Play Normal difficulty solo and only group from Nightmare onwards?

[Roshar]

I was thinking of playing the entire Normal difficulty solo without any grouping at all. The reason for this was my open beta experience...everyone would skip the dialogue, not bother with exploring the dungeon, and instead just rush to the next level and/or the Skeleton King. I felt like the story was very much on the backburner and no-one was interested in immersing themselves in the story. Now I know I may have somehow always been grouped up with people who have been playing the beta for ages and have done this part a million times already, but it felt like the "GOGOGOGOGO" mentality from WoW's pugs have carried over into D3.

Do you think it's best to play the Normal difficulty fully solo so that you can take your time in reading the quest text/listen to quest dialogue and explore the dungeon instead of rushing to the end? Or do you think the rushing was just a beta effect and people will be more willing to explore the dungeons and soak in the atmosphere when the game goes live? I feel like if only more people knew that champion and elite packs have a better chance of dropping good loot than bosses that they'd be more inclined to explore the entire place, but it seems like a lot of people think that the mobs are just trash packs and the bosses are the real deal.

[ZeroEdgeir]

Play with friends, who actually give a damn is the easy answer.

As well, the reason they assume bosses drop the best stuff, is cause that is how it worked in Diablo 2. Go with what you know. The fact that the numbers were changed in Diablo 3 isn't that common of knowledge.

[bondgirl]

If you like the lore behind it, go solo or do it with a friend/friends who are interested in it aswell.

But about the rushing mentality you talking about. I can't agree here. I did roughly 50runs to SK or even from start and never had anyone saying gogoo or move faster or w/e. Basicly no one was speaking and just doing what they are supposed to do. Tbh that felt pretty good. Ok it was 1/4 of Act 1 and roughly everyone knows what to do simply due to doing it several times (short beta and many time :P).

But what I felt the most. Grouping up seems easier than doing it alone. HP and time wise when stuff dies just feels a little less consuming (might only be me). Iirc there was a post about monster hp not growing euqally to the amount of players in group but only like if its 1 player its 1:1, if its 2 its 2:1,75x Monster Hp/dmg output and so on. I might be wrong tho.

[Deleted]

Taking the first acts on normale alone don't seem like a bad idea, but im sure one or two of your friends would join as long as you dont stop and listen to what every NPC says. But go with what you feel the most for.

[Deleted]

I watched all the cut scenes with my friends on first play thro. Once you've completed the game with all characters and killed the bosses several times all that "RROOAARR You cannot defeat meeeeee!" for 20 seconds every time doesn't feel all that epic. Just play with your friends, ask nicely, and I'm sure they won't go skipping the scenes. If you go with random group you won't get much out of the story.

[Cairhiin]

I'll be playing solo through normal, probably won't use a henchman either as they annoyed me to no end. In nightmare I'll probably try to group with a friend but I will also solo huge parts. Don't mind either way.

[Deleted]

I personally wouldn't play my very first playthrough ever with randoms, as you say, they have a tendancy to skip things, especially dialogue and cinematics and unfortunately it skips it for everyone. If I didn't have a group of friends set up I'd definitely do my first playthrough solo and take my time. I think a lot of people do want to rush it and if you don't, solo might be best... or finding a friend.

Luckily, I have more people who want to playthrough with me than there are slots in a game, so I know I won't have to randomplay for the first playthrough. The random coop element is fantastic but it's not really the best for rpg/storytelling imo.

[Cairhiin]

I personally wouldn't play my very first playthrough ever with randoms, as you say, they have a tendancy to skip things, especially dialogue and cinematics and unfortunately it skips it for everyone. If I didn't have a group of friends set up I'd definitely do my first playthrough solo and take my time. I think a lot of people do want to rush it and if you don't, solo might be best... or finding a friend.

Luckily, I have more people who want to playthrough with me than there are slots in a game, so I know I won't have to randomplay for the first playthrough. The random coop element is fantastic but it's not really the best for rpg/storytelling imo.

I agree with this, going through the game the first time with randoms will not be ideal as they always tend to rush and you''ll end up missing a huge chunk of the story. Besides I'm not in a hurry to get through normal anyway. This is an endurance race not a short distance sprint. End of Nightmare and Hell in its entirety is where it's at. Finishing Normal and Nightmare at a too low level will only hurt you, and force you to grind for gear.

[Stormcall]

but it felt like the "GOGOGOGOGO" mentality from WoW's pugs have carried over into D3.

Sorry mate that's been the mentality in Diablo 2 for nearly a decade, I don't think you can really put that one as a WoW thing, lol. I have several screenshots of Baal runs I hosted where where I opened a portal right in the middle of 2 boss packs cause dudes kept spamming "GOGOGO" or "TPTPTP" even after I told them I was clearing a safe spot and to hang on a sec...

[Santti]

I'm going to play mostly with my friend and/or brother. While it might be unnecessary for normal, it sure is more fun that way.

[Deleted]

Do what you have fun the most, that's the answer.

D3 doesn't require group play to succeed at all. But it may be quicker/more loot sometimes or slower/less loot... so if that's the fun for you...

[BLSTMASTER]

I agree spending more time on normal would help the 'wow' factor

[Surfd]

Thankfully, with the proposed Nephilim Valor buff that they are testing, end game runs (ie, Hell difficulty and up for 60s) will have a lot less of the "rush to boss / quest objectives skipping everything inbetween" type gameplay you often ran into with people in the beta.

(Nehpilim Valor is a mechanic that will reward map clearing by giving you a buff for every Rare Pack / Unique mob you kill that increases your magic find / gold find, and also gives an increased chance for Boss monsters to drop more loot then normal).

[Deleted]

OP: I'm probably going to solo normal my self as well.

[Dhurn]

Like Stormcall said, rush mentality is not from WoW, it's deeply rooted in D2, where people regularly skip the entire game to get into Hell Chaos ASAP and max exp. Or teleport past everything to kill a boss.

For D3 I'm not going to play any multiplayer until Norm is finished, mostly because I REALLY don't want people throwing out spoilers in chat and ruining any surprises the story might have in store. Also ditto on the cinematics thing, I plan on watching them all and in a 4player game it's almost guaranteed someone will hit "skip"

[Deleted]

Like Stormcall said, rush mentality is not from WoW, it's deeply rooted in D2, where people regularly skip the entire game to get into Hell Chaos ASAP and max exp. Or teleport past everything to kill a boss.

For D3 I'm not going to play any multiplayer until Norm is finished, mostly because I REALLY don't want people throwing out spoilers in chat and ruining any surprises the story might have in store. Also ditto on the cinematics thing, I plan on watching them all and in a 4player game it's almost guaranteed someone will hit "skip"

This is why my first normal run WILL be solo, no random guys and no friends either. Alter I may add friends to it, but I'm wary of random guys. I MAY group with them later, maybe hell or inferno, if I feel like it.

HC is solo or friends only. Random people... wouldn't trust them with a bucket of water if my undies were on fire. No offence, but that's how I tick.

[Grimmauld]

probably won't use a henchman either as they annoyed me to no end

They were probably upset that you referred to them as "henchmen."

[Yalingo]

Ill be playing my first time through normal with my GF. Then onwards to nightmare with randoms!

[Evil Inside]

I was thinking of playing the entire Normal difficulty solo without any grouping at all. The reason for this was my open beta experience...everyone would skip the dialogue, not bother with exploring the dungeon, and instead just rush to the next level and/or the Skeleton King. I felt like the story was very much on the backburner and no-one was interested in immersing themselves in the story. Now I know I may have somehow always been grouped up with people who have been playing the beta for ages and have done this part a million times already, but it felt like the "GOGOGOGOGO" mentality from WoW's pugs have carried over into D3.

Do you think it's best to play the Normal difficulty fully solo so that you can take your time in reading the quest text/listen to quest dialogue and explore the dungeon instead of rushing to the end? Or do you think the rushing was just a beta effect and people will be more willing to explore the dungeons and soak in the atmosphere when the game goes live? I feel like if only more people knew that champion and elite packs have a better chance of dropping good loot than bosses that they'd be more inclined to explore the entire place, but it seems like a lot of people think that the mobs are just trash packs and the bosses are the real deal.

When I played with my friends we didnt do that, we explored every point of the map and completely explored every dungeon. Play with people that wont rush it and you wont have any problems.

[Deleted]

most likely will b clearing most of it in friend groups just cuz its way more fun to talk random shite via voice comm while melting faces, + you get "more" lewt if you dont mind sharing ( just dont roll same attribute users and ur good to go )