DiabloFans

Quote from Trustfire

Charms.

That is all.

With you, sir, I agree 100%.

Quote from legendarz

Quote from Azjenco

Who the hell is Mike?

Mike Morhaime - CEO of Blizzard.

Haha, duh. How did I miss that...?

Who's to say he doesn't still have a voice in the game developments. It's been said that they do consider all in company input that they receive during development, from the seemingly lowest employees to the guys at the top.

Quote from FreddyBenson

ye i am a bit tough on jay wilson

we all know Activison had a big say on what D3 would be, aso they do with all blizz games since they bought in

mike on the other hand used to be hands on and had alot of input with his games

now hes a billionaire, hes taken a step back. maybe hes right, i dunno

Who the hell is Mike?

Also: "Activison had a big say on what D3 would be", a lot of people like saying this. I would really like to see proof of this. Did Activision tell Blizzard to make SC2 a copy of the first game with better graphics? Did Activision tell Blizzard to keep WoW going in a non-innovative direction while losing sight of what once made it compelling to play? Did Activision tell Blizzard to take D3 into a new direction, dropping point spending and bringing in an attempt at an end game?

I really doubt that. I think all Blizzard's doings, their failures and successes are all on their soldiers. I just think its convenient for most to have a scapegoat to blame as a puppet master. I'm pretty sure Activision would also have been blamed for North's departure if they were present at the time, now wouldn't that have been convenient.

So, you wanted them to keep your item, basically a broken item, in the state you wanted it in. They changed the IAS gear because it was too strong, but you don't care; you paid real money for it and now you blame the company... They did say they will keep changing gear to fit the game.

I can see this happening all over again when 1.1 ships and people realize their legendary gear they paid in real cash isn't as nifty as the one their peers pick up. This is going to be a legitimate problem, since people will feel entitled because they used real world money. I'm starting to think RMAH wasn't such a good idea after all.

Hey, another South African. We're popping up all over the place, even the GW2 forums have a few of us.
Good to know the SA gaming community is standing strong.

Quote from Mac_an_tSaoir

and i remember playing diablo 1, then playing diablo 2, and having none of those criticism. My only criticism for BOTH of those games was the hacking and duping. You dont rely on magazines or game critic sites to tell you anything. most of the time they are blowing smoke. Look at all the hype around current games that have either failed, or didnt meet expectations? all praised by the major game critics.

To get a real review, you go to the small indie reviews, because they dont give a fuck, they have nothing to lose.

The forums back then had people making the same claims, it weren't only magazines and critics. A lot of the D1 fans voiced their dissatisfaction in much the same way as people do today. I clearly remember the old diabloii.net site and even battle.net, full of angry fans, saying things like, "the gothic feel is gone", "the world is too shinny, take the game back underground", "high level items are uninspiring", "skill points lost the feel of Diablo, bring back tomes"... Yeah, people were very angry at the time.

Quote from Zero(pS)

You know what's even funnier? Those of us who actually kept track of the game critics and community feedback back then know how much Diablo 2 got heavily criticized for "abandoning it's rogue roots", for "being in development for 3 years and having crappy 2D graphics/textures" and for how the "itemization game was lacking and everything was bread and butter".

I remember all of that. When you mention it now to people praise D2 as this faultless pillar of gaming magnificence. Back in the day, D2 was good, it just wasn't great, yet. It needed LoD to reach its true potential. The thing is people back then were just as unimpressed with D2 as people are with D3 now. Just find it very funny.

Good news is, the D3 expansion is still coming up, and I feel there's a lot riding on that. The foundation was laid in D3, and the expansion will need to build on that and make it something exceptional.

Quote from Ducha

So if we look at it, do you think that if they did go ahead with the Diablo MMO idea, do you think they'd still make WoW? It'd be interesting if the warcraft franchise and the diablo franchise switched places, Diablo being the huge MMO and Warcraft being continued on the rts genre and all.

Back then the MMO genre was still in its infancy. Blizzard couldn't have imagined that WoW would grow into the powerhouse we know today, how could they? They are developing Titan and they've said in interviews that they think they two can coexist. Just as Starcraft still kept going strong after Warcraft 3 was released. Different strokes for different folks.
They did scrap North's work, however, and opted to revise D3 into an entirely different take. So, who knows, maybe Blizzard wasn't happy with what North was doing after all.

Quote from Mac_an_tSaoir

Funny how blizzard north was making D3 into WoW, when Shaefer and company left before WoW was even released. NT though. Blizzard north lost its soul on June 30th, 2003. Then it lost its heart, its brains, and its balls as more core d1/d2 team left for other studios.

aaaaaand SCHOOLED.

World of Warcraft was announced in 2001, but development already started in 1999.
Diablo 3 began development in 2001, shortly after LoD was released. In 2003 North disbanded, a year before WoW was released.

I think you need some schooling yourself...

Since all of this happened within the same company, don't you think they can be privy to the developments going on elsewhere in the company? After what Shaefer said, how can you doubt his words since he was designing the old D3 ... I can bet you the North team was working in relation to the WoW team's progress to bring out a Diablofied version of what WoW was going to be. So its funny how people think that Diablo lost its soul when North left ... the truth is far from it.

Quote from DUNCAN99

Dude relax. By the way. They were making diablo 3 an action rpg still playing like a hack n slash but with mmo features. i'm quite sure it wouldn't be anything like WoW. More Diablo 2 LoD with more players. Actually sounds pretty darn awesome to me.

Umm, no. This is from a recent interview:

"You know, when I was working at Blizzard a million years ago we were working on Diablo 3 and it was an MMO. We were going to do the Diablo version of World of Warcraft. Blizzard obviously changed that pretty quickly, so we left to start Flagship Studios and we brought in a lot of the guys, so they rebooted with their own team."

Let me rephrase the critical part "We were going to do the Diablo version of World of Warcraft." Blizzard North was effectively turning Diablo into World of Diablo, they were making it an MMO. I always laugh when people start praising the North team as this infallible pillar of gaming excellence. In effect, they were destroying Diablo behind the scenes, and most people didn't even know about it. The D3 we have today is far closer to the Diablo franchise than the World of Diablo they were making, and Shaefer even applauded the current effort Blizzard has put into the game. I think that says a lot.

Quote from brx

i think the truth is you and a lot of people have been very upset about it. So stop trying to act cool and all like you are not mad.

Wouldn't say I was upset. Just feel sad for him. Doesn't seem like he's learned to deal with disappointment in his life, a reoccurring theme in our everyday lives, and something that will keep happening throughout his life. While some resort to calling him names, the rest (probably those disappointed in the end product as well) think it appropriate to give him a pat on the shoulder. I really don't see why.

Like I said in my previous post:
Is this a constructive way for a person to act? You may think that this must have been a cathartic experience for this individual, but let me ask one last thing: when has it ever been good practice to commit senseless destruction for no other reason than to feel good about it?

What would he do if a serious relationship goes awry, and the person he had a relationship with really hurts him? What if he gets a job with a coworker, or even his boss, make lewd and personal remarks? Like I also previously stated: "Taking an item, especially something with high cost and meticulously 'taking it apart' is just so damaged, and I'm not talking about the item in question."

It just feels like such a waste, really, it does. I know there's this whole discussion going on about maturity levels and creative rage outlets and all that, but I don't really care to involve myself in any of that.

I've bought games I felt disappointed in, likewise with film dvds and music cds. In those cases I just store it away, or give it to someone else who might enjoy it. Its just upbringing I guess. My dad went a long way to instil a sense of value and respect in me, and when I saw this, it was the first thing that came to my mind. Yes, its his property, but what you do with your things and how you behave in your spare time reflects on who you are as a human being.

Taking an item, especially something with high cost and meticulously 'taking it apart' is just so damaged, and I'm not talking about the item in question. What must go through your mind, to take some of your time (a valued commodity) and just wreak havoc on a lifeless tool meant for entertainment. While it might be deemed as 'worthy entertainment' by some, just take a moment and reflect what the actual act entailed. He destroyed something, taking his time and mentally planned out how he could ruin it to the best of his capabilities.

Afterwards he dedicated more of his time to actually photograph it and display it on the internet for the world to see. For what purpose? Recognition? Acceptance? Praise? And the final photograph ... what was the point of that, to display Cain in such a manner...?

I know some of you are miffed at this game, and by all means, be if you must. But just take a step back, forget what the game was, and see it as a nameless item. Think how you would react if you find a friend, or sibling, or even your own child doing something like this. Perhaps it might even be a present you bought him or her. Is this a constructive way for a person to act? You may think that this must have been a cathartic experience for this individual, but let me ask one last thing: when has it ever been good practice to commit senseless destruction for no other reason than to feel good about it?

Quote from Jack00

I laugh at you for thinking diablo3 needs skills to be played, or any rpg for that matter. My fucking 9 years old cousin plays D3 and while he's not in inferno mode yet he finished the game alone up to izual on hell mode by never changing his spells in his hot bar since he's lvl 45. But he has good gear because he plays this thing 20/24 7/7 so he can manage without doing much. Yeah D3 is for the elite games alright. -sigh-

Well, the Diablo games have always been item hunt games. Jeez, I remember D2, my sorc had Frozen Orb on right click. I breezed through the game with one hand. The games have never been about great skill, that's not the point of it. You play it to get good items.

I hate the term 'gear check', it boils it down to an MMO standard. However, this is sort of like that though. Since they took away the progression to insanely higher levels, the game needed a new way of progression. Rather than grinding for levels to progress D3 needed something new. Since the game revolves around items, that basically became the progression mechanic. Some like it, some don't. There may very well be better ways of progressing to new content, but so far this is at least better than grinding to level 90.

Another point to be made here is that the whole Black Soulstone being filled with the souls
of the primary Lords of Hell. This basically constitutes pulling a rabbit out of a hat. It's
bad magic and it's bad storytelling. You should never get halfway through a story and
then say "oh, yeah, a whole bunch of stuff happened at some point that doesn't make a
whole lot of sense, but it turns out that it's now a major plot device. Just thought I'd tell
you."

Uh-oh, someone hasn't been paying attention while playing...
I couldn't finish his 'review', it was just so cringe worthy.

Firstly, Adria never said she accessed the Black Soulstone in those 20 years. She merely used the time to tag the Prime's Soul. Plus, the Hellforge casts their souls into the Black Abyss, as per Book of Cain, but even he admitted that he doesn't know much about that realm. So how could Adria achieve all of this then? Well, Adria isn't this mastermind as he makes her out to be, she was merely a pawn, she followed Diablo's instructions. Is it so farfetched that Diablo would have figured out how to access the Abyss from the mortal realm? Adria spent 20 years, traveling, which means there must be means and places where the Abyss can be tapped into.

Also, the writer finds it odd that Adria, a reputed user of magic, could enter Travincal, yet he has no problem with Marius running around with Baal's Soulstone and gallivanting through Travincal? Huh... You know, that's always bothered me. Marius entered Travincal, watched the Primes with Baal's Soulstone in hand, and no one ever noticed. Moreover, Tyrael commanded Marius, a drunken bum, to enter Hell and destroy the Soulstone at the Hellforge... Yeah, as if the D2 characters could just stroll to the forge and accomplish all of that without any problems.

Why is the Black Soulstone a rabbit pulled out of a hat? Can't the game come up with new lore, or should everything be explained at the start of D1 and never devise new plot points? He's going on as if its a crime and never in books or television does the story supply new plotlines or go into new directions. The Black Soulstone fits into the storyline, just because the reviewer didn't like it doesn't mean its senseless.

I didn't even read the entirety of his rant, he makes baseless assumptions. He assumes that Adria had to run around, pregnant belly and all, to tag the Soulstones before they were destroyed. Never it stated nor hinted at. He assumes Adria devised this plot, but obviously Diablo is behind it, and he also assumes she's too weak to pursue the souls, but we don't actually see the extent of her capabilities. Plus, he assumes the Soulstones have lost their power when the Worldstone was destroyed, which doesn't make sense because I bet the shards still holds some measure of power, and clearly the plot states that they do.

Quote from Pokpokpok

I can't tell if the storytelling of D3 is on par with the previous Blizzard games, but I can tell you there isn't a single thing epic in D3. Is the storytelling to blame ? No idea, probably. That's my reason why I feel D3 is inferior storywise to the previous games, and the fact that they want to put you in the center of the story. Feeling passive and spectating is in my opinion a very good approach to storytelling, we have none of that in D3.

Personally I will remember the fight between Tyrael and Imperius, especially when Tyrael tore off his own wings. I also enjoyed the when Diablo came to the Diamond Gates, where Imperius was thrown into the gates and they came crashing down on top of him. That was pretty epic.

I will agree with some people, the decision Blizzard made to have the enemy giving your character a sit rep after major events is rather odd. Then again the choice was made to accommodate new and casual players as indicators to push them into the right direction. Was is needed? Who knows, but I've grown use to hitting spacebar, so its not such an egregious inconvenience as most make it out to be.

Still, I don't see how these gameplay contrivances hinders the main storyline. I enjoyed a lot of what the story had to offer. Tyrael turning on the crazed Imperius, and being cast down as a mortal. Adria's history being explored, of how she was once a leader of the Coven. Us using Zoltan Kulle to get the Black Soulstone, while he tries to turn you to join him rather than continue on your quest. Finally seeing the High Heavens, which didn't disappoint. Standing alongside the angels as they battled the Hells.

In line of Diablo games, the story itself is far from horrible. I think some people were just expecting something else, and since they didn't get it, they now feel disappointed.