money in the end.
The decision is pretty easy when you simply look at the financial side of things. What we do not know is the personnel side of things from within Blizzard regarding Diablo as a whole. All we know is that they once did believe we deserved free content due to the failure of D3 vanilla. But I would wager they do not feel that same way any longer.
Whether Blizzard does D4 or lets Diablo lie fallow for a few years while working on D4 or whether they never do another Diablo IP, they'll keep the servers up, and they'll keep changing seasons.
Why? Because Blizzard wisely values customer loyalty. There is a reason that you still see patches to D2 and SC and WC years after they were released.
They will also work on new content, whether or not it is Diablo content, but they will expend a small, reasonable, amount of resources keeping their old customers happy.
A new season, but no new patch.
http://us.battle.net/d3/en/blog/20275888/season-7-ending-soon-9-30-2016
I wouldn't be surprised if we see patch 2.5 with something interesting at Blizzcon and then a PTR one week after Blizzcon, for a 2 month testing period (Season 8-9 transition end of January). But of course could also be completely unrelated, and more likely this is just another sign that Diablo 3 is going into "long-term maintenance" mode and although small features might still come every now and then, development of the Diablo franchise is moving on to something else.
Would a simple Yes or No kill them regarding whether they're going to be adding anything more? It's not like letting us know they're cooking something up would kill the hype.
I guess that "Blizzcon will be cool!" tweet is a sort of answer, but... ugh.
I still doubt we are heading toward maint mode anytime soon, this game does not resemble a game in that stage even one bit.
If we get to a point where seasons are done, era's are the main objective, yada yada, then yeah, maint mode.
But even a soft reset into a new season take a lot of resources, something games simply do not do in maint mode, no even close really.
Your idea of 2.5 announcement at Blizzcon and PTR immediately after is the most likely scenario to me. I think it will come with an announcement that seasons are getting a complete overhaul starting with patch 2.5, details forthcoming.
Blizzard has been doing this (soft reset) for 16 years in Diablo 2, so are you telling me Diablo 2 is not in "maintenance mode"? ;-)
The game was constantly patched for 2 years after it's release, then after 2 more years (2005) Pandaemonium was added, and another 5 years later (2010) was another sort of "bigger" patch with 1.13c. D3 might be at a similar state, where we might not see a "bigger" patch like 2.5 for another 1-2 years. Of course I hope I'm wrong and we get some awesome features at Blizzcon. We'll see, it's not too long of a wait anymore
Just how many times can someone create one of 6 classes, to get a new portrait and a pet?
Yawn.
I guess if the game is going into maintenance and there is going to be no new content, you may as well do 2 month seasons instead of 3 month seasons. Paragon grinding for 2 months sounds way better than paragon grinding for 3 months. Lets face it, anyone who isn't paragon grinding is probably doing 2 week or less seasons anyway.
Wht about ptr and new patch? All will be same as s7 then?
I suggested on reddit for seasons to last for 1 week.
This way, in a couple of months i will get enough stash space to unload all mules. Haven't played my DH for over a year. I don't even have space for a single drop.
http://www.angryroleplayer.com/
http://www.youtube.com/c/angryroleplayer
https://www.diablofans.com/builds/105329-2-6-7-rend-bleed-whirlwind-gr130
https://www.diablofans.com/builds/105301-2-6-7-fist-of-the-heavens-aegis-of-valor-gr110
I am pretty sure we will see just 2.5 with a new OP set for each existing class as well as announced D2 HD for just 59.99$.
http://www.angryroleplayer.com/
http://www.youtube.com/c/angryroleplayer
https://www.diablofans.com/builds/105329-2-6-7-rend-bleed-whirlwind-gr130
https://www.diablofans.com/builds/105301-2-6-7-fist-of-the-heavens-aegis-of-valor-gr110
I imagine the sun rising is an indicator to some folks that something big is coming at Blizzcon.
didnt see any info about how long this next season will last... although apparently any info they give wouldnt mean much anyway now would it.
Here's my crazy ass, probably wrong, conspiracy theory on why the season is restarting early.
I think there may be an internal contest or bonus program at Blizzard based on time played in a game in the month before Blizzcon, so the D3 leadership correctly realized the best way to pump up playtime was to release a brand new season, even if there was no new content. Starts of season are very popular, and then it goes back to being dead after a couple weeks.
My proof for this? None. However, I've noticed this week that while playing Heroes of the Storm, I've gotten the "Play 8 games" daily 5 days out of the last 7. That seems pretty statistically unlikely, unless the odds of getting that went way up for some reason, like they were trying to get people playing Heroes more hours per day.
Anyway, I figure it was time for another crazy conspiracy theory, much like Rhykker's d4 theory.
I hope that there is something big on the horizon (aside from the sun rising lol)... if not, I have had more than my money's worth from D3.
Times change, looking at what happened 10 years ago and saying it is the same now just is not educational deduction.
I simply doubt a company will spend resources on something like maintaining D3 when it is dying off, when they can take those resources to upgrade their new and sexy toy. Welcome to 2016!
However, one thing you referenced is likely the path we will be on with D3. That path is a large patch, followed by NOTHING (small bug fixes etc for maybe the first year) which is what happened from 2010-early 2016 with D2.
Soft resets really don't take much resources though. You can pretty much write a script to do it if there are no PTR changes. Then you just run the script every time you want to change seasons.
This notion that doing that "spends resources when the game is dying off" just misunderstands how databases work. It takes almost no resources to change seasons. It takes considerable resources to upgrade the code and graphical assets.
You could leave a script running that rolled seasons every few months for eternity without additional resources after the script was written and tested, a process much easier than writing new shiny changes and addons to the existing game.
Leaving a script running is fine and dandy, but when you have seasons, the script runs off the key at X days when the season should end, and new season begins. Key word is, SHOULD. But what if it does not? Then you send more staff to fix an issue on a game you are not expecting revenue returns from anymore. Thats a failing business model when instead, you could end seasons entirely, run a 12 month era, and have less OPPORTUNITY for there to be a problem.
Maybe the cost is small, but basic theory says money is worth more now than later, due to investment interest. In the case of making games, the interest comes from the fanbase and their expectations and patience. If two employees are pulled away, that could add a few months to development, which would cost way more money in the end.
The decision is pretty easy when you simply look at the financial side of things. What we do not know is the personnel side of things from within Blizzard regarding Diablo as a whole. All we know is that they once did believe we deserved free content due to the failure of D3 vanilla. But I would wager they do not feel that same way any longer.
Lol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ke5Mr5eCF2U
Whether Blizzard does D4 or lets Diablo lie fallow for a few years while working on D4 or whether they never do another Diablo IP, they'll keep the servers up, and they'll keep changing seasons.
Why? Because Blizzard wisely values customer loyalty. There is a reason that you still see patches to D2 and SC and WC years after they were released.
They will also work on new content, whether or not it is Diablo content, but they will expend a small, reasonable, amount of resources keeping their old customers happy.