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Blizzard lose another customer...
Nov. 9th, 2011 11:07 pmBefore I get into this, I'd just like to list a few games that sit on my shelf. BattleChess, Warcraft/Warcraft II/Warcraft III (with expansions), Diablo/Diablo II+LOD, StarCraft,
I've enjoyed playing these quite a lot. Games like this are what moulded my gameplay preferences. Now, on with the spittle-filled rant!
I've been looking forward to Diablo III for some time, given that I played through the previous incarnations a hell of a lot, and the trailers and teasers I saw of Diablo III looked very nice.
But I've just seen that they decided to make it an online-only game, if you want to play you connect to their servers. Well, to be honest, bollocks to that. Fuck you Blizzard! Fuck you very much. I am a solo gamer for the most part. I play offline, on my own, and like it that way. In fact you were instrumental in creating that preference.
But your new approach is disastrous in relation to a few points that you just don't seem to care about. I'll mention them without a shred of expectation that you'll start caring, because to be honest most other companies don't give a fuck so why should you be any different. In fact, an interview with a higher-up in your company pretty much implies you don't care.
A) I don't want to rely on having a working internet connection in order to play a single player game! Needing such a thing is one of the most stupid decisions I've ever seen.
B) If my connection drops for any reason, I can't play the fucking thing. If I'm in the middle of playing it, I get kicked. I then have to redo everything since my last save all over again.
In regards to the above two points; I work with a lot of ISPs for my job. You wouldn't believe the amount of minor dropouts the average ADSL connection gets, and occasionally there are less minor ones. Then there's time when traffic congestion causes problems. (Live TV events like Wimbledon, or the World Cup, the Euros for example.)
C) I can spend anywhere between 10-20 hours a month going places by train, and I tend to pass the time by playing games on my laptop. Ever tried to use the internet on a train doing over 100MPH? It's pretty much fucking useless for the most part! Like you!
D) Specific to Diablo III. Apparently I won't be able to pause the game! How fucking brain dead is that? Not pausing a multi-player game, yeah I can see that, but like I said above I'm a solo gamer. If my phone rings I want to be able to pause my single player game! to talk to the person calling me. If someone knocks on my door, I want the same ability. If I decide to take a break for any reason whatsoever I don't want to have to keep playing until the next checkpoint.
Also, on top of no pausing, I can't just find a hidey hole and stand there because I'll get disconnected. There's not a facepalm picture big enough to show just how dumb those two things are.
Yet another company who've decided that the long awaited sequel to their incredibly popular game didn't need to appeal to the range of fans that made the predecessors so popular in the first place. That plus the general attitude means I'll likely be adding Blizzard to the List of Shame alongside Valve, and Ubisoft. It may even go on the "Don't even bother looking any more" list alongside SouthPeak/TopWare after their Two Worlds fiasco.
I've enjoyed playing these quite a lot. Games like this are what moulded my gameplay preferences. Now, on with the spittle-filled rant!
I've been looking forward to Diablo III for some time, given that I played through the previous incarnations a hell of a lot, and the trailers and teasers I saw of Diablo III looked very nice.
But I've just seen that they decided to make it an online-only game, if you want to play you connect to their servers. Well, to be honest, bollocks to that. Fuck you Blizzard! Fuck you very much. I am a solo gamer for the most part. I play offline, on my own, and like it that way. In fact you were instrumental in creating that preference.
But your new approach is disastrous in relation to a few points that you just don't seem to care about. I'll mention them without a shred of expectation that you'll start caring, because to be honest most other companies don't give a fuck so why should you be any different. In fact, an interview with a higher-up in your company pretty much implies you don't care.
A) I don't want to rely on having a working internet connection in order to play a single player game! Needing such a thing is one of the most stupid decisions I've ever seen.
B) If my connection drops for any reason, I can't play the fucking thing. If I'm in the middle of playing it, I get kicked. I then have to redo everything since my last save all over again.
In regards to the above two points; I work with a lot of ISPs for my job. You wouldn't believe the amount of minor dropouts the average ADSL connection gets, and occasionally there are less minor ones. Then there's time when traffic congestion causes problems. (Live TV events like Wimbledon, or the World Cup, the Euros for example.)
C) I can spend anywhere between 10-20 hours a month going places by train, and I tend to pass the time by playing games on my laptop. Ever tried to use the internet on a train doing over 100MPH? It's pretty much fucking useless for the most part! Like you!
D) Specific to Diablo III. Apparently I won't be able to pause the game! How fucking brain dead is that? Not pausing a multi-player game, yeah I can see that, but like I said above I'm a solo gamer. If my phone rings I want to be able to pause my single player game! to talk to the person calling me. If someone knocks on my door, I want the same ability. If I decide to take a break for any reason whatsoever I don't want to have to keep playing until the next checkpoint.
Also, on top of no pausing, I can't just find a hidey hole and stand there because I'll get disconnected. There's not a facepalm picture big enough to show just how dumb those two things are.
Yet another company who've decided that the long awaited sequel to their incredibly popular game didn't need to appeal to the range of fans that made the predecessors so popular in the first place. That plus the general attitude means I'll likely be adding Blizzard to the List of Shame alongside Valve, and Ubisoft. It may even go on the "Don't even bother looking any more" list alongside SouthPeak/TopWare after their Two Worlds fiasco.
