Poll: Is Diablo 3's no offline play feature really a dealbreaker?

[TechNoFear]

I'm sorry, but anyone saying "yes" never played D2. If they say so otherwise, then they are just lying.

I played Diablo and Diablo 2 when they were first released, both single player and LAN (but never online).

I cannot possibly understand how anyone who played D2 could have ANY problem with the online only game.

As I mostly have time to play games when I am on-site in the outback (with no internet) or traveling there.

When I do have an internet connection I have a minimum 300ms ping to the US (min 25 ms to my ISP). That tends to make FPS with US opponents impossible and other realtime games less enjoyable (laggy).

I also have a limit to both upload and downloads on my internet (not that online games use alot of bandwidth). When I run out I am limited to dial-up speeds (64Kbits/sec) which makes online play impossible.

Let's break it down like this.

Or like this;

Blizzard removed functionality, and so removed value from their product.

For some of us that loss of value is enough to re-evaluate our purchase of the game.

 

[Fishyash]

Honestly if you played D2 alone then you're just chopping off your leg to prove you can to an empty room. (There really isn't a reason to play online unless you don't have an internet connection). The debate of weather online connection expectations are outpacing the actual spread of the internet is an issue for people to debate on another topic though. (on a side note, I think torchlight was crippled by a lack of online and D3 will also be crippled if not played online).

That's a matter of opinion. Multiplayer on D2 had drawbacks that didn't apply on single player like:

Lag (it was horrendous during d2, and it's still going to be there, although not as badly, for d3)
An online gaming community which is awful (just like any other online game)
Hackers
PK griefing (TPPKing on hardcore mode especially)
Questing problems (You cannot complete this quest in this game. You must join another game or make your own)
And probably more that I can't think of right now.

And just because some of these won't apply to diablo 3, I am SURE that there will be other problems to replace them.

Some people don't mind that and prefer online multiplayer. But some people don't like these things so they prefer single player.

Me personally, I could never play diablo 2 online unless I was doing it with my brother or friends.

If you set the settings of your game so there was only one player then most of those problems don't apply. Lag could potentially be an issue some times, I guess. I still think dungeon crawling loot games like Diablo are better with friends though. They seem so empty alone.

For me, the lag was by far the worst for D2. My internet wasn't very good so it was even worse for me. Offline single player would be far better. Why do I have to sign up online if I only want to play on my own?

And sure it may seem empty alone, but people like that. You, on your own, standing off againt hell itself (kind of like oblivion).

Finally I am going to say that I did spend most of my time on D2 online, but I can also say that the game was also a blast to play offline as well during a period I had no internet for a month, and that D2 online isn't objectively better than offline. My brother was really into the D2 online community (despite frequently commenting on stupid people there), especially the d2jsp one, buying and selling the best items during ladder and frequently doing CS runs or high level duel games.

It depends on how people want to play the game IMO. Some people would rather play the game on their own, and it's almost as if blizzard is trying to tell people how they should enjoy the game (to be honest, it seems like they're being like that in WoW as well, and D3 is starting to feel like that as well).

 

[Barbie Boy]

I have a relatively stable connection but I wont be buying the game, I don't think it will effect sales but I can't support this kind of DRM
There is absolutely no reason why I shouldn't be able to play offline if I want to

 

[seditary]

I was never going to play it offline, so I'm not bothered in the slightest.

And from quite a lot of comments I've read, I feel I need to tell people its still possible to play by yourself in Diablo 3.

 

[Olrod]

I live in a little village in the middle of nowhere, and have a wireless internet connection.

Due to this, I'm often prone to lag spikes in my 'ternet.

Due to this, Diablo 3 will NOT be purchased if I can't even play a single-player game offline. I do not want to get to a boss battle, get the boss down to about 10% health and then get killed because of a lag spike.

 

[seditary]

I was never going to play it offline, so I'm not bothered in the slightest.

And from quite a lot of comments I've read, I feel I need to tell people its still possible to play by yourself in Diablo 3.

Playing by yourself still means playing online, with all the advantages that come with it[footnote]Lag, sync issues, disconnects, not being able to play whenever you want.[/footnote]. Are you really this thick or are you trying to get people riled up?

You seem to have riled yourself up nicely on your own without me at all.

My statement is purely factual and is only meant in that manner. Your interpretation will vary wildly due to emotion as these things are wont to do.

Perhaps you should work on your own issues first.

 

[Amphoteric]

My desktop is connected to the internet 100% of the time it is on so It really won't make any difference to me.

 

[-Dragmire-]

Ok, just something to think about for people saying Online is superior, just know that it doesn't equate to multiplayer. Many people I've met in Dioablo 1-2 were jerks, not social(meaning they just kill things and might as well be an NPC ally) and/or would want to "take charge" of the group and throw a hissy fit if no one listened to them.

For these reasons I've found playing alone a far better experience, it also grants a feeling of 'myself against the hordes of hell' that I appreciate in dungeon crawlers. Overpowered partners can negate that feeling.

If I do end up buying it, I'll be making passwords that are random letters and numbers to ensure I get the single player experience I want.

I'll play alone so both auction houses are pointless (as in the pay-to-win problem doesn't apply to me).
I'll play alone so the online requirement is pointless.
I don't play/like PvP so I'm not missing out on that.

Side note: Have a separate character for online and offline never bothered me.

Side note 2: people basing their opinions on reviews please understand, everyone reviewing the game didn't have to deal with random griefers and jerks that online play readily provides.

EDIT:

If you set the settings of your game so there was only one player then most of those problems don't apply. Lag could potentially be an issue some times, I guess. I still think dungeon crawling loot games like Diablo are better with friends though. They seem so empty alone.

I think the issue is that people who do set it up for single player(like myself) will find the online requirement redundant and only adds the negative effects of online play (minus random jerks) with no positive exchange to balance out the bad.

I'm waiting 6 months to see if the games quality and lasting appeal is worth dealing with the negative aspects of the game. A truly great game will allow me to overlook a lot of problems.

EDIT 2:

It's a deal breaker. The only way to communicate to Blizzard, and any other company, getting these ideas is to let them know you won't support their bullshit by not buying their game, and specifically contacting them to let them know your reasons.

I find it a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" scenario.

Game sells well: PR rep: "people don't mind our drm as you can see, we've done quite well".

Game does not sell well: PR rep: "people have pirated our game on a massive scale, we will implement an improved/more intrusive drm system to counter this problem"(pirating does not have to happen for them to use this excuse).

I feel that pirates are the industries scapegoat when it comes to bad sales, they won't admit people just didn't buy their game in protest.

Pirates are a problem but they are also a very convenient excuse to shift blame from themselves/their decisions so investors don't bail out on them for future projects.

 

[seditary]

You seem to have riled yourself up nicely on your own without me at all.

My statement is purely factual and is only meant in that manner. Your interpretation will vary wildly due to emotion as these things are wont to do.

Perhaps you should work on your own issues first.

I ain't even mad. Try harder.

You implied with your post that people didn't know they could play alone. That's either a thinly veiled insult to their intelligence, or a sign of your inability to grasp the problem.

Purely factual my ass.

Well done at doing exactly what I expected. I indeed said that people didn't know they could play alone. As I have read many people state.

Even Blizzard have said the same thing as I did since they have been getting many of the same comments.

You must have a weird ass.

 

[unindexedsearchengine]

i don't think anything is wrong with online only gaming, assassins creed 2 did it yet turned out to be frikin awesome, so there is nothing to fear

 

[ScrubberDucky]

Yes. I wasn't going to buy it anyway since I have this sort of loathing for Blizzard and wasn't around when Diablo 2 was cool, so I didn't have the chance to turn the loathing around. At this point I see it as more of a "vote with your wallet" kind of thing. There was a small chance I was going to buy it before, now there's nil.

I don't *want* my playing to always be online. Even if it has no effect on the gameplay whatsoever, there's just this little isolated relaxation that comes from knowing you're in your own experience. Take Mindjack and Demon's Souls as examples of this.

 

[seditary]

Well done at doing exactly what I expected. I indeed said that people didn't know they could play alone. As I have read many people state.

Even Blizzard have said the same thing as I did since they have been getting many of the same comments.

You must have a weird ass.

You honestly don't realise your post implied that that was the only problem people had with it?

Either way, whatever. You don't seem to have a point in this thread other than pointing out the obvious to people who already know it.

Interpretation does not match up to reality unfortunately.

 

[Cid Silverwing]

Nope, I can't see a problem. Everyone has a internet connection.

Please tell me you're joking.

It's a titanic dealbreaker for me. It prevents me from playing it singleplayer without the risk of total goddamn fuckwits jumping in and declaring PvP before ganking me.

 

[somonels]

No, the lack of mod support is what broke the deal, morons.

 

[Telperion]

For me this is purely a non-issue.