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Blame it on Guild Wars 2/Blizzard's greed.
So this is what I'm thinking....
In January of this year GW2 gives a little hint that they'll be releasing the following year around the same time... Then, in early April ArenaNet starts offerring Open-Beta testing with pre-orders, followed by the April 27th open beta weekend. Blizzard most definitely got themselves a copy and after playing it come to the realization that GW2 is a lot closer to release than what was previously indicated... So they panicked..
They knew that if GW2 were to release before Diablo III, which for all intensive purposes can be considered direct competition, that it would ultimately hurt D3s initial release sales. So they go into "worst case scenario" mode, realizing their own game in its current development state is going to be lacking seriously. Sensing a June-ish release date from GW2, they have no choice but to release a partially done game..
So development realizes that they're going to have to figure out a way to deliver the game in a piece by piece method, while also ensuring that the masses wont just tear through their unfinished game. They decide to scrap trying to figure out pvp balancing, and focus on finishing up the overall PVE content itself. This might be a stretch, but I bet they brought in some coders from WoW (why the game has similar graphics), and tried to polish/debug what they had for a release.
As a means to slow down people from utterly ripping through the content, they just make inferno mode impossible for the layman player. They also reduce the drops so as to be able to figure out the best way to implement the RMAH. The DRM is also a pretty good method of artificially controlling people from getting to the end point (a single player offline mode allows people to choose whether to update their game) ..
Thinking along this path, you can kind of get a better scope as to how Blizzard is maximizing their sales. The tragedy in all of this is that all of us basically paid full price to rent (DRM means you DO NOT own it) a partially finished game. The greater insult is that most of us will probably also pay to purchase DLCs piece by piece, until Blizzard decides to actually make right on their committment in providing an adequate version of Diablo 3. I'm thinking they intend on milking us for about $150-200 for their full, envisioned finished product.
This is why that petition is so important. The more signatures that the petition gets, the higher likelihood that a class action suit will be filed, and the greater the chances that Blizzard does NOT charge its playerbase for paying for their own failures. Not to piss in anyone's cornflakes, but if you honestly think that this game is anywhere near complete in its current state, with the DRM, as well as the lack of pvp, proper balancing, and the broken AH, then I'm sorry, but you should really take a seriously better look.
So what do you guys think? Am I some crazy conspiracy theorist? Or does this make some sense?
injenu.
Comments
lol, nice tinfoil hat theory you have there...
Former xFire user... I only wanted a game tracker and messenger, not a screenshot taker, video recording, broadcasting piece of bloatware.
I think if they wanted to sabotage a games launch it would have been SWTOR.
Hmmmm, from what I saw of the game, it seemed pretty complete to me, especially when referenced to it's predecessors.
Of course, there was that, what was it.......pea vee pee thingy. In a single-player game? Nah.
I want a mmorpg where people have gone through misery, have gone through school stuff and actually have had sex even. -sagil
(hands you back your bag full of marbles and steps away from the Kool-Aid)
Yea... ummm.... ok....
Nobody move to quick, it'll spook him.
It's definitely a crazy conspiracy theory, that much I'll grant you, but I don't think GW2 really had that much influence upon D3's release schedule.
I would wager that Blizzard had internal projected timelines & deadlines for the game's release, they looked at the RMAH & how long it would take to finish all of it's features & took a decision that was not enough to stop the release as the rest of the game was in their eyes finished.
However, I think Blizzard have been grossly sloppy in the beta stress test & in the weeks after launch, it's been a very problematic game for a lot of users & there are many who are very unhappy with the experience they've had.
I myself have been unable to play for more than half of the days I wanted to due to Error 37 etc, had the game not adopted it's retarded DRM always online I could have played D3 in just the same way as I played D1 & D2 - offline, I didn't play the first 2 online & neither am I all that interested in playing D3 Online either.
I understand why they chose this online method but it's execution has been shit.
pretty sure that alot of people who do play D3, have no idea what GW2 is.
lol tinfoil hat
(It's actually "for all intents and purposes". Sorry, I had to correct that, common mistake though.)
As far as your theory, it makes sense and it's entirely possible. But I doubt Blizzard feels threatened by ArenaNet. I'm sure Blizzard -- as a business -- is wary of the competition, but I don't think they would rush a product to compete with a game that doesn't even have a release date yet.
And the part in red, I don't think bringing in coders from WoW as of April 27th would have influenced the game as much as you are speculating. If they brought in coders from WoW after the GW2 beta, and D3 released on May 15th, that would mean the WoW coders would have a little over 15 days to completely redesign the assets (if, like you say, that is why D3's graphics are similar to WoW's graphics).
I agree, they probably did bring in extra coders to help polish and debug the game for the May 15th release, but D3's graphics have been that way since the first gameplay / teaser video I watched two years ago. They always intended to go for that style in order to decrease system requirements and increase their target audience.
Some of your points make sense, but it is all speculation.
edit: Now that I think about it, your theory would make perfect sense if ArenaNet announced a release date sometime around May 15th. If Blizzard really wanted to compete with GW2, they would have waited for the GW2 release date.
Am i the only person on the planet that doesn't get the fascination with Diablo? Speaking from an MMO fan point of view.
You guys honestly think that people played D2 for over a decade because they liked killing monsters for loot all day? No, it was the pvp, the ability to join and create any static game that you wanted, and because actually killing monsters yielded nice loot instead of the random stats on non character specific blues.
If you don't believe, don't want to believe me, than google "Diablo 3 sucks" and you'll see all the reasons why this game fell egregiously short for anyone who played D2 for any great length of time. It's like they're doing the same thing with D3 that they did with Star Craft 3. Instead of releasing a finished product, they just release their games in snippets and call the additional content "expansions".
How can anyone honestly sit here and say that this is what they expected Blizzard to produce after 12 years spanning from their last release? It's a flat out insult for crying out loud.
what....the....hell....
Because for me, Diablo 1 was the first RPG game that caused my parents to be concerned as to why their 11 year old son would stay up till 4am in front of a computer screen. I probably wouldn't have been as interested in MMOs if it wasn't for Diablo.
No you're not..
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
Yes, and I can get just as many results by googling 'diablo 2 sucks'. That proves nothing. Diablo has never been about PVP, ever. I've played it on and off since release and not ONCE engaged in consentual PVP. So put that in your pipe and smoke it.
Also, the game seems pretty complete to me, except for the PVP which I've already said I don't give a rat's ass about.
Not touching the rest of your little conspiracy theory (mainly because it's waaaay the hell out there), but you might want to check your tinfoil hat for rips and/or tears.
Because it's Blizzard and they can. I'm not saying it's morally just. Blizzard could give their diehard fans a turd and call it "gold," and those fans would consider it gold, because Blizzard gave it to them.
No there is two of us
As someone that started on D1, you're absolutely out of touch with what "people" want from Diablo games. Stop speaking for everyone and start speaking for yourself. Diablo 2 wasn't the first game in the series. Generously speaking, there are a whole thousand or so that disapprove of the game? Compare that to several million happily enjoying it.
Diablo 3:
In development for 12 years in an almost-finished state, just waiting for the perfect opportunity to try and ruin a relatively small scale Korean publisher's stock value.
Most expensive and elaborate trolling EVER!!
jaja no gw2 canot compeet with d3 on pvp
No, you are not.
But I think I might be the only person in the planet whose fascination for Rome: Total War re-ignited when playing D3 Beta. wtf?
Don Quixote's Delusions
Here's a good snippet of forum posts and youtube video reviews that will illuminate to you in much better vocabulary the reasoning behind my anger at Blizzard...
http://us.battle.net/d3/en/forum/topic/5152413872
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2246287
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjKA7hz5JwY - This one you have to turn up the volume but its pretty funny.
Blizzard is hyper-aware of its competition, you don't think that the loss of subscriptions for WoW in 2011 didn't hurt its stock price? Do you think stockholders care about Blizzard's dominance of the MMO genre? No, they want more, they want their stocks to rise and rise and the only way Blizzard can do that is by either creating an actually good game, or by using the hype of a game and gimmicks built within their own system to essentially milk the "blizzard can do no wrong" crowd until they've actually truly finished the product.
Unplug yourself from the Matrix man.. Maybe I come from another generation of gamers, so I can't relate or understand the enjoyment in simply killing monster after monster in search of loot.. Because as archaic as it seems now, games like UO, AC provided for a rush from the prospect of being killed by another player that Diablo 3 in its current state could never in a million years provide people with. That's why people played D2 for as long as they did, otherwise they would have just played the several MMOs that have come and gone instead of playing the 2D hack and slash game that was Diablo II.
All that seemed to explain is that you're mad at Blizzard because it's not Diablo 2, unless I'm missing some vital point here.
All games are overhyped. Most games don't live up to that hype. When (according to you) the nemesis of Blizzard, GW2 is released that too will disappoint. As will a buch of other games. You buy into the hype, most of the time you end up disappointed.
Still we believe the hype and buy into a game because 'It's going to be so good'.
Guys give the OP a break. He's describing the kind of stuff that does literally go on in the industry all the time. This we know.
So is it really THAT far out there? Id say no. I cant say I agree with it or think thats really what happened. Its a fair theory. I dont find it unlikely nor do I find it likely. I just find it possible. He's thought it out and he could very well be right on some points (of that I have no doubt) or even all or most of them.
You guys have to admit that much. Its not so far out there we need to start talking about tin foil hats here.
There are things regarding D3 that scream of either incompetence or instead being rushed. Such as the launch problems, as well as no PVP in the game. You can say PVP doesnt matter to you and thats fine. But they will add it. And if they'll add it later then why wasnt it there in the first place? Going back to the launch problems, this is Blizzard we're talking about here. They should know how to run servers better than they have. Like I said, its either incompetence which I kind of doubt, or it was being rushed. Why was it being rushed?
Could be any number of reasons. But avoiding the GW2 launch is just as reasonable a theory as any otheres. There might have even been other reasons to go along with it, or GW2 might not have been a factor at all. But I can give the OP a nod as far as saying the game has problems it shouldnt, and the theory it was put out in a rushed state.
Because the alternative is far worse. If thats not true then Blizzard isnt nearly as competent as many thought they were.
They simply UNDERESTIMATED how many people would want to play the game on release day. The same thing happened on WOWs release day, the expansion packs just added more content and were already stabilized.