Originally posted by zymurgeist

 You're going to see not one but two expansions to Diablo 3. The first expansion is well into production. Diablo 4 is a few years off. Diablo 3 was successful far beyond their expectations. After the huge volume of pre-orders they rushed extra boxes into production and still faced shortages. People complaining on forums can't tarnish a level of success most gaming companies only dream about. The only real question now is how well will Heart of the Swarm fare?

It's going to be a lot longer than "a few years" between D3 and D4, if it comes at all.

It was more than 10 years between D2 and D3...

Heart of the Swarm should be immune to Diablo's performance, as they're two separate teams and SC2 pretty much met or exceeded expectations (although personally I would've liked for it to be a new multiplayer game, since I spent years mastering SC1 and actually wasn't looking for nearly the exact same game with SC2.)  

Originally posted by Souldrainer
My thoughts of D3 are all negative, so I am not allowed to express my thoughts about the game... so I won't. I will say this. By comparasin, EA and Bioware have been relentless in their efforts to turn around the negative feedback for ME3. I keep seeing more and more free DLC announced for that game every week... extended cut endings, and a new "Earth" pack on the horizon. With D3, I have yet to even see much acknowledgment of failure. Maybe it's too soon, or maybe they do not care.

Thank freaking God...RELEASE THE DOVES!!! Victory is ours!!! 

Originally posted by Axehilt

Originally posted by zymurgeist

 You're going to see not one but two expansions to Diablo 3. The first expansion is well into production. Diablo 4 is a few years off. Diablo 3 was successful far beyond their expectations. After the huge volume of pre-orders they rushed extra boxes into production and still faced shortages. People complaining on forums can't tarnish a level of success most gaming companies only dream about. The only real question now is how well will Heart of the Swarm fare?

It's going to be a lot longer than "a few years" between D3 and D4, if it comes at all.

It was more than 10 years between D2 and D3...

Heart of the Swarm should be immune to Diablo's performance, as they're two separate teams and SC2 pretty much met or exceeded expectations (although personally I would've liked for it to be a new multiplayer game, since I spent years mastering SC1 and actually wasn't looking for nearly the exact same game with SC2.)  

I was speaking more to the issue of people claiming Blizzard has lost it's golden touch and thinking that it matters if they personally ever buy another Blizzard game. Blizzard does need to tread some new ground and create some new franchises for the long term.

Originally posted by zekeofev

I will never buy Blizzard ever again. Period.

Good for you! Stick to your guns! Even if they release an AMAZING game that everyone on the planet plays and it's decried the greatest game ever made...don't buy it...you said you wouldn't. Period.

Originally posted by zymurgeist

Originally posted by Axehilt

Originally posted by zymurgeist

 You're going to see not one but two expansions to Diablo 3. The first expansion is well into production. Diablo 4 is a few years off. Diablo 3 was successful far beyond their expectations. After the huge volume of pre-orders they rushed extra boxes into production and still faced shortages. People complaining on forums can't tarnish a level of success most gaming companies only dream about. The only real question now is how well will Heart of the Swarm fare?

It's going to be a lot longer than "a few years" between D3 and D4, if it comes at all.

It was more than 10 years between D2 and D3...

Heart of the Swarm should be immune to Diablo's performance, as they're two separate teams and SC2 pretty much met or exceeded expectations (although personally I would've liked for it to be a new multiplayer game, since I spent years mastering SC1 and actually wasn't looking for nearly the exact same game with SC2.)  

I was speaking more to the issue of people claiming Blizzard has lost it's golden touch and thinking that it matters if they personally ever buy another Blizzard game. Blizzard does need to tread some new ground and create some new franchises for the long term.

I dont fully agree with u on this one. Diablo 3 was this huge sucess despite most people that bought it disliking the game and all the negative feedback due to 2 major things:

1-Blizzard has built alot of credibility in terms of release quality games, regardless what anyone personally think about the company u cant deny that the general gamer population see blizzard as an example of great games

2-Combination of alot of marking plus the huge fanbase of the diablo 1 and 2 that were eager to buy the new game, highest pre-order sale anyone? Even if the game was bad this was a decisive factor for it to sell so well. Alot of people bought the game without checking reviews or trying a beta first.

Now u dont have to be a genius to see alot of those players are very unhappy with the game they got, and those same players might be inclined not to just buy anything blizzard releases without at least researching it first a bit. One bad game aint enought to bring down a company as big and sucessfull as blizzard but it can affect there profits and future releases, what remains to be seen is if they gonna keep with this model and if it gonna blow up on their faces (1 game might not take down a companys credibility but a series of bad games will) or if they gonna take the feedback and make a better game that would mean better reviews and possibily bigger profits.

I think the developers care about feedback and want to continue to make the best possible gaming experience for the majority of their players (current and prospective).

I was not following the game and had no intentions of buying it. I played Diablo 2 alot back in college, but the RMAH and the always online thing kind of put me off. A friend of mine got the game for free because of the 1yr WoW sub deal they had going and he gave me his buddy key. I assured him I was not looking to spend $60 for a game any time soon. Installed the game and fell in love with it. Bought it and have been playing it for almost a month now.

I'm not a Blizzard fanboy and I understand everyones concerns about the game, but it really is a good game despite it's flaws. The only thing that really worries me now is that the developers intend to keep tinkering with the game. Most of the time that is a good thing, but I've had a couple experiences in the past where developer moves pretty much shut down my enjoyment of a game. I hope that doesn't happen, but even if it does, I've already got my money's worth from the game and plan to play it for a long time yet.

Originally posted by Psychow

Originally posted by zekeofev

I will never buy Blizzard ever again. Period.

 

Good for you! Stick to your guns! Even if they release an AMAZING game that everyone on the planet plays and it's decried the greatest game ever made...don't buy it...you said you wouldn't. Period.

Some people dont like mainstream products. That includes games, music, books, food, art and almost everything. If the product is intended for broadest possible audience I will probably not like it. A game that everyone on the planet plays is not for me. A really good game intended for me and people like me would have to be a nishe game. A game few mainstream consumers would want to play...

I think future Blizzard games will be very mainstream and bland and they will try hard not to offend anyone. They will certainly be good from a business POV.

Originally posted by xdemonhunter

Originally posted by zymurgeist

Originally posted by Axehilt

Originally posted by zymurgeist

 You're going to see not one but two expansions to Diablo 3. The first expansion is well into production. Diablo 4 is a few years off. Diablo 3 was successful far beyond their expectations. After the huge volume of pre-orders they rushed extra boxes into production and still faced shortages. People complaining on forums can't tarnish a level of success most gaming companies only dream about. The only real question now is how well will Heart of the Swarm fare?

It's going to be a lot longer than "a few years" between D3 and D4, if it comes at all.

It was more than 10 years between D2 and D3...

Heart of the Swarm should be immune to Diablo's performance, as they're two separate teams and SC2 pretty much met or exceeded expectations (although personally I would've liked for it to be a new multiplayer game, since I spent years mastering SC1 and actually wasn't looking for nearly the exact same game with SC2.)  

I was speaking more to the issue of people claiming Blizzard has lost it's golden touch and thinking that it matters if they personally ever buy another Blizzard game. Blizzard does need to tread some new ground and create some new franchises for the long term.

I dont fully agree with u on this one. Diablo 3 was this huge sucess despite most people that bought it disliking the game and all the negative feedback due to 2 major things:

1-Blizzard has built alot of credibility in terms of release quality games, regardless what anyone personally think about the company u cant deny that the general gamer population see blizzard as an example of great games

2-Combination of alot of marking plus the huge fanbase of the diablo 1 and 2 that were eager to buy the new game, highest pre-order sale anyone? Even if the game was bad this was a decisive factor for it to sell so well. Alot of people bought the game without checking reviews or trying a beta first.

Now u dont have to be a genius to see alot of those players are very unhappy with the game they got, and those same players might be inclined not to just buy anything blizzard releases without at least researching it first a bit. One bad game aint enought to bring down a company as big and sucessfull as blizzard but it can affect there profits and future releases, what remains to be seen is if they gonna keep with this model and if it gonna blow up on their faces (1 game might not take down a companys credibility but a series of bad games will) or if they gonna take the feedback and make a better game that would mean better reviews and possibily bigger profits.

 There were "a lot" of players that felt the same way about Diablo 2, Warcraft 3, Starcraft 2, WoW, and every WoW expansion. They're very vocal about it.  Yet Blizzard continues to set new records with each release. So what is "a lot" anyway? Clearly it has not been the majority or even a significant minority because with each release sales increase sometimes by as much as a factor or two. D3 sold in one week more that D2 sold from it's release until the D3 launch.  Until there is actually a downturn in sales at launch, something Blizzard has never experienced, predictions that it will happen aren't worth the words wasted to make them. MoP may be the first but even then that will have more to do with WoW's decine in  popularity than any supposed failing of Blizzard's as a game producer.

I had great fun for around 180 hours of playtime, more than Skyrim, more than GTAs, more than almost every non MMO game I played. I'll be dipping back in on occasion to see how far I can get with a HC character.

I was underwhelmed by the story and i wish there was more random events to make maps feel less linear.

When the PVP patch hits though, I'll be all in again for a while.

Originally posted by Hurvart

Originally posted by Psychow

Originally posted by zekeofev

I will never buy Blizzard ever again. Period.

 

Good for you! Stick to your guns! Even if they release an AMAZING game that everyone on the planet plays and it's decried the greatest game ever made...don't buy it...you said you wouldn't. Period.

Some people dont like mainstream products. That includes games, music, books, food, art and almost everything. If the product is intended for broadest possible audience I will probably not like it. A game that everyone on the planet plays is not for me. A really good game intended for me and people like me would have to be a nishe game. A game few mainstream consumers would want to play...

I think future Blizzard games will be very mainstream and bland and they will try hard not to offend anyone. They will certainly be good from a business POV.

Yeah, I know the type. [mod edit]

But it's their choice. If they want to feel like a special flower and only enjoy things aimed specifically at them, they can do that.

I actually like the game. The combat feels nice, I like the graphics, it was a fun story to me.

I don't like that when my ISP has problems, and they always do when I'm about to go to a boss fight, that my single player game stops working.

Online should've been a big deal for the game. But it really shouldn't have affected my playing the game. Due to the storms recently I can't stay connected at all (the ISP's excuse anyway) so I can't get out of the 2nd chapter with my monk.

That's my only problem with it.

Auto-cynic™ response:

Yes, they had to wake up and spend some cash, or the stacks of bills would cut off their air supply.

Originally posted by Magnum2103

No, considering the amount of money they made off the game I'm sure they don't care that much about player feedback.

Ditto.  They are just written off as a vocal minority.

Originally posted by Valua

Originally posted by FrodoFragins

Originally posted by Valua

Fastest selling PC game of all time, 9 million copies sold, hundreds of million of dollars made.

 

If anything, expect more like this.

Where did you get the 9 million number?

I read it somewhere, I'll try and find the link.

 

But that number is very believable, if not low if you consider this fact;

 

 

"Activision Blizzard reported that Diablo III had broken the one-day PC sales records, accumulating over 3.5 million sales in the first 24 hours after release and over 6.3 million sales in its first week"

 

 

That's 6.3 million copies in the first week, wouldn't surprise me if Diablo 3 had hit over 10 million easy.

They haven't announced anything since then.  So 6.3 million is the only legit number atm.

Originally posted by zymurgeist

 There were "a lot" of players that felt the same way about Diablo 2, Warcraft 3, Starcraft 2, WoW, and every WoW expansion. They're very vocal about it.  Yet Blizzard continues to set new records with each release. So what is "a lot" anyway? Clearly it has not been the majority or even a significant minority because with each release sales increase sometimes by as much as a factor or two. D3 sold in one week more that D2 sold from it's release until the D3 launch.  Until there is actually a downturn in sales at launch, something Blizzard has never experienced, predictions that it will happen aren't worth the words wasted to make them. MoP may be the first but even then that will have more to do with WoW's decine in  popularity than any supposed failing of Blizzard's as a game producer.

Yeah, it's complete nonsense for the previous poster to imply "most people" that bought it weren't satisfied.

If significant numbers of players were being dissatsified in the first 20 hours, I could understand.  But we're talking about a typical $60 non-MMO RPG.  I dunno about everyone else, but non-MMO RPGs last 100-200 hours then I'm done, and D3 lasted  maybe 300 hours for me.  Well worth it.

Nope, Blizzard made a lot of money with this.

They now know the RMAH works.

I wonder how long until WoW gets it.

Originally posted by Axehilt

Originally posted by zymurgeist

 There were "a lot" of players that felt the same way about Diablo 2, Warcraft 3, Starcraft 2, WoW, and every WoW expansion. They're very vocal about it.  Yet Blizzard continues to set new records with each release. So what is "a lot" anyway? Clearly it has not been the majority or even a significant minority because with each release sales increase sometimes by as much as a factor or two. D3 sold in one week more that D2 sold from it's release until the D3 launch.  Until there is actually a downturn in sales at launch, something Blizzard has never experienced, predictions that it will happen aren't worth the words wasted to make them. MoP may be the first but even then that will have more to do with WoW's decine in  popularity than any supposed failing of Blizzard's as a game producer.

Yeah, it's complete nonsense for the previous poster to imply "most people" that bought it weren't satisfied.

If significant numbers of players were being dissatsified in the first 20 hours, I could understand.  But we're talking about a typical $60 non-MMO RPG.  I dunno about everyone else, but non-MMO RPGs last 100-200 hours then I'm done, and D3 lasted  maybe 300 hours for me.  Well worth it.

 WoW....

300hrs thats like putting in 40hrs a week since release, just like a job. Each to there own I guess. I got about 12hrs out of it before I shelved it, repetative things just dont hold me for long.

300hrs holy shit

I know a few people who will never buy a Blizzard game again, but I'm sure it's not going to affect them in the slightest way.  Even if every person I knew decided that they would never buy Blizzard products, I'm sure the company wouldn't care. I don't care about them, and they don't care about me.

They made their cash. padded the Wow sub numbers for the next big call, and plainly told you to your faces you got ripped. pretty sad it took 11 years just to get punkd by blizzard.

Now with all the cash you guys gave them expect more craptastic games from them maybe even warcraft 4 with a cash shop and RMAH.

Better enjoy the pandas...it might be the only good thing they make until 3 years you get another expansion or Titan.

Originally posted by Psychow

Originally posted by laserit

Originally posted by Axehilt

Originally posted by zymurgeist

 There were "a lot" of players that felt the same way about Diablo 2, Warcraft 3, Starcraft 2, WoW, and every WoW expansion. They're very vocal about it.  Yet Blizzard continues to set new records with each release. So what is "a lot" anyway? Clearly it has not been the majority or even a significant minority because with each release sales increase sometimes by as much as a factor or two. D3 sold in one week more that D2 sold from it's release until the D3 launch.  Until there is actually a downturn in sales at launch, something Blizzard has never experienced, predictions that it will happen aren't worth the words wasted to make them. MoP may be the first but even then that will have more to do with WoW's decine in  popularity than any supposed failing of Blizzard's as a game producer.

Yeah, it's complete nonsense for the previous poster to imply "most people" that bought it weren't satisfied.

If significant numbers of players were being dissatsified in the first 20 hours, I could understand.  But we're talking about a typical $60 non-MMO RPG.  I dunno about everyone else, but non-MMO RPGs last 100-200 hours then I'm done, and D3 lasted  maybe 300 hours for me.  Well worth it.

 WoW....

300hrs thats like putting in 40hrs a week since release, just like a job. Each to there own I guess. I got about 12hrs out of it before I shelved it, repetative things just dont hold me for long.

300hrs holy shit

 

I'm surprised you play video games at all!!

 Moderation is the key, my friend.

There is a hell of a lot of things I like in life along with video games. Been playing them since the very beginning. The vast majority of them these days have that been there done that feel.