Blizzard Surprised by Reaction to Online-Only Diablo 3

[Harlief]

If it's not DRM then it's flat out stupid.

Even if it is DRM it's still flat out stupid. Internet outages are not uncommon, and beyond control of the gamer. Always on internet connection games are built without the realities of current internet infrastructure in mind. It's like designing a car with features that don't work because the laws of physics don't allow the new features to operate.

Dammit captcha, I don't have a lambda button on my keyboard!

I don't think it's flat out stupid, it might be wrong, it might be unpleasant but I think Blizzard might actually make more out of impatient pirates and converts to the RMAH than they lose in people who don't buy this down to lack of an offline mode. Even if that's not true I think they can be forgiven for thinking this is the case.

Not true, before I bought it, I had a cracked version of AC2, the crack involved having a program emulate the DRM server allowing me to play AC2 offline (until a convenient Steam sale at least).
More elaborate DRM = more elaborate cracks
Better customer service = better satisfied customers who then recommend a game unreservedly to their friends rather than bitching about the DRM.

 

[Mariena]

At the end of the day, it's Diablo 3. I want to play Diablo 3. I'm not going to lose interest because of this always-online thing. Sure, it sucks.. but it's still Diablo 3.

If I had to ditch every game because of obtrusive DRM and install limits, I wouldn't be playing games anymore.

 

[LeQuack_Is_Back]

Hmm. Well, I wasn't particularly looking at D3, but now I'm not gonna touch it.

 

[Gindil]

At the end of the day, it's Diablo 3. I want to play Diablo 3. I'm not going to lose interest because of this always-online thing. Sure, it sucks.. but it's still Diablo 3.

If I had to ditch every game because of obtrusive DRM and install limits, I wouldn't be playing games anymore.

What games are you playing that you allow obtrusive DRM? I just do my best not to touch those games with a 10 foot pole and play the games that want my money. That works a lot better.

 

[stormcrow5]

I just want to know what will happen if your internet cuts out while playing the game, will it stop letting you play and kick you off or will it be fine? my internet is not all that great and a little down time is not uncommon

 

[DarkhoIlow]

After reading all the comments I'm still quite confused regarding the auction house.

So,the "real life money" as they say will it be used only to buy other items in game or will you be able to purchase something outside of the game?

If it's just an in game thing that Blizz will make so people who can afford can purchase high quality items then I think I can understand what they are trying to do(to get more money of course).

 

[Mariena]

At the end of the day, it's Diablo 3. I want to play Diablo 3. I'm not going to lose interest because of this always-online thing. Sure, it sucks.. but it's still Diablo 3.

If I had to ditch every game because of obtrusive DRM and install limits, I wouldn't be playing games anymore.

What games are you playing that you allow obtrusive DRM? I just do my best not to touch those games with a 10 foot pole and play the games that want my money. That works a lot better.

My point is, even the most draconian DRM (like the one that ubisoft uses, or Starforce in the past) wont stop me from playing the games. And while I really do not support it, my other option is to pirate it or not buy the game.

People are losing interest in Diablo 3 over this.. online-only thing. It is still Diablo 3, people!

 

[FallenTraveler]

When we have stable always on internet accessibility then sure let's have an always connected game... but what about when I'm on a train and want to play a little bit before I get to school? guess I'm screwed... it works with an mmo, it works with an RTS... it sure as shit is going to be an inconvenience for a game of this nature...

 

[Nesco Nomen]

An excerpt from How To Freak Out About A Video Game: [http://www.joystickdivision.com/2011/08/how_to_freak_out_about_a_video.php]

In order to really get pissed about a video game you have to pour all of your being into that game. When all your hopes and dreams hang on there being another Jak & Daxter video game and you're sure to experience a special kind of disappointment.

Make sure that your reaction is extremely emotional.
Investing every fiber of your being and identity into the franchise in question can really add fuel to the fire. I spent a good part of my childhood weaving the mythology of Star Wars into all the vacant spots in my emotional life. By the time George Lucas finally got around to making The Phantom Menace I had so much riding on that movie touching my soul that disappointment was inevitable. But I have turned out to be poor at maintaining said anger. My hatred for Lucas eventually guttered out. And the other prequels (not to mention The Matrix 2 and 3) totally extinguished whatever fire inside me fueled that rage.

That's part of the reason I can hear news about Diablo III and not feel anything. I'm totally inured to the whole affair. I sit back and watch your fury with blank curiosity, like Dr. Manhattan.

...

And lastly, if all else fails, if every petition or angry message board rant fails there's always the nuclear option. Blame Activision.

 

[fundayz]

Theres really NO reason to complain, and it IS a surprise that people are complaining.

How is removing a basic feature which many people still enjoy is no reason to complain?

Diablo 2 had Offline Single Player, Online Single Player, Online Multiplayer

Diablo 3 only has Online Single player and Online Multiplayer.


Sure it was somewhat annoying to start a new character to play online but this can be easily avoided by adding a big clear warning when making a Offline character that they can't be used in Online play.

 

[Gindil]

At the end of the day, it's Diablo 3. I want to play Diablo 3. I'm not going to lose interest because of this always-online thing. Sure, it sucks.. but it's still Diablo 3.

If I had to ditch every game because of obtrusive DRM and install limits, I wouldn't be playing games anymore.

What games are you playing that you allow obtrusive DRM? I just do my best not to touch those games with a 10 foot pole and play the games that want my money. That works a lot better.

My point is, even the most draconian DRM (like the one that ubisoft uses, or Starforce in the past) wont stop me from playing the games. And while I really do not support it, my other option is to pirate it or not buy the game.

People are losing interest in Diablo 3 over this.. online-only thing. It is still Diablo 3, people!

I sure would. The fact is, the broadband network in the US alone is piss poor. Link [http://www.speedmatters.org/blog/archive/u.s.-falls-to-17th-in-u.n.-broadband-rankings]

Other nations have faster internet and plenty of options. The broadband in the US is stifled because of the duopoly that is AT&T and Comcast through the FCC.

All of this means people in just the US have unreliable internet. That's expensive also.

If there were more options for internet, sure, it would be fine to criticize people not liking the online only thing. But here it's a very valid concern.

I would rather play games that don't restrict what I do online however. There's plenty of options, and it's not like there aren't companies that are competitive to what Blizzard, Activision, EA, and Ubisoft offer.

 

[evilneko]

He also claimed that the always-on requirement has absolutely nothing to do with DRM. "I don't think [DRM] ever came up when we talked about how we want connections to operate," he said. So why not just make an offline mode for people who want to play that way? "You're introducing a separate user flow, a separate path that players are going to go down," he explained. "And, at the end of the day, how many people are going to want to do that?"

Oh, I love it when you lie to me. Lie to me some more! Lie to me some more, please!

 

[fundayz]

Diablo 2 had Offline Single Player, Online Single Player, Online Multiplayer

Diablo 3 only has Online Single player and Online Multiplayer.

Diablo 2 also had what could be regarded as an offline multi-player in the form of being play on a LAN, or through TCP/IP connections.

Yes, although I can let that slide as nowadays if you have a LAN connection available you almost guaranteed have internet connection as well.

 

[Rack]

Not true, before I bought it, I had a cracked version of AC2, the crack involved having a program emulate the DRM server allowing me to play AC2 offline (until a convenient Steam sale at least).
More elaborate DRM = more elaborate cracks
Better customer service = better satisfied customers who then recommend a game unreservedly to their friends rather than bitching about the DRM.

In principle you're probably right but this isn't strictly DRM, at least in theory. It's a whole different ball game to what AssCreed2 does. Asscreed2 just dumps and retrieves data to a server, it's a pain to redirect the traffic and crack the security protocols but that's all you'd have to do. Here you'd have to expect the entire item and map generation system to be done at a server level just to maintain security of the item system. It's not just spoofing server calls you actually have to write a small chunk of the game. Then there's all the other stuff the game is going to do as regards network traffic because it's designed from the ground up to be a networked experience, the game will be expecting constant chatter from the server because of all the online features. Whole different kettle of fish to cracking AssCreed2 and more in line with creating a private WoW server. It can and will be done, but it's going to be an order of magnitude tougher and I wouldn't be at all surprised if there wasn't a cracked version for the first 2 months. That's likely to get a whole lot more customers than if people are bitching about DRM as opposed to bitching about balance.

 

[otakon17]

You know, this reminds me slightly of all the little bits they(Nintendo) put into DS games nowadays. Walking by someone with the same game or such gets you both extra bits for your game. That works in Japan because it's a crowded sardine tin compared to the U.S. with our "huge tracts of ... land" deal. Almost no one can claim they have completely uninterrupted internet service at all times. Blizzard, have you noticed no one has done a must be online single player game before for a reason. Well, besides the fact that speeds and connectivity just weren't what they are now, but because it's impractical.

 

[Epona]

Diablo 2 had Offline Single Player, Online Single Player, Online Multiplayer

Diablo 3 only has Online Single player and Online Multiplayer.

Diablo 2 also had what could be regarded as an offline multi-player in the form of being play on a LAN, or through TCP/IP connections.

Yes, although I can let that slide as nowadays if you have a LAN connection available you almost guaranteed have internet connection as well.

The lack of a LAN option is purely a DRM thing. It's to ensure that each person in a multiplayer game, even those in the same household, have their own copy of the game. What makes that interesting is that this is the same company that had spawn installs, just for the purpose of one disc per LAN game, in the past. Blizzard has changed alot.

 

[EhDerangedMonk]

If Blizzard is willing to pay for my internet and ensure that I have internet access at all times I am perfectly willing to have all their games online only.