Originally Posted by
Pendulous
First off, you're right. The AH isn't a bad thing. It's actually a good thing, but I've explained my reasoning behind that before.
Second, no, I played Diablo 2 for a long, LONG time. I never felt I wasted a night playing because I couldn't get any items at least worth hanging on to for an alt or whatever.
You can enjoy a game if you want, but a lot, and I'd argue most, players want to be rewarded for their time. Diablo 3 flat out does not reward players for grinding. Paragon levels do nothing, or very little anyway, to improve a character, and even getting pass "fairly decent" as far as gear goes takes up to a billion and more gold. Billions of gold, which you're never going to get.
If you're content playing a game like Diablo 3, never finding upgrades and staying weak, more power to you. But a lot of people are disappointed, because they feel the point of a game like this is to grind out your gear, and trade to get upgrades, so you character gets stronger. It's about making your character better and more efficient. If you want to sit there and farm MP0-1 forever, go nuts, but the basis of the game is getting gear. Gear which you can't really get without spending real money, or getting REALLY REALLY REALLY lucky. Again, no, Diablo 3's grind is MUCH worse than Diablo 2's, and it doesn't take ten years of being released to know that. The devs have already admitted it.