Diablo 3's Anti-Hype

[Vorsyn]

I'm usually one to be prone to the hype train for most games, but for Diablo 3 there seems to be a lot of unimpressed people. Prior to playing the open beta weekend, all I heard from friends and fellow guildmates in WoW and other games was "Man Diablo 3 was a letdown! QQ the graphics suck, game is boring and slow, feels nothing like Diablo!"

So as a Diablo player that has been around since Diablo 1's trial, I was a bit scared and disappointed from all the anti-hype. Basically, I accepted that D3 would fail because of all the negative reactions people were giving.

Then I played beta.... and holy hell am I impressed.

1) I feel the graphics are amazing, for being Diablo and 2012, I feel it fits.
2) Gameplay feels perfect, albeit a few tweaks on ability powers etc.
3) Sound effects, many are borrowed from the original games, and really get the nostalgia flowing.
4) Stream-Lined the grouping/friend/RealID system.
5) RMAH. I'm excited to see how this dynamic system will work in live, I have my doubts, but I believe it will change things for the better.


But what I'm wondering is, if the anti-hype wasn't so high would I be enjoying this game right now? If I was super hyped for D3, would I be so impressed by the game? Anyone else feel the same way about D3?

[Deleted]

I think the game has two major sides to it that people are a) hyped about and b) dissapointed with.

My main quaril is with Battle.net 2.0 rather than the game-play. It just seems in terms of battle.net we have had so many restrictions placed on us in terms of what we could do in Diablo II. I could list a page full of things and rant about the new system all day long, but non the less, its a great game and I will be buying!

[Fumu]

You're probably seeing the vocal minority effect here.

A lot of people love Diablo 3 but everyone knows it'll be big, everyone knows it'll be a success, and with no new content coming out of beta most players have nothing much to say until release hits. This leaves the whiners who feel it's too easy (The first part of the game on the lowest difficulty available is too easy, STOP THE PRESSES!) and the RMAH haters.

[Vayshan]

The higher ones hopes, the harder the fall. I never try to get caught up in any hype, it'll just get my expectations soaring too high and any disappointment will feel crushing. I've played the beta and I'm pleased with what I've seen sofar, but I try not to get carried away too much. It'll be a good game, but how it ranks compared to D2 (never done D1) is still to be seen.

[Lpr]

I'll agree with you full time, heard so much negative feedback but when i tried the beta i just loved it, could not disagree more with people saying the feeling is gone.

[Plarparian]

I think you've been hanging around the wrong people. I also have friends who are like that, but if you like the diablo series then there is no reason you shouldn't like diablo 3, like what happened in your case. I was super hyped for the game and I still enjoyed it very much and I probably will too, after the release.

All I can tell you is that in my case, what other people think about certain games doesn't really matter and I would try em anyway

[Fumu]

Another thing could be they hyped themselves up too much on hype. D3 has been in development forever and people have been drooling for it for at least 5 years now, maybe more. Before that, people were wishing one would even exist and mourning the loss of Blizzard North. Combine this decade long wait for a new game and a huge playerbase devoted enough to still be playing D2 and you'll get a level of hype up there with the second coming of Jesus. NOTHING can live up to the expectations laid by such a hype frenzy.

[Illuminance]

I am excited for Diablo 3, but I feel like there are a couple of "letdowns," so to speak

1 (Visuals)- The graphics are extremely lame for 2012. You can imagine my impression when I saw the starting zone load in literally half a second (and in some reviewers' video commentary, they also can't even read the hint on the load screen before it vanishes). The low system requirements should be an obvious sign that the game is just not that technically impressive. Also, looking at the characters' faces in 1080p makes it look like a game from 5-6 years ago.

That said, Blizzard has a talented art team, and I find the overall aesthetic appealing. I feel like it has a sort of "circus effect," where the overall look is enticing, but once you look more closely, you can see the buildings rust and paint peel.

Additionally, the way the game looks is definitely not what I was expecting after playing D1 and D2, and early proposals for D3 art direction reflect a much darker, grittier tone. On this issue, I don't have a strong opinion, but I can understand why people were shocked about it.

(2-4) I agree with you here. Gameplay feels as it should, although again, the skill system is different and this will shock some people.

5- I feel that the RMAH detracts from the game-quality of the product, and makes it in to more of just another money-making tool. Just this week my friend was talking about how he was excited to take items and see if he could turn a cash profit on them, when in most games you would trade items amongst your friends first. It left a bad taste in my mouth, since moneymaking was becoming an enticing factor of the game.

[Deleted]

I'm usually one to be prone to the hype train for most games, but for Diablo 3 there seems to be a lot of unimpressed people. Prior to playing the open beta weekend, all I heard from friends and fellow guildmates in WoW and other games was "Man Diablo 3 was a letdown! QQ the graphics suck, game is boring and slow, feels nothing like Diablo!"

So as a Diablo player that has been around since Diablo 1's trial, I was a bit scared and disappointed from all the anti-hype. Basically, I accepted that D3 would fail because of all the negative reactions people were giving.

Then I played beta.... and holy hell am I impressed.

1) I feel the graphics are amazing, for being Diablo and 2012, I feel it fits.
2) Gameplay feels perfect, albeit a few tweaks on ability powers etc.
3) Sound effects, many are borrowed from the original games, and really get the nostalgia flowing.
4) Stream-Lined the grouping/friend/RealID system.
5) RMAH. I'm excited to see how this dynamic system will work in live, I have my doubts, but I believe it will change things for the better.


But what I'm wondering is, if the anti-hype wasn't so high would I be enjoying this game right now? If I was super hyped for D3, would I be so impressed by the game? Anyone else feel the same way about D3?

People in wow bitching about it i can understand, wow players bitch about any game that's not wow (or a lot of them do)

D3 is going to be a great game i was a skeptic then i got the chance to play the game and it helped seal the deal for me, the battle.net system is a bit of a dog which is the only let down.

If i could give you one piece of advice about a good 75% of mmo-gamer's - they hate other games that they are currently not addicted to, some of them even hate the one they are addicted to but still play it. I've played a lot of MMO's and seen it so many times, the amount of bitching about BF3 was hilarious especially when the muppets started playing it and all that was left was the people with an awful rig saying it was crap because they couldn't run it. Always amuses me, always will.

All and all D3 will be damn good fun, whether it has a long lasting life on my machine only time will tell, hope to see you there for the AOE!

[Lightwysh]

Prior to playing the open beta weekend, all I heard from friends and fellow guildmates in WoW and other games was "Man Diablo 3 was a letdown! QQ the graphics suck, game is boring and slow, feels nothing like Diablo!"

My guess is you are important to the guild/raid in some way and they are seeing people show interest in D3 that could impact their raids and what not. Or They are bitter butt-hurt they didn't get beta until open beta.

Either way your 1-5 are spot on.

I believe it moved past hype and into "whatever" for some people due to the delays. "Meh I don't care anymore" was alot of people attitude then comes Open Beta and people are fucking drooling on themselves again.

[mercutiouk]

Well, I played it through on 4/5 characters.

I had my GF who HATED the idea/look/play of D2 dropping everything and whining for company playing (or playing it alone when I couldn't) and she's generally only a very slight gamer.

Had a friend who's a console player considering buying a PC on the back of a play on it or possibly even buying an account for evenings round at mine occasionally to play.

That's 2 more customers on a weekends worth of play. Personally I loved the first 2 so it was a nice evolution and polish on the whole thing. It should sell like hotcakes.

[Deleted]

I usualy try not togo with the hype, because most of the time games hyped this much will only disappoint.

People are complaining because they think it will be exactly the same as Diablo 1 and/or 2, which is rediculous, because games evolve and when they don't people will complain about that, or because they have such high expectations that not a single game in the world could live up to. All I can say to those people is they should stop acting like they've played the complete game with all it's features. They've seen a little part of the first act in normal mode, when the game is released with all it's features and the full story you have the right to evaluate it as a full game.

When it comes to graphics, Blizzard really know what they are doing. They are not aiming to make revolutionary graphics so they pick a style that suits the game (very well in my opinion) and go with that.

Diablo 3 is a great game. It's easy to get in, start playing and have fun.

[Deleted]

I don't even need to read any anti-hype to realize that diablo 3 is a console cashcow for blizzard.

It just isn't worth the cost in my eyes.

[Kathandira]

I played the demo (go ahead and call the open beta, a beta, cause it's totally a demo)

And it was fuckin awesome! I was skeptical cause i didn't think a game with such simple mechanics could be as engaging to me anymore after all these years. but i got sucked right in! I played the Witch Doctor cause when the class vids were first released i thought he was a real fun twist on pet mechanics. I didn't get to see how any later level abilities worked yet, but i can tell that Blizz is encouraging people to play different ways, i can see witch doctor playing a really awesome support role when in groups, and when solo, wrecking havoc over large groups of mobs.

[Gnomepowa]

Vocal minority vs majority... that's a useless comment as there's nothing anyone can provide to back it up or refute. The truth is that people have opinions and some will make them public. Here's mine...

1. Graphics are not amazing are what they're supposed to be in these times. Cool feeling I give you that but nothing that would constitute the primary reason for playing the game.
2. There's a lot that's pre-determined not a lot of control of character development in early stages which may be the case because it was early. In any case nothing I was too fond of. I'll assume there's a ton more in store now made available in beta.
3. The sound effects were ok. I found particularly annoying the random conversations with the merc ..."why do you think demons walk in broad daylight" BS kind of stuff. It got super annoying in the short time I was playing the beta and I assume will get worse later on. I could do without that crap. I like the story telling through the random scroll found in the game. It feels like it's a story behind it all.
4. Not gonna argue, that's a good thing. There are multiple tweaks possible (other people mentioned this) but it's early still.
5. The AH was so hyped up but I foresee a letdown.

Based on the minimal info I have I can say this. This will be an OK game but not a great one. I'm 100% sure lots of people will buy it for various reasons (loyalty, hype, curiosity) but the number will decline. If this would be a subscription based it would die quickly. This will be a fun game but only for a while and I think that will be a short while. I'll probably play it but not for as long as I played D2. These are just my opinions don't label me a hater or such. It's just I was not impressed with it more like meh. Remember to put things in context too, as your expectations should be in line with what available out there too.

[Krolikn]

Imo its not a bad game whatsoever buts its just not worth the price tag for me. No, I haven't played the full game...I've played enough.

[Deleted]

But what I'm wondering is, if the anti-hype wasn't so high would I be enjoying this game right now? If I was super hyped for D3, would I be so impressed by the game? Anyone else feel the same way about D3?

I wasn't expecting too much from Diablo 3, certainly not a life-changing awesome game. But more like an updated Diablo 2.
And in many ways it delivered just that. I've only played for about an hour, but I enjoyed most of it.

However, I do think the game doesn't fit in with today's standards anymore. It feels like an old concept.

You only click very few buttons and there isn't too much strategy (at least not in Act 1 on normal).
I know that Diablo 2 on normal wasn't that much of a challenge either, but I didn't expect Diablo 3 to copy it completely.
Not once did I have to use strategy in the demo, while I do remember Andariel from Diablo 2 to be scary.
And what about the Butcher of Diablo 1? he was simply brutal. You would certainly die if you didn't watch out.

I remember seeing early videos of Diablo 3 and hearing about having to use strategy against skeletons with shields, because they could only be hit from the back
I encountered those in the demo, but I didn't use any different tactic on them than on the rest of the monsters.

Also, Diablo 3 feels very limited in exploration. Sure, Diablo II was mostly just a bunch of randomly aligned square areas.
But Diablo 3 is almost completely on rails, which is even worse. The only real choice in routes is in dungeons. It just doesn't excite me.

Bottom line is, I wasn't expecting much. But Diablo 3 still disappointed in some areas.
On the plus side however, the game looked pretty good and I loved the physics of cleaving monsters and seeing them flying.
Overall, I'm not in impressed.

[Vorsyn]

1 (Visuals)- The graphics are extremely lame for 2012....SNIP
5- I feel that the RMAH detracts from the game-quality of the product, ...SNIP

I do feel the polygon count could be increased, I'll agree with you on that. Also, because of this I think they should remove the zoom feature.. it kind of shows off the bad side of the graphics.

As for the RMAH, I wouldn't be surprised if it DOES hurt the game in the long run,.. but for now I'm leaning towards it being a help. Hell, I have friends that were ridiculously hardcore into D2, making shitloads of RL cash on that forum money stuff. Practically making a living off of it, and still having fun at the same time. I never did it myself, but the players I'm talking about were in it for the game AND the farming.

But, like I said, I wouldn't be surprised if it ended up damaging the game in the long run. I think if they keep bots out of the game somewhat effectively, RMAH should be fine. Being able to sell Inferno items is where the money will be, but I think the AH will be flooded with junk in the long run, and because of that, Normal/Hardcore gear will be so cheap that it would make more sense to buy a full set of gear for $5 than to actually play the normal game.

I believe it moved past hype and into "whatever" for some people due to the delays. "Meh I don't care anymore" was alot of people attitude then comes Open Beta and people are fucking drooling on themselves again.

Lmao you are right on this one. Its been a long wait... but, I knew this was coming to I basically ignored all the news about it for years up until a few months ago. I couldn't imagine following every detail of the game, every day, for the past couple years. No wonder people are cranky.

[Beazy]

I don't even need to read any anti-hype to realize that diablo 3 is a console cashcow for blizzard.

It just isn't worth the cost in my eyes.

Console cash cow? Blizzard only makes 1.50 off of each transaction, regardless of the sale amount, just like any other Auction website, its going to cost something to use that feature. Not sure where the cash cow is going to be?

And consoles? You mean MAYBE, ONE DAY, A PS3 port? LoL Talk out of your ass more please, so we can get a better picture of who you rly are.

[Slummish]

I will admit, I likely have more money than sense... but as someone that has been waiting 12 years for D3, I have gone all out for release. I bought the Annual Pass so I could play immediately. I pre-ordered the Collector's Edition so I could get my glowing wings a week later. I ordered a new gaming rig that will be delivered the same day D3 goes live. I ordered a new gaming laptop so I could take the game with me three days a week while I babysit my dying grandmother.

Honestly, Blizzard could have released a digital stickfigure dungeon crawl/grind and I would have been just as thrilled.

D2 was an addiction...

I have come to terms with battle.net being a police state now. I won't be able to rob and steal. I won't be able to boot or freeze the screens of players that piss me off this time around. The real money AH flies in the face of my personal gaming philosophies.

And though the Wild West aspect of D2 will never return, I would accept almost any rule or EULA regulation in order to recapture even a fraction of the joy D2 provided.

The Diablo franchise is a hack-and-slash. Expect anything else and you're likely to be disappointed...