Both Diablo 3 Auction Houses are shutting down. Details below.
Originally Posted by Blue Tracker / Official Forums)
(When we initially designed and implemented the auction houses, the driving goal was to provide a convenient and secure system for trades. But as we've mentioned on different occasions, it became increasingly clear that despite the benefits of the AH system and the fact that many players around the world use it, it ultimately undermines Diablo's core game play: kill monsters to get cool loot. With that in mind, we want to let everyone know that we've decided to remove the gold and real-money auction house system from Diablo III.
We feel that this move along with the Loot 2.0 system being developed concurrently with Reaper of Souls™ will result in a much more rewarding game experience for our players.
We're working out the details of how the auction house system will be shut down, but we wanted to share the news as soon as we made the decision in order to give everyone as much advance notice as possible. Please note that the shutdown will occur on March 18, 2014. We will keep everyone informed as we work through this process.
Josh Mosqueira and I wanted to provide everyone with a little more information behind this decision, so please have a look at the video, and stay tuned to this site for further updates in the months ahead.
We feel that this move along with the Loot 2.0 system being developed concurrently with Reaper of Souls™ will result in a much more rewarding game experience for our players.
We're working out the details of how the auction house system will be shut down, but we wanted to share the news as soon as we made the decision in order to give everyone as much advance notice as possible. Please note that the shutdown will occur on March 18, 2014. We will keep everyone informed as we work through this process.
Josh Mosqueira and I wanted to provide everyone with a little more information behind this decision, so please have a look at the video, and stay tuned to this site for further updates in the months ahead.
Auction House Shutting Down FAQ
Originally Posted by Blue Tracker / Official Forums)
(Q. Why is the auction house system being removed from Diablo III?
The gold and real-money auction houses have provided a convenient and secure system for trading, but it's also become increasingly clear that despite the benefits they provide, they ultimately undermine Diablo’s core gameplay. A big part of Diablo is the thrill of battling demons and finding epic loot. While buying epic loot in the auction houses might be more convenient, it doesn't feel anywhere near as heroic as plowing through a pack of fearsome-looking monsters and having them drop that one awesome item that seems like it was made for your character.
Q. Will this change affect both the gold and real-money auction house?
Yes. We will be shutting down both the gold and the real-money auction houses.
Q. When will the gold and real-money auction houses be removed from the game?
The gold and real-money auction houses will be shut down on Tuesday, March 18, 2014.
Q. Are the gold and real-money auction houses shutting down at the same time?
Yes. The gold and real-money auction houses will be shut down at the same time.
Q. Are the gold and real-money auction houses being removed for all gameplay regions?
Yes. The gold and real-money auction houses are being removed for all gameplay regions.
Q. Why aren’t the auction houses being removed sooner?
Since the gold and real-money auction houses receive a regular amount of daily activity, we wanted to inform everyone of this upcoming change as soon as we made the decision and give as much advance notice as soon as possible. Also, removing the auction houses from the game is no small endeavor, and there are many technical and gameplay-related questions we still need to answer before this change is implemented.
Q. Are there any plans to add the gold and real-money auction houses back into the game in the future?
No. We have no plans at this time to add either the gold or real-money auction house back into the game after they are removed.
Q. How will the removal of the gold and real-money auction houses work from a technical perspective (for example: What will happen to posted auctions, items or currency in the Completed tab, Battle.net Balance, etc.)?
We’re still working out all the details regarding how the auction houses will be shut down. We know these details are important, and we want to ensure that this transition goes as smoothly for everyone. We will be keeping everyone informed as we work through this process.
Q. How will I be able to trade with other players once the gold and real-money auction houses are shut down?
Once the gold and real-money auction houses have been shut down, players will still be able to trade with one another using the in-game Trade Window.
Q. How will the removal of the gold and real-money auction house affects changes planned for itemization in Reaper of Souls, specifically “Loot 2.0”?
One of the main goals behind Loot 2.0, which is being developed concurrently with Reaper of Souls, is to make playing the game the most rewarding path to getting items. That goal has not changed with this decision, and in fact was one of the big inspirations behind the removal of the auction houses. We’re still moving forward with all the changes previously revealed as part of Loot 2.0, but we’re also looking at additional improvements we can make that will help ensure that the loot hunt and trading experience in Diablo III is as satisfying as possible.
The gold and real-money auction houses have provided a convenient and secure system for trading, but it's also become increasingly clear that despite the benefits they provide, they ultimately undermine Diablo’s core gameplay. A big part of Diablo is the thrill of battling demons and finding epic loot. While buying epic loot in the auction houses might be more convenient, it doesn't feel anywhere near as heroic as plowing through a pack of fearsome-looking monsters and having them drop that one awesome item that seems like it was made for your character.
Q. Will this change affect both the gold and real-money auction house?
Yes. We will be shutting down both the gold and the real-money auction houses.
Q. When will the gold and real-money auction houses be removed from the game?
The gold and real-money auction houses will be shut down on Tuesday, March 18, 2014.
Q. Are the gold and real-money auction houses shutting down at the same time?
Yes. The gold and real-money auction houses will be shut down at the same time.
Q. Are the gold and real-money auction houses being removed for all gameplay regions?
Yes. The gold and real-money auction houses are being removed for all gameplay regions.
Q. Why aren’t the auction houses being removed sooner?
Since the gold and real-money auction houses receive a regular amount of daily activity, we wanted to inform everyone of this upcoming change as soon as we made the decision and give as much advance notice as soon as possible. Also, removing the auction houses from the game is no small endeavor, and there are many technical and gameplay-related questions we still need to answer before this change is implemented.
Q. Are there any plans to add the gold and real-money auction houses back into the game in the future?
No. We have no plans at this time to add either the gold or real-money auction house back into the game after they are removed.
Q. How will the removal of the gold and real-money auction houses work from a technical perspective (for example: What will happen to posted auctions, items or currency in the Completed tab, Battle.net Balance, etc.)?
We’re still working out all the details regarding how the auction houses will be shut down. We know these details are important, and we want to ensure that this transition goes as smoothly for everyone. We will be keeping everyone informed as we work through this process.
Q. How will I be able to trade with other players once the gold and real-money auction houses are shut down?
Once the gold and real-money auction houses have been shut down, players will still be able to trade with one another using the in-game Trade Window.
Q. How will the removal of the gold and real-money auction house affects changes planned for itemization in Reaper of Souls, specifically “Loot 2.0”?
One of the main goals behind Loot 2.0, which is being developed concurrently with Reaper of Souls, is to make playing the game the most rewarding path to getting items. That goal has not changed with this decision, and in fact was one of the big inspirations behind the removal of the auction houses. We’re still moving forward with all the changes previously revealed as part of Loot 2.0, but we’re also looking at additional improvements we can make that will help ensure that the loot hunt and trading experience in Diablo III is as satisfying as possible.
They're BOA once they're changed by the mystic (at least that's the current plan).
Yeah, so that you're done with the game in ~100 hours and then can shelf it? Great plan.
BOA is needed to get items out of the economy. Either that, or ladder (which has other problems).
Since friend lists are fairly limited in number, you cannot make a huge community out of them, by definition.
Source?®
You have no idea what the 15% is used for. You have no idea what is a HUGE profit because you are not an accountant for Blzzard.
Nice guess nonetheless. :Thumbs Up:
Cheers!
Not only the idea itself is stupid, but it was not timed well in addition to that
Only thing holding me back is the Offline Mode or if by some miracle they fix the rubber banding/lag issues that are plagued with this disaster of a game.
I'm literally stunned...
In all honesty I never ever thought they would do something like that. I think its about damn time!
Dear Diablo Fan... err, Johnnyxp64,
Sexton is a rank, not a user name. I got confused with it in the beginning, too ;-)
They probably saw the success and good press over the console releases and realized how much better the game was on consoles with the year of needed polish, minus the AH. Whoops!
If Jay Wilson was less of a yes man and less of an inferior designer then maybe this nonsense would have never happened. Forget the whole not having a proper beta test. Just the whole fact that they thought they could have an AH system WITHOUT bind on equip items just blows my mind. It was a major failure on several fronts. Unfortunately, it was obviously going to be such a massive failure and yet Blizzard still went forward with it.
Now you are going to have the gold AH get taken down with a completely dumbed down version battle.net supporting the trade community. Trading might become even worse than it was in D2. Trading in D2 was perfectly fine, but your comparing a system created in 2012 thats inferior to one thats older by over a decade.
It's hard to believe that some of you thought trading in D2 was bad. It wasn't. Hell, even if you wanted to buy an item from a 3rd party site it was quick, easy and secure. Plus trading with other players or banks was a fun and interesting experience. If you couldn't find what you needed after hours of looking, you were either completely incompetant or there just wasnt any stock availible.
An entire player driven economy was created on its own with D2 and the game lasted for a decade, and here some of you are upset that they aborted this disaster they call an AH. Some of you are not true Diablo fans. For shame.
It was a very tough choice, but frankly, totally understandable. What they messed up is rebalancing inferno on a much shorter notice.
What blows my mind is how those two parts of the sentence have absolutely no relationship with each other.
Having an AH is fine, as long as there is a way to take items out of the economy, which can be accomplished by many other way (and yes, BoE is one of them, but only one).
And completely illegal, unlike D3. And no, it wasn't secure, there were scams all over the place, with or without third party sites. AH is miles better in comparison, since it is a double-blind system.
Yes, but it took time during which you actually didn't play the game. AH is more straightforward, unless you play the AH just to play AH, which is another question entirely.
Aaannd here comes the true Scotsman fallacy. Congratulations.