Diablo III

[Revan]

It seemed sacrilegious that there wasn't a thread drooling over this yet. I confidently expected Diablo III to come out in 2010, then 2011 only to have my hopes cruelly dashed. Now it's finally being released on May 15 and I'm quite looking forward to it! Diablo II is probably one of my favourite games ever. I do have some fears about this new one though.

I'm really scared that Diablo III has been made to cater for the World of Warcraft crowd. It all just looks too bright and nice compared to Diablo II. Also heard rumours from the beta that the game just isn't on a par with Diablo II and the four characters per party things sounds like a horrible misstep if it makes it to final release. I don't really mind about the in-game marketplace though - people were already paying hand-over-fist for items and what not in Diablo II, just in much shadier places.

However Diablo III turns out, I reckon I'm probably going to pick it up on or as near to launch day as I can regardless. Not sure what class to go for when I get started though like. Torn between the Demon Hunter and the Monk. The Demon Hunter seems to be part-Amazon, part-Assassin. I loved both those classes even if I was only any good at playing the latter! The Monk intrigues me because he seems to have the martial arts/meleeing side of the Assassin, which is something I only got to grips with on my last run through Diablo II and had me cursing the fact I'd only ever played traps before!

Anyone else looking forward to this?

[Zakilevo]

Meh. This game should have come out two years ago. Still gonna play the game but I am more excited about Lineage Eternal really.

[Nathan]

Currently downloading for the open beta weekend. Will probably try out Witch Doctor first, not sure after that.

Luckily for me I live with 3 guys who are also downloading, so I've got a ready made party :D

I've not played either of the other Diablo games but I'm told it's pretty similar to games like Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance, which I loved, so hopefully I won't be let down.

[Shizzle]

The Beta only starts at 21h CEST, so in almost 6 hours. Meh :p

[Revan]

Currently downloading for the open beta weekend.

Sir, you have just utterly ruined any plans I had for this weekend! :-P

I see Diablo II is getting a ladder reset on May 2nd as well. That might ruin my life too, heh.

[Nathan]

The Beta only starts at 21h CEST, so in almost 6 hours. Meh :p

Yeah, I had planned to be able to play when it went live. Unfortunately my download speeds have been abysmal and am still downloading after ~9 hours :(

Sir, you have just utterly ruined any plans I had for this weekend! :-P

Glad I could help! :D

[Shizzle]

I keep getting error 3003 when I try to log-in. A quick search told me I should change DNS to google, but I'm kind of reluctant to change settings I hardly understand. Help?

[Nathan]

http://www.gamezone.com/products/diablo-iii/news/diablo-3-open-beta-temporarily-capped

There you go. Apparently beta is only available on the US servers for now, so go to Options, Account and change your region to "The Americas". This solved it for me.

You then have to create a BattleTag. The link in-game didn't work for me, if it's the same for you, go here: https://eu.battle.net/account/management/battletag-create.html

I was then able to log in successfully :D

[Shizzle]

I have a BattleTag. I'll try changing servers, thanks!

[Draco Tanos]

I don't really mind about the in-game marketplace though - people were already paying hand-over-fist for items and what not in Diablo II, just in much shadier places.

I actually have to commend Blizzard somewhat on this.  It helps stop many people from getting screwed over if the game firmly has something in place to handle it.

[Shizzle]

"The servers are unable to handle your request error 37". Ugh.

[Revan]

Right, played through the beta with a friend last night. First impressions:

• I'm not enjoying the art style.
• Still it got the most important part right: this feels like a Diablo game even if doesn't always look it.
• It also sounds like a Diablo game even if doesn't always look it. Hearing the original Tristram music as I stepped into the beta made me feel at home.
• The skill system seems suspect. At the beginning your skills are essentially being chosen by rote with no input from you. You're being hand-held were before you would have been planning a build from the ground up. I really hope the skill system hasn't been vastly simplified as it takes away alot of the challenge and indeed, alot of the experimentation of playing around with different builds.
• Further to that last point, it also makes Diablo III, dare I say it, a little boring? Certainly in the beginning. The only thing I have control over is clicking the left and right mouse buttons. Even when I have a few skills to play with in battle, I can't quickly switch to anything in my repertoire on the fly. There aren't any hotkeys. (That tiny little action bar they give to you in bits for 'action bar skills' doesn't count.) I have to go to the skill menu, choose a different skill, then wait for a cooldown. Obviously they want you to use only one skill from each skillset and maybe that'll be fine later on, but right now it just feels a little dispiriting.

Basically, I still don't know whether I'm gonna love Diablo III as much as its predecessors. I guess I'll just have to spend some real quality time with it after May 15th!

[Zakilevo]

Didn't they add the cool down system?

[Nathan]

Obviously they want you to use only one skill from each skillset and maybe that'll be fine later on, but right now it just feels a little dispiriting.

Yeah, at the moment it seems a little naff, but I can imagine once you get to higher levels the choices of skills and their runes you have will make for vastly differing builds between players of the same class (if it's balanced well, obviously).

You managed to try many classes out? I've not been able to log on much, so only tried Witch Doctor and still not finished the beta with him.

[Revan]

Okay, I've spent some more time with it and, err, maybe I spoke a little too soon? ;D I think I was just in D2 culture shock for a minute there. I'm starting to understand the skill system and the way things are all set out a little better. It seems runes essentially let you change build any time, with any skill you like. That feels a mite too generous/easy for me, but it works and once you have a good handful of skills it begins to come into its own. I've also remembered that at heart, Diablo is all about the items. So the new crafting system is genius. You get half a chance to get decent kit without paying in real world currency. That's a whole lot better than what went before!

Didn't they add the cool down system?

Yeah, didn't realise at first but it makes encounters more interesting really. No more health pot spamming. Even with the new health orb drops, you get the odd frantic moment due to cooldowns! And fair play actually. I suppose if I go into some boss battle and switch skills mid-encounter, I should expect some sort of penalty :P

Yeah, at the moment it seems a little naff, but I can imagine once you get to higher levels the choices of skills and their runes you have will make for vastly differing builds between players of the same class (if it's balanced well, obviously).

You managed to try many classes out? I've not been able to log on much, so only tried Witch Doctor and still not finished the beta with him.

I've maxed out a Demon Hunter. At first the ranged skills feel pretty dire, but once you get rapid shot it feels much more satisfying. When you get to lvl 9/10+ it's even better. Your shadow skills keep you from being overrun by hoards of meleeing monsters but not so much you can get really cocky with it. I like that they've eliminated mana for the Demon Hunter as well. Instead you have Hatred for your ranged skills and Discipline for your shadow skills. The former you drain with defensive skills and replenish with attack skills whilst the latter only regenerates naturally. Probably not all that revolutionary, but it's really nice to have to manage battle strategy instead of two sets of pots. It's one of those little things were you're like 'why did no one think of this before?'

The only other class I've tried is the Wizard. It feels odd at early stages. Seems to be giving you a little taste of each element. For some reason, cold always feels the more satisfying choice. And hey, I suppose with the new skill system, no more getting to Hell and getting absolutely slammed because you're a cold specialist and half the monsters are immune! I think this is going to be one of those changes that just ends up growing on me over time...