Is Diablo 3 better with the mandatory internet requirement?

Some might disagree but there are certain aspects that make a DRM type of game much better than a pure single player online. Diablo 3 does not  completely take away the single player experience. It has created a hybrid between single player and multiplayer.

It is true that not everyone enjoys online game play.

Blizzard made sure to satisfy their needs to some degree but on the other hand, we have seen how this system can fail. Players have lost control of ownership over the game with this new battle.net authentication play style.

Simply put, no battle.net, no Diablo 3. A Diablo 2 player can play the game even if Blizzard disappears from the face of the Earth while a Diablo 3 player will just stand hopeless as he says goodbye forever to his favorite title.

Still things aren’t that bad. In fact the whole experience of the always-on system might just be better than the standard way of playing single player games. The current setup allows any single player character to go on and off cooperative games as he pleases with just one or two clicks. While in coop mode, players will be able to interact while they progress through the storyline or farm for gold and items.

Also, this system removes the possibility of creating duplicate items like we seen in Diablo 2.

A hard working player will always be admired for his gear and skill as everyone knows these items can only be obtained through hard work and determination. This is just a way of raising the stakes and succeeding in dominating the game trough someone else’s rules.

The feel that the player has only his character and he steps into a world controlled by Blizzard brings a certain thrill to the table. In Diablo 2 there were too many gaps in the system that allowed players to manipulate the game too much. Diablo 3 is different and every achievement is a true statement of skill and dedication.

kotaku

Last week’s rough launch of Diablo IIIneatly illustrated the biggest problem with the game’s ‘always-on’ internet requirement. It was a reminder that consumers have lost a portion of their ownership of the game, that we no longer have complete control even over whether or not our game will start.

That’s as true this week as it was last week, but the more I play, the more I’ve found that there are also some things about Diablo III’s always-on world that make it more vital, exciting and engaging. Full here

and some comments.

icarus212001 @Bakamoichigei

IT’s one thing to do it because you can, and another when it’s REQUIRED of you. What happens if your internet goes out? Or you can’t pay for it? You should be allowed to play the game you paid for without being required to constantly be online. It’s a ridiculous demand to impose and it bothers me that because of D3′s success this may end up being the norm.

Bakamoichigei @icarus212001

‘May end up being the norm’? I have over 100 modern PC games, and I’m sure I could count the number I can play without an internet connection on one hand. If it’s not the games themselves, it’s the distribution method.

That boat? It’s sailed. Sailed, and returned from the new world, its holds laden with exotic spices. So it’s probably time to get used to the way things are.

And, honestly. If you can’t pay for your internet connection, you’ve got bigger problems than not being able to play video games. Don’t you think?

 

Bakamoichigei @Fernando Jorge

I don’t know what to tell you about the gameplay issues. YMMV, I guess?

I haven’t experienced any server-related lag (A few GPU chokes though…), and I live in rural New England, literally as far from Blizzard as you can get in the continental US.

You have to OPT-IN to making your game open to the public, and you can allow JUST your friends if you want.

The only hacking I’ve heard of so far are people having their accounts broken into, and I’ll bet the vast majority of those people have shit passwords. (Or better yet are Kotakuites, and use the same email address and password for Bnet as they used for Kotaku before the Gawker breach!) In-game hacking and cheating has been rendered almost impossible by the ‘always-online’ scheme.

And YES, the servers WILL stabilize. Every game with heavy online aspects seems to go through a similarly bumpy launch these days… Look at Battlefield 3, the central servers were crapping all sorts of madness for WEEKS, and all it does is record stats and maintain a server list! (Even though the EXACT same thing happened with BF2 and BF2142. wtf, EA?!)

So far, I’ve only been disconnected in the middle of a game ONCE, and that was because my modem rebooted. And with the exception of a single planned downtime, I haven’t had trouble logging in since the release day shenanigans. (Admittedly I haven’t been trying to play it 24/7 like some)

Why is it when I make any marginally-controversial comment, the whole of the internet seems to come out of the woodwork to tell me why they think I’m wrong, but I write an interesting one, and no one seems to even bother reading it? Maybe if they did, they’d have a better understanding of Blizz’s decision.