Diablo III / Diablo II Battle.net Thread

Haven't seen it anywhere for less than that and I looked pretty extensively.

I got Diablo II + Expansion for $20 from the Circuit City PC game sale earlier this year. I'd probably never get around to playing Diablo I so it felt like a deal to me.
 
Bits and pieces from the post-announcement press conference:
  • No release date as of yet.
  • Development in its "early stages" despite being underway for over four years.
  • Brand new in-house engine developed for Diablo III. Includes Havoc physics.
  • Co-op is fully integrated into the game's design.
  • Will also be released on Mac.
  • Similar in length to Diablo II.
  • Takes place twenty years after Diablo II expansion pack.
  • Only fifty people working on the game at the moment. Content creation the current focus.
  • New Battle.net will debut with StarCraft II. Even more features by the time Diablo III launches.
  • No console release of Diablo III planned. Other Blizzard title staying on PC and Mac also.
  • Pay to play? Totally undecided, though it could vary between regions. For example, China may because of the popularity of internet cafes and the strict gaming laws that are meant to prevent people becoming addicted.
  • Could be up to 100 enemies on-screen at a time.
  • The ice splash page malarkey was Diablo all along, ditto on the eyes. I am vindicated. The penguin remains a mystery, however.
  • Hellgate: London-esque randomness is in, to an extent. Some maps and what have yous will be static.
  • Low-spec [computer] losers are being catered to.
  • World of Warcraft and The Legend of Zelda heavily influenced boss design and boss gameplay mechanics.
  • E-Sports support is a possibility. Team is attempting to form a business plan that works for that crowd.
  • No character customisation, just gender selection.
  • PvP will likely be included at release.
  • Voice communication will be improved.
  • Beta is a possibility.
  • "Potions are still in the game, they're just not as core an element. So there's a new health system here. Wilson says he actually tried a Halo-style shield system with regenerative health, but didn't put that in because it encouraged players to leave combat. Didn't want to implement a WoW-style health which encourages players to drink and creates downtime when out of combat. Wilson wants the health system to ensure combat, which is health globes were implemented."
  • One health pot restores all players in co-op.
  • Enemies can miss and get weapons stuck in scenery or world.
  • Player characters will be fully voice acted.
  • Four-to-five person co-op groups.
  • Respecs are likely to be included.
 
[quote name='mrelusive']Bits and pieces from the post-announcement press conference:
  • No release date as of yet.
  • Development in its "early stages" despite being underway for over four years.
  • Brand new in-house engine developed for Diablo III. Includes Havoc physics.
  • Co-op is fully integrated into the game's design.
  • Will also be released on Mac.
  • Similar in length to Diablo II.
  • Takes place twenty years after Diablo II expansion pack.
  • Only fifty people working on the game at the moment. Content creation the current focus.
  • New Battle.net will debut with StarCraft II. Even more features by the time Diablo III launches.
  • No console release of Diablo III planned. Other Blizzard title staying on PC and Mac also.
  • Pay to play? Totally undecided, though it could vary between regions. For example, China may because of the popularity of internet cafes and the strict gaming laws that are meant to prevent people becoming addicted.
  • Could be up to 100 enemies on-screen at a time.
  • The ice splash page malarkey was Diablo all along, ditto on the eyes. I am vindicated. The penguin remains a mystery, however.
  • Hellgate: London-esque randomness is in, to an extent. Some maps and what have yous will be static.
  • Low-spec [computer] losers are being catered to.
  • World of Warcraft and The Legend of Zelda heavily influenced boss design and boss gameplay mechanics.
  • E-Sports support is a possibility. Team is attempting to form a business plan that works for that crowd.
  • No character customisation, just gender selection.
  • PvP will likely be included at release.
  • Voice communication will be improved.
  • Beta is a possibility.
  • "Potions are still in the game, they're just not as core an element. So there's a new health system here. Wilson says he actually tried a Halo-style shield system with regenerative health, but didn't put that in because it encouraged players to leave combat. Didn't want to implement a WoW-style health which encourages players to drink and creates downtime when out of combat. Wilson wants the health system to ensure combat, which is health globes were implemented."
  • One health pot restores all players in co-op.
  • Enemies can miss and get weapons stuck in scenery or world.
  • Player characters will be fully voice acted.
  • Four-to-five person co-op groups.
  • Respecs are likely to be included.
[/QUOTE]

Nioce.
 
[quote name='crystalklear64']Yea, thats the bitch about old blizzard games.[/quote]I'm surprised they don't have Diablo I at their online store yet. I don't have it so I'd buy it from there in a heartbeat with the digital download.
 
That final boss in the D3 gameplay was pretty solid. I went O_O went he
completely ate the top part of the barbarian right off, and the blood was smeared all over his face.
 
[quote name='ninja dog']wow, please show us the rest of the screens and gameplay vids. 'cause us normal people only got a minute of gameplay and about 2 screens.[/QUOTE]

More like 20 screens and 20 minutes of gameplay.

[quote name='SmokyPreacher']About the graphics, they are obviously going with the let's say not top of the line graphics but they seem good enough and they have good reasoning behind it. They realize that a lot of the people who played D2 didn't have the most kick ass PC at the time and not all those dudes are just gonna go out and buy a whole new pc just for this game. I also beleive they are perhaps sticking to their roots they thought if they buffed it up to insane quality it wouldn't really feel like Diablo. A games graphics shouldn't make or break it or fault it, yes if they are terrible and make you're eyes bleed it is hard to play but I think gameplay should be number one prioity with graphics a far off second.

This is another great reason for me to start saving up for that new PC not saying it's going to tap all the potential in it but this does say somehow show that their still is a PC market and hopefully if the sales of D3, S2, and other games can show other companies we will support good well produced products.[/quote]

Once again, my problem has absolutely nothing to do with the technical aspects of the game. No Blizzard game has ever been technically impressive -- they create games that have timeless graphics through great art direction. Which this, D3, so far, seems to lack. That's all I said: the graphics seem bland and inspired, like Titan Quest, and Blizzard typically does far better.
 
[quote name='Moxio']That final boss in the D3 gameplay was pretty solid. I went O_O went he
completely ate the top part of the barbarian right off, and the blood was smeared all over his face.
[/quote]

Hell yeah the boss battles look pretty epic (I'm sure the characters were overpowered for demo purposes)...the best part was when the "main" boss was sneaking around in the background. I hope all of the random "elite" characters are like that.

...wonder what happens when you die.
 
I dont understand why people are so against the graphics. First off they dont seem that bad.....but second graphics have never been the focus of Diablo. Its all about the grind!
 
Seems a bit too slow in some parts....I dunno, still excited about this and as long as it doesn't have a monthly fee I'll get it at launch.
 
I don't mind the graphics. Actually if there's anything I don't like, it's probably the logo, and that's it.

Most Blizzard games since StarCraft have had an overhaul to the art direction between their first public announcement and the final build, so hopefully they can address whatever problems people are having with the current look before they launch.
 
[quote name='chodax']Also I have always been curious so I will ask. How many of you will actually play the full singleplayer game or will you just go straight to multiplayer? I have always just played only multiplayer and was just wondering what everyone else did.[/QUOTE]

I always did the single player portion first in both D1 and D2 because the immersion factor was higher that way, plus there was no way it would lag like Bnet did back in the day. I'm not sure if that's been improved or not since I last played D2 over 5 years ago.
 
[quote name='Drizzt']I always did the single player portion first in both D1 and D2 because the immersion factor was higher that way, plus there was no way it would lag like Bnet did back in the day. I'm not sure if that's been improved or not since I last played D2 over 5 years ago.[/QUOTE]

Same here. I always played offline. Felt like there was less preasure, more true to the experience, less lag....just better all around. However this time I might start off online.
 
Mmmm. Scrumptious video. I like the graphic design, and I just loved the use of physics and large mobs of enemies.
 
[quote name='Drizzt']I always did the single player portion first in both D1 and D2 because the immersion factor was higher that way, plus there was no way it would lag like Bnet did back in the day. I'm not sure if that's been improved or not since I last played D2 over 5 years ago.[/quote]

I did mostly single player offline with D2 myself. Though once i got to Hell(or whatever the 3rd tier difficulty) all the immunities rocked me and i couldn't get very far with my sorc.
 
[quote name='Drizzt']I always did the single player portion first in both D1 and D2 because the immersion factor was higher that way, plus there was no way it would lag like Bnet did back in the day. I'm not sure if that's been improved or not since I last played D2 over 5 years ago.[/quote]

I started out that way, but now I can't imagine playing D2 on single player. I sincerely hope they keep TCP/IP support in the game.
 
[quote name='MSI Magus']I dont understand why people are so against the graphics. First off they dont seem that bad.....but second graphics have never been the focus of Diablo. Its all about the grind![/QUOTE]

and the fun multiplayer
 
[quote name='MSI Magus']Same here. I always played offline. Felt like there was less preasure, more true to the experience, less lag....just better all around. However this time I might start off online.[/QUOTE]
Diablo 2 is still like that on battle.net.

With this season being new, people who are just now finding high runes are selling them for very high prices and then people dupe the shit out of them by cause mass lag. This effects everyone in bnet atm, so if you get on the same server as a duper, you'll have lag spikes every 3 mins or so.

My father actually introduced me to diablo 2 when it was released, and we still play together via tcp/ip when I'm home. It'd be a shame if they had that removed, because I know thats a major selling point for him anyway. The inclusion of single-player is another awesome move on blizzard's part. I don't know if all older gamers (like 40+) are like my father, but he will not buy a game if it is online only.

Plus, including single-player where the character data is stored locally, usually means that you can edit save data and test out characters before you start your actual work on them online.
 
[quote name='Pookymeister']I did mostly single player offline with D2 myself. Though once i got to Hell(or whatever the 3rd tier difficulty) all the immunities rocked me and i couldn't get very far with my sorc.[/QUOTE]

See so you came in late in the game. I hope that D3 doesnt have the stupid multiple immunities thing that makes playing solo an absolute pain. D2 was fine then they added that shit and it made it impossible to play by yourself and have fun.
 
Anyone down to playing some D2 when I re-buy the Battle Chest? It's seen it's way into the trash over the years, unfortunately and accidentally.
 
I might download D2 again from the Blizz store. Hopefully the downloader works better for the games compared to the D3 trailers.

EDIT: I'm going to format the OP properly and add any links to any of the panels I find.
 
If anyone wants to play D2 for less than $30 PM me. Back when I botted heavily there was a place I bought my CD keys from (running 10+ bots requires 10+ CD sets). I checked and they still sell them, $5.45 a set. The sets are guaranteed to work, and when you register them with Blizzard you can download the games.
 
Wow, I'm so happy. I was actually playing Diablo 2 when someone was talking about it in the chat. Then I realized I'll need a new computer for my love of diablo. :~( .
 
I'm surprised there hasn't been many videos of the panel up yet. I've only found one and it was getting hammered.

Updated the OP with another text summary of the panel and the hammered-vid.
 
You guys are still playing ladder online? Masochists... When 1.11 came out I gave up on ladder and started playing mods. Median (modsbylaz.planetdiablo.gamespy.com) is this shit.
 
[quote name='Jest']You guys are still playing ladder online? Masochists... When 1.11 came out I gave up on ladder and started playing mods. Median (modsbylaz.planetdiablo.gamespy.com) is this shit.[/QUOTE]

Same here. Thats a big part of the reason I never really played online. I started off offline, went online briefly and then mods like Eastern Sun started hitting and there was never a point to go back online. Thats probally my biggest hope for Diablo 3, that it comes with a modding kit. Without mods id have sunk 1,000s of hours into Diablo 2.....because of mods I wouldnt be suprised if I had sunk 100,000 of hours into that game! Between vanilla D2 and the dozens of mods iv played I seriously dont think that would be an exaggeration.
 
The vids look good, but I feel like I'm the only one that hates whirlwind attacks. Fighting like a tasmanian devil looks terrible. Jeez, imagine a real fighter spinning around and flailing his arms about. I probably won't be playing much barb.

By the way, I've got a battlechest and Hellfire on my CML if anyone is interested.
 
[quote name='MSI Magus']Same here. Thats a big part of the reason I never really played online. I started off offline, went online briefly and then mods like Eastern Sun started hitting and there was never a point to go back online. Thats probally my biggest hope for Diablo 3, that it comes with a modding kit. Without mods id have sunk 1,000s of hours into Diablo 2.....because of mods I wouldnt be suprised if I had sunk 100,000 of hours into that game! Between vanilla D2 and the dozens of mods iv played I seriously dont think that would be an exaggeration.[/quote]

Eastern Sun is very cool. I just discovered that one a few months ago.
 
[quote name='SpecTrE3353']Eastern Sun is very cool. I just discovered that one a few months ago.[/QUOTE]

Wow crazy that it was one of the last ones you discovered. Eastern Sun was actually one of the first mods out, its not even ran by the same guy anymore. Few years ago it was a really different mod ran by a guy called Perfect Cell, sometime like a year or two ago he passed the mod and its name onto 2 guys that took it in a completely different direction. Regardless every version has been quality.
 
Isn't that how Diablo 2 worked? It's been a long time since I played it, but I remember clicking a lot to kill things.
Click to expand...
It's how all PC RPG's seem to work. I'd love a little more interactivity, or a more "hands-on" feel.
 
[quote name='linkpwns']I really need to pick up and play some Diablo 2 Again...
Too bad the Battle Chest is 30 bucks![/QUOTE]

I had a tough time picking up the Battle Chest a few weeks back, because the games look so damn old. But I did, and I'm glad, because Diablo II is fun as fuck. So do it.

I wonder, is there any reason to play the original Diablo anymore? I fondly remember playing that back in 1997... actually, I just had the demo at the time, but I played the shit out of it.
 
@ lord wow and the poll - All I can say is Ill be VERY pissed off if there is not an Amazon/Archer kind of class. I love run and gun and the Amazon from D2 and Rogue from D1 were my favs.

@ chacrana and if D1 is worth playing again - Hard to say. Iv busted it out a fwe times and a few of those its drove me nuts how slow the charcter moves and grainy the graphics are....as well as stuff like the lack of great uniques. Other times though iv gotten hooked.
 
[quote name='Chacrana']I had a tough time picking up the Battle Chest a few weeks back, because the games look so damn old. But I did, and I'm glad, because Diablo II is fun as fuck. So do it.

I wonder, is there any reason to play the original Diablo anymore? I fondly remember playing that back in 1997... actually, I just had the demo at the time, but I played the shit out of it.[/quote]

You down to play with me when I pick that shit up?
 
[quote name='MSI Magus']Same here. Thats a big part of the reason I never really played online. I started off offline, went online briefly and then mods like Eastern Sun started hitting and there was never a point to go back online. Thats probally my biggest hope for Diablo 3, that it comes with a modding kit. Without mods id have sunk 1,000s of hours into Diablo 2.....because of mods I wouldnt be suprised if I had sunk 100,000 of hours into that game! Between vanilla D2 and the dozens of mods iv played I seriously dont think that would be an exaggeration.[/QUOTE]

That'd be 35 hours per day, non-stop, for the eight years since D2 was released...
 
[quote name='Koggit']That'd be 35 hours per day, non-stop, for the eight years since D2 was released...[/QUOTE]

Hehe ya sounds about right. Ok I did some math wrong, still have easily put 1,000s of hours into the game(I graduated from HS a little after the game came out and im disabled and dont work...so ya 1,000s is perfectly reasonable).
 
[quote name='MSI Magus']All I can say is Ill be VERY pissed off if there is not an Amazon/Archer kind of class. I love run and gun and the Amazon from D2 and Rogue from D1 were my favs.[/quote]

I totally agree. Every time I get back into D2 I wind up playing an Amazon and strafing the shit out of everything I see. Good fun.
 
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