Diablo IV

[Generic-Giant-Spider]

That itemization talk in the interview makes me believe that they don't fully understand it. Like in D1 and D2, many items were truly unique and the good items would be good no matter what. Sure in D2 you had certain "ranges" on items but it was like... 10-20% and the 20% was mostly for bragging rights of having a perfectly rolled item. Regardless, if you picked up a Vampire Gaze or Mara's Kaleidoscope then that was a great find and would always be useful. It didn't matter that these were items in the low levels and you were level 80, they were good enough to not only last you but define your builds.

In D3 they don't have that. Instead you get shit like, "oh you got this legendary... but you don't have the SUPER version of it! And you got the super version of it? Well you don't have the ULTRA version of it!" Completely ruins the feeling of these items being unique or legendary. In D1, when I got Butcher's Cleaver, there was only one of that I'd ever get and it was a slaughterhouse of a weapon that felt like a huge power boost for the Warrior. In D2, if you found a Harlequin Crest then you know no matter what you'd have someone interested in it because it's simply a good item.

So reading how D4 wants for players even at endgame to constantly upgrade their already equipped legendaries or maybe find new versions of it with greater stats put in is some serious mobile grinding shit. "Hey look, I got the Undead Crown." "Oh that's cool, but I have the Infernal Infused Undead Crown which gives me +1000 more than yours." Ugh.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

That itemization talk in the interview makes me believe that they don't fully understand it. Like in D1 and D2, many items were truly unique and the good items would be good no matter what. Sure in D2 you had certain "ranges" on items but it was like... 10-20% and the 20% was mostly for bragging rights of having a perfectly rolled item. Regardless, if you picked up a Vampire Gaze or Mara's Kaleidoscope then that was a great find and would always be useful. It didn't matter that these were items in the low levels and you were level 80, they were good enough to not only last you but define your builds.

In D3 they don't have that. Instead you get shit like, "oh you got this legendary... but you don't have the SUPER version of it! And you got the super version of it? Well you don't have the ULTRA version of it!" Completely ruins the feeling of these items being unique or legendary. In D1, when I got Butcher's Cleaver, there was only one of that I'd ever get and it was a slaughterhouse of a weapon that felt like a huge power boost for the Warrior. In D2, if you found a Harlequin Crest then you know no matter what you'd have someone interested in it because it's simply a good item.

So reading how D4 wants for players even at endgame to constantly upgrade their already equipped legendaries or maybe find new versions of it with greater stats put in is some serious mobile grinding shit. "Hey look, I got the Undead Crown." "Oh that's cool, but I have the Infernal Infused Undead Crown which gives me +1000 more than yours." Ugh.

Sounds appealing to the average paste eater that plays these kinds of games

 

[Hobo Elf]

Did anyone notice the damage-received in the gameplay video was on the lower side... did the streamer fiddle with difficulty?

Eh, this is quite typical for demo builds of games made for conventions. It's not rare for them to be tuned way down so that people can just test out the systems. The Legendary item drops were also scripted, as in every person playing as a Sorc was getting the SoJ drop at the same exact location, but obviously it's not going to be like that in the finished product.

 

[ZeniBot]

She's not a goddess of lust, I don't know where you are getting this from.

The medieval interpretation by the church is that Lilith is the incarnation of Lust on Earth. Its pretty clear that Lust is the word used to describe her in historical context. The church blamed her for adultery and the corruption of men.

Having big tits in her demon form is poor imagination and more anime than anything else

Her having big tits is supposed to be a play on the fact that she cannot have children. She would have the body of a mother because she breeds demons. Her breasts would appear fertile but be full of poison which she uses to kill infants with.

 

[Grotesque]

"We have no fucking clue how to make an ARPG, even though we popularized the genre.

Blizzard North popularized the genre.
And even Blizzard North didn't knew what they were doing until patch 1.09 that was launched months and months after release date.
So getting it right was an iterative process.
But now Blizzard has it all laid out for them but they refuse to use the knowledge and build upon that. It's not like some ancient lost tech that was forgotten/lost after a cataclysm and they must rediscover the wheel and the screw.

"oh you got this legendary... but you don't have the SUPER version of it! And you got the super version of it? Well you don't have the ULTRA version of it!" Completely ruins the feeling of these items being unique or legendary

And why they would do otherwise when Path of Exile, which is considered THE PINNACLE!! of action-rpgs, does it the same?
I recently played PoE and the same fuckin 2-handed legendary hammer dropped 3 times throughout the game, each time with different/better stats.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

They know exactly what the average person playing these games want: A slow-drip of dopamine keeping them hooked onto the game. A glorified skinners box with graphics where you start off pressing the button for a reward and end with pressing the button for a reward 1/100,000th of the time.
If that doesn't appeal to you then the genre isn't for you.

 

[Daedalos]

So many arm-chair developers in this thread. You clearly haven't even watched the panels and the Q&A. Blizzard seems very aware of the problems with D3 and how to fix, and how to build on what made D2 great.

Nonethless, everything you see here bar the graphics perhaps, are WIP. Things can change drastically even on monthly basis, so why discuss all this balance and difficulty shit? its pointless. The demo was to showcase graphics, environment, feel, vibes, world and classes and a few skills, thats it.
The rest they have 2 years to work on, so. And they are gathering alot of feedback.

They alrdy said they want to make legendaries feel powerful and unique, even the "normal" verisons,. because the droprate will be very very low for uber items.l

I also love the fact that some ppl critique the game for being grindy and "mindless" killing and clicking. Dude it's a fucking ARPG, its literally the core of the game.

 

[Generic-Giant-Spider]

I also love the fact that some ppl critique the game for being grindy and "mindless" killing and clicking. Dude it's a fucking ARPG, its literally the core of the game.

And that's the central problem. Rather than focus on so much of what can make a memorable experience they opt for the easy, cheap way out. All these games come down to is the "loot loot loot" mentality, it's a game for packrats when it could be a lot more. D1 showed a great, honest glimpse of what you can make out of an ARPG like this and it's a widely regarded classic because of that. We know a Diablo game will have items in it, they don't need to hammer that point home, the demo should have restored faith by showing off some great atmosphere and environments. Instead it looks like the same old shit D3 was only a bit darker. Nothing they showed made me think of it as anything more than a by-the-book ARPG you have played numerous times before.

Diablo as a franchise is pretty much on that horror movie trajectory. The first entry was really good, possibly a classic, left a great impression and stuck with you. The second entry did some weird things you don't agree with, but it was still good and you can respect it/enjoy it. Then they go full dipshit and soon all you have is mindless blood and gore replacing mood and dread.

 

[Swigen]

I bought a silent mouse because of Diablo 1 and I don’t think I regret it!

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Barbarian was my least favorite class

Crom laughs at you from his mountain.

 

[hexer]

I also love the fact that some ppl critique the game for being grindy and "mindless" killing and clicking. Dude it's a fucking ARPG, its literally the core of the game.

Diablo invented that genre. I wonder if people who criticize the core gameplay were even around in 1997.

 

[user]

They know exactly what the average person playing these games want: A slow-drip of dopamine keeping them hooked onto the game.

More like a slow drip of sedatives and tbh I'd wish it was that good. I've been more addicted to clicker mobile games than D3. They know less than john snow. Their lead game designer is some kind of student who read a random guidebook of "how to make your game make moneyz" and that's that.

 

[Jedi Exile]

This 'fully open world' means Diablo IV is going to be a MMO like Path of Exile where you play your single-player campaign with other people running around in towns (and in D4 case, also outside the towns). I think I'll give it a pass. Maybe play it once for the story.

 

[hexer]

I remember some years ago, I read an interview with one of Diablo's creators who got fed up of being attacked by gamers and developers alike how his games aren't true RPGs.
He said.. back in his high school/student days there were kids who played DnD for story and then there were kids, like him, who played it for the loot.
There's nothing else to it really.. just a different type of fun.

 

[Cryomancer]

Crom laughs at you from his mountain.

Sorry but i follow the "white hand" religion ( for those who doesn't know the white hand on conan universe http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/witchmhy.htm )

 

[Generic-Giant-Spider]

In fairness, they seemed to have always wanted to move Diablo into this bizarre MMO-but-not-MMO hybrid even going back to D2. Remember how BNet for D2 would have everyone's characters all standing around on display and gave you a much more interactive looking lobby compared to the more barebones WC2/SC interfaces? Then I think there was some talk how Blizzard North when they did that early work on D3 wanted to head into an open world style of direction. This seems to finally be that whole vision finally realized after twenty or so years. Personally I think it's goofy, arcadey, insert-your-coin-drop-in-and-drop-out shit but whatevz.

 

[Daedalos]

Like I said, you should go read all the developer Q&A and shit, it got true answers to all the bullshit negative speculation that you guys are spewing out.

What if what if what if. calm the fuck down. its pre-alpha stage still.

The gameplay, graphics, combat looked incredibly crisp, dark and gory, just like a diablo game should. It looks like D2 on steroids and far and beyond Diablo 3. Go play diablo 3 right now, if u think the games look alike. they look nothing alike.

Itemization, loot, runewords, boss fights, diffucilty, key dungeons, maps, everything is open to feedback and discussion and is 100 % subject to change alot, so. calm down.

This is a BIG step in the right direction. Not to mention the story already blows anything PoE can dish up out of the water.

And if you think MMO aspect of an ARG game is bad, then go look at Lost Ark. Amazing game, amazing reception and success. It can absolutely work.

 

[Cryomancer]

I know that D 4 is not good as D2 but lets be honest, anyone here was expecting a "incline to D2?" after the massive D3 decline?? From Blizzard Irvine? IMO compared to other AAA modern RPG's, Diablo IV looks very good.

And if you think MMO aspect of an ARG game is bad, then go look at Lost Ark. Amazing game, amazing reception and success. It can absolutely work.

Lost Ark is IMO a awful game. Too much mmo bs too little arpg mechanics.

 

[Alpan]

The gameplay, graphics, combat looked incredibly crisp, dark and gory, just like a diablo game should. It looks like D2 on steroids and far and beyond Diablo 3. Go play diablo 3 right now, if u think the games look alike. they look nothing alike.

Are you serious? It literally looks exactly like D3 combat down to the white flash on hit, only difference is that it's less of a clusterfuck, and they are not going to show clusterfuck combat in marketing footage. It's dark and gory because it's a slightly higher poly count version of D3 with a darker color palette and shading, otherwise the art styles are very similar.

Itemization, loot, runewords, boss fights, diffucilty, key dungeons, maps, everything is open to feedback and discussion and is 100 % subject to change alot, so. calm down.

This only proves that the footage shown was barely prototype-tier. They simply don't have a solid idea about where to go with the game and they are disguising this under the pretense of "open to feedback and discussion". This is Diablo, not an average indie game looking to be a part of "the community" or whatever. It demands real game design and vision. If they are genuinely seeking "feedback" at this stage I feel sorry for them.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Crom laughs at you from his mountain.

Sorry but i follow the "white hand" religion ( for those who doesn't know the white hand on conan universe http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/witchmhy.htm )

Crom laughs at this religion from his mountain too.

 

[Daedalos]

The gameplay, graphics, combat looked incredibly crisp, dark and gory, just like a diablo game should. It looks like D2 on steroids and far and beyond Diablo 3. Go play diablo 3 right now, if u think the games look alike. they look nothing alike.

Are you serious? It literally looks exactly like D3 combat down to the white flash on hit, only difference is that it's less of a clusterfuck, and they are not going to show clusterfuck combat in marketing footage. It's dark and gory because it's a slightly higher poly count version of D3 with a darker color palette and shading, otherwise the art styles are very similar.

Itemization, loot, runewords, boss fights, diffucilty, key dungeons, maps, everything is open to feedback and discussion and is 100 % subject to change alot, so. calm down.

This only proves that the footage shown was barely prototype-tier. They simply don't have a solid idea about where to go with the game and they are disguising this under the pretense of "open to feedback and discussion". This is Diablo, not an average indie game looking to be a part of "the community" or whatever. It demands real game design and vision. If they are genuinely seeking "feedback" at this stage I feel sorry for them.

It looks nothing like Diablo 3, stop smoking crack cocaine please. Go watch diablo 3 and diablo 4 gameplay side-by-side. Obviously its not EARTH AND HEAVEN different, because.. sur-fucking-prise, they are both ARPG, both diablo games, and obviously there are SOME similarities, which is a good thing. Diablo 3 had stuff from D2 too. what a dumb comment that is.

it seems u are just talking out of your ass, and didnt read and watch any information about the game. troll harder.

 

[Shadenuat]

replace flashing with highlighting and put hitpoints of enemy on top of the screen ala d1/d2 and done.

the designer said that UI is actually customisable.

 

[hexer]

Are you serious? It literally looks exactly like D3 combat down to the white flash on hit, only difference is that it's less of a clusterfuck, and they are not going to show clusterfuck combat in marketing footage. It's dark and gory because it's a slightly higher poly count version of D3 with a darker color palette and shading, otherwise the art styles are very similar.

Diablo 3 looks like a theme park next to this - it has way more colors and the proportions of scenery/characters are off , that is, they're cartoony.
The opening D4 cinematic shot from the creepy village with a small church is a tribute to Diablo 1

Crom laughs at you from his mountain.

Sorry but i follow the "white hand" religion ( for those who doesn't know the white hand on conan universe http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/witchmhy.htm )

Didn't know Marvel Conan was canon

 

[user]

Like I said, you should go read all the developer Q&A and shit, it got true answers to all the bullshit negative speculation that you guys are spewing out.

What if what if what if. calm the fuck down. its pre-alpha stage still.

The gameplay, graphics, combat looked incredibly crisp, dark and gory, just like a diablo game should. It looks like D2 on steroids and far and beyond Diablo 3. Go play diablo 3 right now, if u think the games look alike. they look nothing alike.

Itemization, loot, runewords, boss fights, diffucilty, key dungeons, maps, everything is open to feedback and discussion and is 100 % subject to change alot, so. calm down.

This is a BIG step in the right direction. Not to mention the story already blows anything PoE can dish up out of the water.

And if you think MMO aspect of an ARG game is bad, then go look at Lost Ark. Amazing game, amazing reception and success. It can absolutely work.

We saw what kind of effect feedback had on D3. Besides, fans won't/can't design the game for them if their designers are not up to the task. Not to mention their target audience has grown and shifted - why do you think they are bothering to develop a diablo for mobile in the first place?

As for itemization and loot, screenshots speak louder than words. We don't have a clear whole picture of character development yet because we haven't seen everything, but judging from the talent and skill ranks streamers have revealed and the itemization, it is clear they target the lowest common denominators - huuge surprise there.

As for mmo features, while some specific ones might bring something to the table, they want to adopt the ones that aren't a good fit for this genre. Low, easily reachable, "casual" level caps for example, are going against the traditional arpg formula and their purpose is to "homogenize the playing field" (which is counter-intuitive by itself) so that progression is accessible and understandable to people who "play games for a while to take a break from their kids".

 

[Cryomancer]

Didn't know Marvel Conan was canon

Canon or not, mastery of ice, death and undeath itself is more interesting than swing an axe...

On D2, my favorite to less favorite class : Necromancer - Druid - Sorceress - Paladin - Assassin - Amazon - Barbarian.

Diablo 3 had stuff from D2 too. what a dumb comment that is.

The isometric camera and ??? I can't see anything from D1/D2 on D3. D3 took much more from wow than from diablo