DiabloFans

Just came across this article, may be old news for some but here you go:

https://screenrant.com/diablo-2-resurrected-alpha-mods-cease-desist-blizzard/

I think that one concern for many D2 players have been whether or not Blizzard will encrypt the game files and deny the community the opportunity to make modifications to the game. Looks like we might actually be able to enjoy those awesome D2 mods after all - and who knows, perhaps they'll even take it one step further and provide the community with some real tools for the job (modding D2 can be very cumbersome and what one can actually do is limited because many bits and pieces of the game code can't be accessed).

“We acknowledge that a big part of Diablo II’s longevity is the modding community and we appreciate their enthusiasm for the game. Classic Diablo II and its mods will continue to exist and we’re going to do our best to continue to support the mods for Diablo II: Resurrected as well .."

According to reports, Blizzard Entertainment sent cease-and-desist orders were sent to creators who build mods based on Diablo II: Resurrected's recent alpha. Blizzard hosted a closed technical alpha for the Diablo II remaster in early April, allowing only a select number of players to try out the title's first two Acts.

Many members of the modding community got their hands on the alpha build despite not receiving an invite. Some modders gained access thanks to a Belgian programmer named Ferib Hellscream, who managed to invite himself into the technical alpha by bypassing Diablo II's anti-cheat parameters. Upon successfully manipulating the system, Ferib shared his tool, D2ROffline, with friends and other modders. Trouble arose when someone leaked the tool, opening the door to people charging money for access. To combat this, Ferib open-sourced his work; naturally, more players and modders poured in. Blizzard has now made a few moves of its own.

Speaking with Kotaku, Ferib and another modder said they received cease-and-desist letters from Blizzard, effectively putting the kibosh on their Diablo II: Resurrected mods. One person who goes by Shalzuth claimed a private investigator delivered their warning. In compliance with Blizzard's request, both creators deleted Diablo II: Resurrected projects from their respective websites. Ferib additionally removed YouTube videos related to his work; meanwhile, Shalzuth shuttered his Diablo II-centric Discord server. When reached for comment, a Blizzard spokesperson shared the following statement with Kotaku.

“We acknowledge that a big part of Diablo II’s longevity is the modding community and we appreciate their enthusiasm for the game. Classic Diablo II and its mods will continue to exist and we’re going to do our best to continue to support the mods for Diablo II: Resurrected as well. That said, some mods are atypical and pose security threats to our games. Security has always been a top priority for us and programs that could pose major security issues will not be tolerated."

Blizzard's response to the ordeal is expected and understandable given the circumstances. After all, some of these mods were based on a hacked version of Diablo II: Resurrected's alpha build. At the very least, it seems as though Blizzard plans on fully supporting the modding community whenever the full game actually goes live later in the year.

'Wilderness' from Diablo II is a Masterpiece

The Diablo II Soundtrack has no equal. When I decided to do this I wanted to do it right and not just copy/paste a cover image with some music. I wanted it to look and feel right. I wanted to make it something that I could enjoy again and again. The tracks are all absolutely fantastic. I went out of my way to find the highest quality sound files that I could find, I used lossless FLAC whenever possible. I scoured through many websites, digging in deep to find good concept art. I ended up spending a lot of time piecing this thing together, I had to start all over many times with some segments but I think that in the end it was well worth the effort.

Credit to Matt Uelmen for this unprecedented muscial legacy. This is real art. There's nothing like it. This will never happen again. I sometimes play D2 or D3 muting the in-game music and I keep this one playing on my second screen. Call me a narcissist. And now we have Diablo II Resurrected incoming .. what can I say .. good things come to those that wait. † † †

After Warforged its pretty clear that they aren't ready for a D2 remaster. A decent D1 remaster is probably all they could muster.

What would be better - a straight remaster of the original game (gameplay and mechanics unchanged) or a remake (with actual gameplay and mechanics updates as well as enhanced graphical elelements)?

As much as I love the original D2, I could see room for improvement - though I'd be concerned that too much unnecessary tweaking could be problematic.

Perhaps if they released a 'remake' with a 'classic' / 'vanilla' option that could be a good compromise (though that seems like much more work).

This said - I'm skeptical they would remaster or remake D2, as they are still actively making so many new entries into the Diablo franchise. Re-releasing the most beloved entry in the series might cannibalize a good portion of their audience for the newer titles.

What do the rest of you think?

AH OK Thanks

but if its a remaster of the remaster, was the remaster any good or is that why they remastered the remaster?

and thats the remaster of the previous remaster

If youre hoping for a straight remaster of D2 thats offline youre setting yourself up for a huge disappointment.

Its pretty much proven now that making games require online means both an increase in sales and a reduction in cheating/modding. Its also no great leap to assume that since WC3 is using battle.net, so will other remasters. But given the mess they apparently made of WC3 (dont play it myself so just going on what websites have reported), It would probly be better if D2 is left alone so we can continue to remember it fondly and not as a screwed-up mess.

Although that does raise the question of whether theres any game that has actually been remastered and recieved positively?

Classic D2 Blizzard servers go *poof* the moment D2 HD drops.

I would say it can get crazy but only within the limits of the original game - what that means is that you can get some overpowered items, but only because other items already had the same attributes etc..

There is not much balancing going on right now. So answering your question: Currently I would say both. However in future versions I would like to have some restraints to keep everything more balanced.

That's interesting. What are the limitations on the randomisation (how crazy does it get)?

I'm wondering if this mod is intended to create a chaotic ridiculous experience or simply to enhance replay value by allowing more variation.

Thanks!

Hello everyone!
A few weeks ago I released the first version of the Diablo 2 Randomizer. As with randomizers for other games the idea is to take some elements from the game and shuffle them around or assign completely new values. An example might be unique items with attributes from other unique items. Or shuffled set item stats. Or new colors for enemies.
Since no problems (bugs, crashes) were found I wanted to show the project to some more people.

You can see some examples of randomization here:
(Not everything is implemented in the program right now.)
https://imgur.com/a/08z2JQQ

The download can be found here:
https://twitter.com/SunbeamX11/status/1200487008512151552?s=20

A readme for the setup is included. The options currently have no detailed explanations. If something's not clear you'll have to try it out. This (as other things) is planned for the future.

I'm looking forward to your feedback. Have fun!

Should you have any good ideas for what to also randomize please let me know!