Diablo 3

[Psygnal]

THAT is the key issue for me, right there.

Now, if they patch the game to let you keep playing - in single-player at least - once the servers are done and dusted, that's fine... but that comes with a cost too.

I want to be able to play a game for a good long time without worrying about whether or not it's still making money for the company I bought it from. Heck, I'm still periodically playing games made over a decade ago... and I'd hate to have lost them just because an Always-On DRM model killed them before their time.

I can also appreciate big companies wanting to protect their bottom line. I have no issue with that at all. We wouldn't get the big games if they didn't make the big money... I just would like to hold onto a shred of hope that somewhere underneath that bottom-line somewhere is a business-person who still occasionally thinks like a gamer.

Psyg'

[Gawain]

Well into Act 3 now and deciding it is a damn good game.

Notably, there has been a lot of effort spent on making the world feel a bit more real and depth given to all the characters. All of your hirelings and the major characters in the story arc have history and their own problems to deal with, and your interactions with them will vary depending on your character class.

Previous Diablos had extensive world history but no real storyline beyond killing everything that moves. While that still aplies here if you want to power through the game, you can also take the time to soak in the ambiance and atmosphere of the various areas.

Many of the side charcters also have spoken dialogue that either triggers when you get near them or can be activated if you choose to talk to them. None of this impacts the game in any way, it is just there to add depth - and I love it!

I like to walk around the town areas just to listen in on these conversations, which make the townsfolk feel like real people, and add meaning to your slaughter of the demon hordes.

The gameplay is very smooth and the skill balance seems good, although there will no doubt be some tweaking over time.

My one issue remains the WOWification of the game though. There are no longer any decisions that are irreversible after character creations.

Class, sex, name, hardcore or not. These are the only choices that you make that have long term results and they are all made before you start play. After that you can redo any skill choices any time you like, with the only restriction being a 10 second cooldown to stop you re-speccing mid battle - although in a group game you would even be able to do it that way if you could lose agro for a while.

This means every level 35 barbarian is exactly the same as every other level 35 barbarian, stats identical, skills identical, only items creating any variance - and of course items can be traded.

Overall though, I have to say Blizzard has done this one very well, and I expect to spend many more hours playing.

[Psygnal]

What's your experience with the "Always ON" internet been like?

I keep hearing horror stories about losing hours of play due to crashes and odd save-fail scenarios - and people logging in to find their characters without gear, or with corrupted settings due to bugs in mission elements. (eg: Talking to a particular templar(?) causing an inability to log in, being one of the more severe ones)

Not to mention queues to play single player, even recently, when server loads should not be extreme.

Any issues like that?

Psyg'

[Psygnal]

Ooh, they've added multiplayer to Torchlight II. Given how much fun Torchlight 1 was, I'm suddenly extremely enthused. I have yet to see a release date, however.

Psyg'

[Gawain]

There were definitely server issues to start with. That seems to have settled down now, although the 8 hour downtime last night for maintenance in NZ/Aus primetime was a bit annoying. On the pro side, while the server is sometimes down, I have never seen it full as my play time is nowhere near US primetime.

As for the bugs - I heard about the templar one (it was giving a shield to the templar before he actually joined you that caused the crash), and there have been lots of stories of hacked accounts, but I have had no issues myself, nor has anyone I know personally.

The hard part is thinking about this as an MMO, with the server issues that are involved, when I will mainly be playing it solo. Being a guy with a wife and two under 5's I get few chances to play when I am unlikely to be interrupted, and multiplayer games will not be full of people willing to wait for half an hour while I go give the kids a bath. Also, as mentioned in an earlier post, I like to explore everywhere and soak in the atmosphere. Most multiplayer games are all about powering through content as quickly as possible, so it does not suit my playstyle.

Once I have completed the game at least once solo, I might try some group play, but until then it is single player only.

[Psygnal]

Crap on a stick... I succumbed. :-(
It's downloading now. I'm Psygnal#1326 if you're lookin'.

Psyg'

[Gawain]

It was bound to happen.

I will add you to friends tonight and maybe see if I have some stuff to give you - although most of my gear/wealth is in Hardcore.

[Psygnal]

Thanks, but I pointedly don't want stuff. First time through at least, I'm treating this like a single player game.

That is, assuming I can play. I've been server-kicked four times so far, and each time have lost about 5 mins of play. I gave up last night because of it. Definitely server-side, as the rest of the Internet was working fine.

Currently level 5 barbarian.

Psyg'

[Gawain]

Got kicked once last night myself - and had a bad lag patch that nearly cost me my level 34 Demon Hunter.

Worst I have seen it lag-wise. Switched to a lower level character as the risk was too high.

Hopefully this was a once off.

Solo play first time through is the best way to go I think, as you get to enjoy the storyline properly. While avoiding spoilers, I have to say the story got a tad predictable towards the end though -they started stronger than the finished, but still a fun ride.

[Psygnal]

I have been rubber-banding all over the place tonight, and a couple of poorly timed disconnections have resulted in irritation.

This is basically Diablo2. If you've got D2, then really the only thing you'd be buying with this game is better graphics and more convenient multiplayer. If that's enough, then go for it.

My network performance has yanked me out of the moment so often that - while I will continue to play - I would not have bought the game if I had known in advance just how irritating it was going to be. This with the assertion that everything else I play online - from Minecraft to World of Tanks - is giving me no problems at all.

Psyg'