Let's make update on my only alive character right now, Bart the frenzy barbarian.
Or I should say pretty lucky frenzy barbarian, because he just killed Diablo on nightmare difficulty, and despite not grinding even once here's his equipment:
Yup, 2 pieces of Immortal King's set.
I forgot to take a screenshot from the amulet. It is crafted amulet +all res and life.
Diablo IV is pretty much confirmed in works, but not being ready to be announced yet.
As for the mobile game, I noticed few things. The graphic is stylized but still more realistic and darker than Diablo III (and it is still a mobile game) which is good. It covers rather unexplored period in Sanctuary. Some Diablo 2 monsters are making the return. Some interesting mechanics are shown during gameplay trailer, which makes me think whether Blizzard is aiming to test some gameplay ideas (like the rope set piece in said trailer).
Negatives: characters are too similar to their Diablo III counterparts in multiple of ways. It is also a mobile game, which rises concerns regarding microtransactions.
This is the only place to post this that will get views, so here goes......
This has basically been confirmed to be nothing but a kind of D3 re-skin of an existing mobile game of the company Blizzard outsourced this to. The classes are the same, it looks EXACTLY like Diablo 3. Who is this game for?? Diablo 3 was just released for the Switch, which is a move I support. This is goddamn slap in the face. The PC gamers, to fans of the series, everyone really. I have been a fan of Blizzard since I was 10 years old. They have officially lost me. I won't support this kind of garbage cash grab. I have defended Diablo 3, especially after Reaper of Souls. This is so bad that I was going to buy Diablo 3 for Switch since it's payday and now I am no longer going to.
I feel bad for the employees who had to go out and sell this. Wyatt Chang looked like he was going to burst into tears when he walked off the stage. He knew how bad it was.
Quick look all over the internet and turns out Diablo fans are much more pissed than I thought they are. On one hand, I understand that Blizzcon turned out to be dissapointment and from all Diablo projects that are supposed to be in the works, the mobile game was the only one to be announced. On the other hand, that game is probably not going to be judged on its own merit and will probably be boycoted regardless of its actual quality.
And @lefreut , good luck. Although since you're doing Paladin run, I think I will be torn btween cheering for you and cheering for Diablo.
Quick look all over the internet and turns out Diablo fans are much more pissed than I thought they are. On one hand, I understand that Blizzcon turned out to be dissapointment and from all Diablo projects that are supposed to be in the works, the mobile game was the only one to be announced. On the other hand, that game is probably not going to be judged on its own merit and will probably be boycoted regardless of its actual quality.
And @lefreut , good luck. Although since you're doing Paladin run, I think I will be torn btween cheering for you and cheering for Diablo.
It's absolutely insane that they thought they could kick-off a convention filled with die-hard PC gamers with the news that the franchise they have long neglected is moving to smart phones. It's the most tone-deaf thing they have ever done. I mean, there isn't even going to be a PC version. NO Blizzard game since their infancy in the early '90s hasn't been on PC.
@jjstraka34 wrong. This is not Diablo IV or any part of main game. It is spin-off at best. Stop treating it as something it is not. One spin-off game does not make the entire series to be on mobile devices from now on. It is as falacious as claiming Baldur's Gate is now mobile-exclusive because it was ported to android.
@jjstraka34 wrong. This is not Diablo IV or any part of main game. It is spin-off at best. Stop treating it as something it is not. One spin-off game does not make the entire series to be on mobile devices from now on. It is as falacious as claiming Baldur's Gate is now mobile-exclusive because it was ported to android.
Less emotions, more reasoning please.
It's a blatant re-skin of a game called "Crusaders of Light" by the company they have outsourced to make the game, called Netease. It has the same classes as Diablo 3 (minus one). It looks shockingly similar, and if it's on a phone, it can only make revenue by predatory microtransactions, or there is no reason for it to really exist at all. Again, I have been on the bandwagon of this company through all the ups and downs, but this is just a bunch of garbage. The idea that the announcement wasn't even something as relatively mundane but still good news like a D2 Remaster or Druid Class pack, but a mobile game is just.....yuck. How do you lead off what is essentially a PC gaming convention with this and expect anything but the backlash they have received??
In addition, Blizzard is now just flat-out re-uploading the trailer to Youtube because the Like/Dislike ratio is unlike anything that has ever been seen (7200 likes/214,000 dislikes currently) and deleting negative comments. Which is their right, it's their Youtube channel. But it is coming across as desperate damage control.
As for re-skin - done a quick look. It does seem similar, so I will give you credit there.
Classes - in my initial post I mentioned their design is essentially identical to Diablo III and I said it was a bad thing.
Mictotransactions - Opinion based on the lack of informations is not valid. There is no data to make a sufficient conclusions of how they are going to be implemented. Yes, this is area of concern, because it can be very bad. Then again, it could be one of these games in which microtransactions are implemented in non-invasive manner. The thing is, we have no idea. There is going to be Q&A panel, so it could be a good idea for someone attending the thing to ask about it.
Diablo 2 remaster is very unlikely to happen anytime soon for one reason. According to David Brevik, the assets for the game are lost, meaning making a remaster is likely not going to happen. And if it will, it would be very difficult, not to mention the end result might still not be appealing for old fans. It's just like with enhanced edition of Baldur's Gate. HD Remake was originally hoped for, according to Trent Oster, but with assets gone, not much could be done about it.
Druid dlc for Diablo 3 was a garbage rumour from the start. It was based on shallow reference in-game (the wing cosmetic describtion referenced Druids) and wishful thinking. Not only that, many people didn't even bothered to ask themselves how elementalist/shapeshifter split would work in D3 skill system. I did and it would be at least problematic, if not straight up broken.
What we knew about incoming gaming projects (at least what I know from following Rhykker's videos for months) was the following: there were job postings that indicated a mobile game - and whoa, it happened. Mind blown. What we also can deduce it is that a big project, requiring more advanced technology than used in Diablo 3, and with new art director and game director is in the works. Likely a true sequel, be it Diablo IV or some kind of prequel game.
Now, I get the dissapointment. I am dissapointed as well. But I'm honest enough to judge that mobile game on its own, rather than joining the mob.
Diablo 2 remaster is very unlikely to happen anytime soon for one reason. According to David Brevik, the assets for the game are lost, meaning making a remaster is likely not going to happen. And if it will, it would be very difficult, not to mention the end result might still not be appealing for old fans. It's just like with enhanced edition of Baldur's Gate. HD Remake was originally hoped for, according to Trent Oster, but with assets gone, not much could be done about it.
It was also the case for Starcraft no? And they did make a remaster. Blizzard is a much bigger company than Beamdog, they should have enough resources to do it.
I don't know whether assets for Starcraft were lost or not, so I cannot confirm or deny. I do agree that Blizzard has much more resources than Beamdog and I don't even question that.
What I know that even to this day first Starcraft game remains an e-sport title and still brings Blizzard passive income just from being e-sport. Investing in it at keeping it in good condition is certainly (and sadly) more profitable, safer and (from company's POV) preffered than remastering Diablo 2. Also please notice, I never did said D2 remaster is impossible, but difficult (lost assets) and risky (the end result still might not appeal to old fans). What I said is:
Diablo 2 remaster is unlikely to happen anytime soon
Basically: it is not going to happen soon. But it is not impossible.
I think Diablo 2 remaster can be done, but only after Blizzard's other classic games are remastered and in a good shape. Diablo would be more difficult to remaster from scratch without assets than Starcraft with its sprites and Warcraft III with 3d models.
Ajantis finds an intriguing scroll next to an ancient tree.
With the help of Akara, Ajantis was able to decipher the scroll to find the secret code that open a portal to another dimension Tristram.
Ajantis had to fight a corrupted Griswold. He is very strong but does not give very good loot.
Wirt nooooooo
The Deckard Cain rescue mission is a success!
Next, Ajantis decides to explore the Forgotten Tower. The Countess drops some nice things (a rune and a set item).
Ajantis hits level 12 and chooses to specialize in Zeal.
With his new ability, Ajantis enters the monastary where he finds and kills The Smith. Ajantis then goes to visit dear Andy. She was nice and gives him a nice falchion.
Nice falchion for Act I normal. Though I'm wondering about your build. One one hand, with the points you spend in Sacrifice and Zeal, it looks like typical Zealot. On the other hand, your aura of choice seems to be elementar damage-dealing one (though I see you haven't invested more than 1 point in Holy Fire so far), instead Might, as a build up to Fanaticism. So, what's the game plan?
---
On unrelated note, with Diablo Fans as the source (site, not group of people):
Basically, it confirms that there are in fact multiple projects still being worked on. It also confirms that the team was really concerned before revealing Diablo Immortal on tis year's Blizzcon. According to the full thing on Polygon, the team is aware that fans are very passionate and therefore dissapointed by not hearing big news they wanted. I am personally relieved they don't talk back in disrespectful or condesending manner, because recently some game developers/publishers tends to do that.
According to what IGN, Blizzard basically dodged the question "is Diablo Immortal reskinned" and instead said they were working together on it as a team.
- The story will be mostly told via talking to NPCs. Two things. First, for that dialogues needs to be good - I hope they will learn from Diablo III's mistakes. Second, wht about "show, don't tell" rule? - Apparently the demo on Blizzcon was build specifically for the presentation. I am concerned with this. - I do think that Diablo without random tilesets is a bad idea. It wouldn't be necessary bad for clearing the story, but it will when re-visiting the areas, grinding etc. - The design philosophy looks good enough on paper, but I don't know how that will translate into final product. - Blizzard claims it develops the game together with NetEase. Claim is consistent with IGN interview. - For additional content, new zones, classes, loot, dungeons are planned. It is unknown how frequent updates will be. Fair enough. - As for trade, they claim they will try to find compromise between no-trading (Diablo III currently) and what Diablo II offers. Apparently both have its positive and negative sides, the sentiment I can agree on. - There will be some form of cafting/item improvement system - So far there is not an option for alternative controls than touch screen. Blizzard claims to have open mind to possibilities, however. I think that's fair enough, but I don't think there will be other control method. - Too early to say whether the game will provide cinematics. Personally, I would love to, but from practicall point of view, I am unsure. Especially since I know very little about technical limitations on mobile devices, so me shutting up about it is only valid thing to do. - There will be some sort of customization. The aren't sure if transmog will be avaliable. Nothing I can really take from it. - Resources managment undergones experimentation. From mana for all classes, to different resources, to charges, cooldowns etc. Multiple approaches are considered. I just hope they will settle on something that will work for the game and will result in satisfying flow. - Blizzard does not support people playing on emulators, but won't go after them. *claps* - Blizzard apparently isn't sure about how the game will be monetized. So far, claims about invasive microtranslations are not valid. They could still be valid in the future, but for now criticizing the game for features it doesn't posses right now is sheer stupidity. Unpopular opinion: I actually wish Blizzard could earn some passive income from this game. From all of its franchises, Diablo is the only one that lacks any. It is also not an e-sport game. Both actually might be reasons why Diablo doesn't recieve as much attention from Blizzard as other franchises. If a spin-off game can change that, I will welcome that, providing the monetization isn't done in unfair or gameplay-breaking way.
- Too early to say whether Mephisto is going to appear in-game. I guess this question was brought up since some form of Baal appeared in gameplay trailer. - Itemization of the game is in development. Legendary powers will apparently be part of it. It is okay, but I would rather them not be so over-the-top as in Diablo III. I think they should affect gameplay and the way you use skills, but that's it. Not used to break the game. - Items will be capable of being improved over time. Good. - Buisness model is undecided. Consistent with what they said in the other interview. - The team is more concerned with making a good game rather how Diablo looks in comparison to its acion rpg competition. This could be either good or bad thing. Also, is it limited to this particular game or to the franchise as a whole? - They opinion on trading is consistent with the other interview. - Lore wise, the formation of Demon Hunters will be a big focus.
Apparently, nobody was smart enough to ask the team about the market research they did before starting working on Diablo Immortal. It's a shame. With potential answer, someone with some knowledge about market research and methodology could learn some interesting things.
Some other informations from the panel: - There will be forgotten tower from Diablo II. With ressurected Countess to boot. - Throwing enemies is one of Barbarian's new abillities. - Ice Crystal is new skill for Wizard - Daring Swing is new skill for Demon Hunter - Imprisoned Fist is new skill for Monk.
Nice falchion for Act I normal. Though I'm wondering about your build. One one hand, with the points you spend in Sacrifice and Zeal, it looks like typical Zealot. On the other hand, your aura of choice seems to be elementar damage-dealing one (though I see you haven't invested more than 1 point in Holy Fire so far), instead Might, as a build up to Fanaticism. So, what's the game plan?
I mean, unless they charge for the game itself (what, $30-40??), it is going to have microtransactions. And they aren't going to charge for it because the whole point of mobile gaming is to pull people in and then force them to pay to speed up progress. An actual price tag is prohibitive to actually getting the suckers pulled in initially.
Beyond that, mobile gaming is hated for a reason. The first being the controls. There is no choice but to have them on the screen. It limits what can be put there initially, but your thumbs also obscure the view. Many people are going to have to upgrade their phones. I personally have an S9, but if I ever intended on playing something like this, I would almost have to spring for the larger Note models of the Galaxy to make it even remotely appealing. Even if you get your upgrades through an installment plan on your monthly bill, the devices that can run this thing are damn near $1000. The price of a good gaming laptop.
Beyond that....data usage. The whole narrative they are trying to push is short bursts of play on the go. Except at best you are going to have a Wi-Fi connection 50% of the time around town. This game is online. It's going to chew through data. And if you don't have a connection, many people are only going to even think about playing it at home. But why would they, when they can play literally anything else??
Finally, Netease, the company they partnered with, is notorious for microtransaction cash grabs in the Asian market. And that is who this game is for. It's a pure cash grab that was almost certainly ordered to take place by Activision. And it will probably rake in the cash. But that's all it will ever be.
As a side note, why is the Witch Doctor not in this game when the 6 other classes from D3 are?? It was the only black character choice. Why did it get put on the chopping block??
In regards to monetizing Diablo....look.....every other game they have is raking in cash from microtransactions. WoW from character boosts, mounts and pets. Starcraft 2 with it's ridiculous announcer packs. Hearthstone is self-evident. Heroes of the Storm requires you to buy most of your heroes. Overwatch is a loot box extravaganza. Is it too much to ask that ONE of their franchises stand on it's own for a set price?? Did they not make enough from the 10s of millions of people who bought Diablo 3, Reaper of Souls, and the Necromancer pack??
The announced it because there is nothing else to announce or justify this show anymore. WoW is not dead, but it is stuck in a perpetual rut and I am personally just waiting for Classic at this point. Starcraft seems to be completely devoid of even any speculation of a new game. Hearthstone will always release new card packs, and Overwatch and Heroes are just cash-shop bonanzas. Diablo was the one franchise that still felt like a game rather than a vehicle for credit card purchases. Now that is dead too. Blizzard used to be the pinnacle of what you'd want a game company to be. They've essentially turned into EA at this point.
See? Less emotions, more reasoning and I already see you making some excellent points. I'm geniuely glad.
What you say abot NetEase is enough to make some educated guesses, providing what you saidthat is true. And I can't really judge that, because I know nothing about this company. So let's say I now believe there is actual probability of invasive microtransactions.
Your previous points, I generally agree with and have nothing to add.
The only thing about it being cash grab that seriously puzzles me, why Diablo? It is the least popular and profitable of all of Blizzard's franchises, so profit will be relatively low. On the other hand, you could instead make a game with Warcraft paintjob and earn tons of money. So why?
I guess my main problem still is there. This game is not going to be judged on its own, regardless of its actual quality. I predict people will make reviews and user ratings on various sites utterly useless once again.
Ajantis fights Izual a fallen angel. The fight is not very difficult but it takes time as he as literally one million HP
Uniq drop! No very useful (the mercenary already has a better weapon) but a uniq is always cool.
Ajantis goes to destroy Mephisto soulstone and was extremely lucky with the rune drop
Ajantis changes his armor with a better one and finds another set item.
I usually farm a little before Diablo to level-up but I get bored so I go fight him sooner than usual. It turns out it was a bad idea. Ajantis starts to hit with Zeal and Diablo answers with his huge light attack. Guess who wins?
Comments
Or I should say pretty lucky frenzy barbarian, because he just killed Diablo on nightmare difficulty, and despite not grinding even once here's his equipment:
Yup, 2 pieces of Immortal King's set.
I forgot to take a screenshot from the amulet. It is crafted amulet +all res and life.
Charms:
Stats (unbuffed) and skills
http://boards.4chan.org/v/thread/436772229/diablo
https://us.battle.net/forums/en/d3/topic/20769668541
https://old.reddit.com/r/hearthstone/comments/9slp1p/blizzard_korea_leaks_new_hearthstone_expansion/
The only consolation is the announce of Warcraft 3 remastered
As for the mobile game, I noticed few things. The graphic is stylized but still more realistic and darker than Diablo III (and it is still a mobile game) which is good. It covers rather unexplored period in Sanctuary. Some Diablo 2 monsters are making the return. Some interesting mechanics are shown during gameplay trailer, which makes me think whether Blizzard is aiming to test some gameplay ideas (like the rope set piece in said trailer).
Negatives: characters are too similar to their Diablo III counterparts in multiple of ways. It is also a mobile game, which rises concerns regarding microtransactions.
This has basically been confirmed to be nothing but a kind of D3 re-skin of an existing mobile game of the company Blizzard outsourced this to. The classes are the same, it looks EXACTLY like Diablo 3. Who is this game for?? Diablo 3 was just released for the Switch, which is a move I support. This is goddamn slap in the face. The PC gamers, to fans of the series, everyone really. I have been a fan of Blizzard since I was 10 years old. They have officially lost me. I won't support this kind of garbage cash grab. I have defended Diablo 3, especially after Reaper of Souls. This is so bad that I was going to buy Diablo 3 for Switch since it's payday and now I am no longer going to.
I feel bad for the employees who had to go out and sell this. Wyatt Chang looked like he was going to burst into tears when he walked off the stage. He knew how bad it was.
LoD 1.14b no mod hardcore.
Enter Ajantis the paladin
How far will he go?
And @lefreut , good luck. Although since you're doing Paladin run, I think I will be torn btween cheering for you and cheering for Diablo.
He then goes against Blood Raven a rogue corrupted by Andariel herself.
Ajantis collects some nice items (for his level).
Less emotions, more reasoning please.
In addition, Blizzard is now just flat-out re-uploading the trailer to Youtube because the Like/Dislike ratio is unlike anything that has ever been seen (7200 likes/214,000 dislikes currently) and deleting negative comments. Which is their right, it's their Youtube channel. But it is coming across as desperate damage control.
Classes - in my initial post I mentioned their design is essentially identical to Diablo III and I said it was a bad thing.
Mictotransactions - Opinion based on the lack of informations is not valid. There is no data to make a sufficient conclusions of how they are going to be implemented. Yes, this is area of concern, because it can be very bad. Then again, it could be one of these games in which microtransactions are implemented in non-invasive manner. The thing is, we have no idea. There is going to be Q&A panel, so it could be a good idea for someone attending the thing to ask about it.
Diablo 2 remaster is very unlikely to happen anytime soon for one reason. According to David Brevik, the assets for the game are lost, meaning making a remaster is likely not going to happen. And if it will, it would be very difficult, not to mention the end result might still not be appealing for old fans. It's just like with enhanced edition of Baldur's Gate. HD Remake was originally hoped for, according to Trent Oster, but with assets gone, not much could be done about it.
Druid dlc for Diablo 3 was a garbage rumour from the start. It was based on shallow reference in-game (the wing cosmetic describtion referenced Druids) and wishful thinking. Not only that, many people didn't even bothered to ask themselves how elementalist/shapeshifter split would work in D3 skill system. I did and it would be at least problematic, if not straight up broken.
What we knew about incoming gaming projects (at least what I know from following Rhykker's videos for months) was the following: there were job postings that indicated a mobile game - and whoa, it happened. Mind blown. What we also can deduce it is that a big project, requiring more advanced technology than used in Diablo 3, and with new art director and game director is in the works. Likely a true sequel, be it Diablo IV or some kind of prequel game.
Now, I get the dissapointment. I am dissapointed as well. But I'm honest enough to judge that mobile game on its own, rather than joining the mob.
What I know that even to this day first Starcraft game remains an e-sport title and still brings Blizzard passive income just from being e-sport. Investing in it at keeping it in good condition is certainly (and sadly) more profitable, safer and (from company's POV) preffered than remastering Diablo 2. Also please notice, I never did said D2 remaster is impossible, but difficult (lost assets) and risky (the end result still might not appeal to old fans). What I said is:
Basically: it is not going to happen soon. But it is not impossible.
I think Diablo 2 remaster can be done, but only after Blizzard's other classic games are remastered and in a good shape. Diablo would be more difficult to remaster from scratch without assets than Starcraft with its sprites and Warcraft III with 3d models.
With the help of Akara, Ajantis was able to decipher the scroll to find the secret code that open a portal to
another dimensionTristram.Ajantis had to fight a corrupted Griswold. He is very strong but does not give very good loot.
Wirt nooooooo
The Deckard Cain rescue mission is a success!
Next, Ajantis decides to explore the Forgotten Tower. The Countess drops some nice things (a rune and a set item).
Ajantis hits level 12 and chooses to specialize in Zeal.
With his new ability, Ajantis enters the monastary where he finds and kills The Smith. Ajantis then goes to visit dear Andy. She was nice and gives him a nice falchion.
Here are Ajantis stats at the end of Act 1
---
On unrelated note, with Diablo Fans as the source (site, not group of people):
Blizzard about backlash:
https://www.diablofans.com/news/49073-amidst-diablo-immortal-backlash-blizzard-stresse/
Apparently, the full things can be found on Polygon and IGN, but I am very unwilling to share a link to a site with such low level of credibility.
Basically, it confirms that there are in fact multiple projects still being worked on. It also confirms that the team was really concerned before revealing Diablo Immortal on tis year's Blizzcon. According to the full thing on Polygon, the team is aware that fans are very passionate and therefore dissapointed by not hearing big news they wanted. I am personally relieved they don't talk back in disrespectful or condesending manner, because recently some game developers/publishers tends to do that.
According to what IGN, Blizzard basically dodged the question "is Diablo Immortal reskinned" and instead said they were working together on it as a team.
Diablo Fans' interview
https://www.diablofans.com/news/49075-diablo-immortal-interview-with-wyatt-cheng-and-joe
In this instances I will just say my take on it:
- The story will be mostly told via talking to NPCs. Two things. First, for that dialogues needs to be good - I hope they will learn from Diablo III's mistakes. Second, wht about "show, don't tell" rule?
- Apparently the demo on Blizzcon was build specifically for the presentation. I am concerned with this.
- I do think that Diablo without random tilesets is a bad idea. It wouldn't be necessary bad for clearing the story, but it will when re-visiting the areas, grinding etc.
- The design philosophy looks good enough on paper, but I don't know how that will translate into final product.
- Blizzard claims it develops the game together with NetEase. Claim is consistent with IGN interview.
- For additional content, new zones, classes, loot, dungeons are planned. It is unknown how frequent updates will be. Fair enough.
- As for trade, they claim they will try to find compromise between no-trading (Diablo III currently) and what Diablo II offers. Apparently both have its positive and negative sides, the sentiment I can agree on.
- There will be some form of cafting/item improvement system
- So far there is not an option for alternative controls than touch screen. Blizzard claims to have open mind to possibilities, however. I think that's fair enough, but I don't think there will be other control method.
- Too early to say whether the game will provide cinematics. Personally, I would love to, but from practicall point of view, I am unsure. Especially since I know very little about technical limitations on mobile devices, so me shutting up about it is only valid thing to do.
- There will be some sort of customization. The aren't sure if transmog will be avaliable. Nothing I can really take from it.
- Resources managment undergones experimentation. From mana for all classes, to different resources, to charges, cooldowns etc. Multiple approaches are considered. I just hope they will settle on something that will work for the game and will result in satisfying flow.
- Blizzard does not support people playing on emulators, but won't go after them. *claps*
- Blizzard apparently isn't sure about how the game will be monetized. So far, claims about invasive microtranslations are not valid. They could still be valid in the future, but for now criticizing the game for features it doesn't posses right now is sheer stupidity. Unpopular opinion: I actually wish Blizzard could earn some passive income from this game. From all of its franchises, Diablo is the only one that lacks any. It is also not an e-sport game. Both actually might be reasons why Diablo doesn't recieve as much attention from Blizzard as other franchises. If a spin-off game can change that, I will welcome that, providing the monetization isn't done in unfair or gameplay-breaking way.
Q&A session
https://www.diablofans.com/news/49074-diablo-immortal-world-and-q-a-panel-recap
I'll focus mostly on answering the question of the fans:
- Too early to say whether Mephisto is going to appear in-game. I guess this question was brought up since some form of Baal appeared in gameplay trailer.
- Itemization of the game is in development. Legendary powers will apparently be part of it. It is okay, but I would rather them not be so over-the-top as in Diablo III. I think they should affect gameplay and the way you use skills, but that's it. Not used to break the game.
- Items will be capable of being improved over time. Good.
- Buisness model is undecided. Consistent with what they said in the other interview.
- The team is more concerned with making a good game rather how Diablo looks in comparison to its acion rpg competition. This could be either good or bad thing. Also, is it limited to this particular game or to the franchise as a whole?
- They opinion on trading is consistent with the other interview.
- Lore wise, the formation of Demon Hunters will be a big focus.
Apparently, nobody was smart enough to ask the team about the market research they did before starting working on Diablo Immortal. It's a shame. With potential answer, someone with some knowledge about market research and methodology could learn some interesting things.
Some other informations from the panel:
- There will be forgotten tower from Diablo II. With ressurected Countess to boot.
- Throwing enemies is one of Barbarian's new abillities.
- Ice Crystal is new skill for Wizard
- Daring Swing is new skill for Demon Hunter
- Imprisoned Fist is new skill for Monk.
Beyond that, mobile gaming is hated for a reason. The first being the controls. There is no choice but to have them on the screen. It limits what can be put there initially, but your thumbs also obscure the view. Many people are going to have to upgrade their phones. I personally have an S9, but if I ever intended on playing something like this, I would almost have to spring for the larger Note models of the Galaxy to make it even remotely appealing. Even if you get your upgrades through an installment plan on your monthly bill, the devices that can run this thing are damn near $1000. The price of a good gaming laptop.
Beyond that....data usage. The whole narrative they are trying to push is short bursts of play on the go. Except at best you are going to have a Wi-Fi connection 50% of the time around town. This game is online. It's going to chew through data. And if you don't have a connection, many people are only going to even think about playing it at home. But why would they, when they can play literally anything else??
Finally, Netease, the company they partnered with, is notorious for microtransaction cash grabs in the Asian market. And that is who this game is for. It's a pure cash grab that was almost certainly ordered to take place by Activision. And it will probably rake in the cash. But that's all it will ever be.
As a side note, why is the Witch Doctor not in this game when the 6 other classes from D3 are?? It was the only black character choice. Why did it get put on the chopping block??
In regards to monetizing Diablo....look.....every other game they have is raking in cash from microtransactions. WoW from character boosts, mounts and pets. Starcraft 2 with it's ridiculous announcer packs. Hearthstone is self-evident. Heroes of the Storm requires you to buy most of your heroes. Overwatch is a loot box extravaganza. Is it too much to ask that ONE of their franchises stand on it's own for a set price?? Did they not make enough from the 10s of millions of people who bought Diablo 3, Reaper of Souls, and the Necromancer pack??
The announced it because there is nothing else to announce or justify this show anymore. WoW is not dead, but it is stuck in a perpetual rut and I am personally just waiting for Classic at this point. Starcraft seems to be completely devoid of even any speculation of a new game. Hearthstone will always release new card packs, and Overwatch and Heroes are just cash-shop bonanzas. Diablo was the one franchise that still felt like a game rather than a vehicle for credit card purchases. Now that is dead too. Blizzard used to be the pinnacle of what you'd want a game company to be. They've essentially turned into EA at this point.
What you say abot NetEase is enough to make some educated guesses, providing what you saidthat is true. And I can't really judge that, because I know nothing about this company. So let's say I now believe there is actual probability of invasive microtransactions.
Your previous points, I generally agree with and have nothing to add.
The only thing about it being cash grab that seriously puzzles me, why Diablo? It is the least popular and profitable of all of Blizzard's franchises, so profit will be relatively low. On the other hand, you could instead make a game with Warcraft paintjob and earn tons of money. So why?
I guess my main problem still is there. This game is not going to be judged on its own, regardless of its actual quality. I predict people will make reviews and user ratings on various sites utterly useless once again.
Ajantis Normal Act2
Ajantis first task in Lut Gholein was to help a damsel in distress, Atma and to defeatRamazithRadament.Ajantis hates scarabs, they almost killed him a few times
Ajantis decides to go hunting for some runes and exp. He unlocks a new ability and create some nice runewords
Ajantis goes to fight dangerous monsters to find all the pieces needed to craft the Horadric staff that will let him enter the Duriel room.
Beaten the nightmare difficulty without grinding. Let's see how Bart will fare on hell difficulty.
Unbuffed stats and skills on hell difficulty:
Changes in equipment from the last time:
Added socket from Larzuk (normal difficulty) in Falcata to create this runeword. Crushing blow will be essential.
Personalized Immortal King's Will:
Amulet I forgot to screenshot before:
New ring. Boring, but practical on hell:
Mercenary stats and equipment:
This guy needs resistances badly.
Wish me luck. Or not if you don't feel like it.
Ajantis Normal Act2
After a quick exploration of the palace, Ajantis finds a mysterious portal that teleport to a strange place.4 directions, which one the correct one?
Not this one.
Or this one.
Nor this one
Ajantis defeats the Summoner and gets the symbol to find the true Tomb.
The calm before the storm.
As usual, the fight against Duriel is very hard. The mercenary helps a lot and in the end Ajantis is victorious \o/
Ajantis Normal Act3
Ajantis travels to Kurast where he almost catch the Dark Wanderer.One nice charm and one set item \o/
Ajantis level up and can choose his new aura
Ajantis assembles all the pieces to forge Khalim's Flail.
The fight against Mephy went well. The drops are cool (the shield remind me of something
Ajantis Normal Act4
Ajantis fights Izual a fallen angel. The fight is not very difficult but it takes time as he as literally one million HPUniq drop! No very useful (the mercenary already has a better weapon) but a uniq is always cool.
Ajantis goes to destroy Mephisto soulstone and was extremely lucky with the rune drop
Ajantis changes his armor with a better one and finds another set item.
I usually farm a little before Diablo to level-up but I get bored so I go fight him sooner than usual. It turns out it was a bad idea. Ajantis starts to hit with Zeal and Diablo answers with his huge light attack. Guess who wins?
D1 - Reading tomes
D2 - Investing skill points
D3 - Finding a bigger and sharper axe