Diablo 3 and Fandom

Diablo 3 man I remember playing 2 as a teen and not being able to get enough.  The simple yet addictive gameplay was amazing.  So obviously I was stoked to hear  that D3 would be coming out.  If you havent played it or seen it in action you wouldnt have read this far so let's get into it.

The horror of the launch cannot be understated.  When you have customers shell out 60 bones and find out they cant play the game this is the same as buying a car and needing a cab to get home from the dealership-Blizzard should be completely embarrassed about this but somehow I dont think that they are.  When you have the fat cash that they do there is no excuse as to why your customers should have a want as simple as being able to play the game.  Blizzard experienced login errors during Beta and bug testing so one of two things happened.  Blizzard said too bad the fans will have to deal with it OR they said we are not spending the money to fix this crap so our fans will have to deal with it.  Basically I am saying they expected their fans to shoulder this nonsense,,,and they did.

Many fans didnt want to sound spoiled by raising a stink about this-you people are 100% at fault for supporting bad behavior.  Game companies seem to screw their fans every chance they get and if you LET them-they will. There is nothing spoiled about being pissed about spending 60 bucks and not being allowed to play a game.  Again I metioned that if you buy a car and "It isnt ready" or whatever and you need to walk home or something.  That we can agree is completely unacceptable.  Blizzard tested for launch they knew this sort of thing would happen and rather than invest the money or whatever they needed to do they decided-actively decided to disappoint their fans.  That is a ridiculous barrel of monkey farts-what kind of business model IS that?  On release day we'll have some very pissed off folks and I'm ok with that how about you Steve? Sure as long as we get their 60 bucks up front.  If you experienced this and DIDN'T complain then shame on you.

One of the things I adored in Diablo 2 was single player offline.  This allowed me to stay away from lvl 99 Barb morons who aggroed everyone.  It also allowed me to grow a proper skill tree and learn how to develop a character properly and learn skill chains and combos and such before partying with others.  Uh I can't do that here.  I am required to be online at all times. That's fine but if I am required to be online at least have the servers ready huh?  Demanding I be online yet not providing me with the capability is like demanding a guy in a wheelchair to run a marathon-it's flat out moronic and rude.  Also experiencing lag in a single player game is really stupid.  Again if you find this acceptable please feel free to open a game studio.

Blizzard says that they designed this game this way so that it can help defend against piracy.  If you believe this then please ask me about the dinosaur bones I have for sale.  Maybe it DOES help fight piracy but it also screws paying customers right in brown town.  Blizzard is afraid of piracy? THAT'S BLIZZARD'S PROBLEM! not mine or yours.  Blizzard seems to think that it is acceptable to shift their problems onto their PAYING customers.  what a bunch of buffalo balls.  Again who came up with this business model?  I have news for Blizzard: if someone wants your game and doesnt want to pay for it-they will get it you cannot stop it.  You basically keep the people who would have paid for it anyway good and straight.  Not that any hack would want it solely for single player anyway...and remember by being quiet you let them think this is ok.

I dont have much experience with the real world money (RWM) auction house and I remember people bitching that it would screw up gameplay.  I thought these folks were over reacting.  I am starting to think differently.  Since RWM can be gained in this game the drops are ridiculous.  Basically any item in blue letters is a piece of crap-you're looking for legendary and yellow objects.  In D2 you could carry a decent blue item for a while and you'd be alright or better than alright.  Yeah not here.  As I mentioned since RWM can be made the drop rate has been lowered to nearly insane levels.  But let's think about this.  Let's say I really need a new sword to continue.  Let's say after 10 hours of playing I dont get the weapon I need...let's just say...let's just say that I am so frustrated of not being able to continue that I buy that sword for 10 bucks...I find that it gets me out there pretty nicely but I am taking too many hits...I need to find or buy some armor.  Well with the gimped drops I have one option...more money.  You're not paying Blizzard but you are still paying and paying sucks.  No monthly fee? yeah well Blizzard will pay for those servers through the percentage they shave off those auction house buys.  Brilliant really.

I will infinitely say it: Video games are a business.  It seems that most of the bigger dogs understand and exploit this fact.  It seems that most fans havent caught up to this.  They are afraid to hold developers and publishers accountable for bad consumer practices.  Gamers aren't stupid-typically we are more intelligent and creative than the next guy but majority of gamers have one fatal flaw as a consumer: Naivety.  Most have a hard time accepting that beloved developers would screw them over for extra cash or simply not give a damn about their gaming experience.  It IS a bitter pill to swallow-it is.  Most simply dont want to swallow this pill-ignorance is bliss...it also makes the next gaming experience that much shittier since devs will feel that their deplorable behavior is acceptable.  I've never been one to deny the obvious-and most of this BS is obvious if you just remove your fanboy glasses.

Businesses are SUPPOSED to make money that is their goal.  However where I draw the line is sacrificing quality or putting your customers out in order to make that money.  Games are supposed to be fun and make you feel happy not frustrate you needlessly and rob you blind.  Sadly Blizzard hasnt learned anything from this.  When Diablo 4 comes out my son will visit my grave and tell me all the horrible things that happened.  Don't think that major devs werent watching and learning from this colossal blind goat orgy.  Major devs want to know just how much bologna you will put up with.  Turns out its quite a bit.  The major releases can follow suit and know that they can be just as bad...some may even take it a step further...you may not raise a stink but I am wondering what it will take-what you open the dvd case and there is no game in there at all? is that what it might take?