OT (kind of): Diablo IV and the SPF - quo vadis?

[Grisu]

Fellow forumites,

I wanted to get an overview of the SPF's feeling towards D4 and how we will interact (if at all) about D4.

I know that there is the general D4 forum, but I don't know how frequented it will be. If I take a look at the general D2 forum, it does say 99k threads and 1.2 million posts, but there has been only one post or so the last few weeks (and it is about skin tag remover...) - or am I missing something? The numbers seem misleading... So if we extrapolate this to D4... I don't see the interaction and especially not the kind of interaction we have here at the SPF.

Even back in the old days of diabloii.net I almost exclusively visited the SPF and not the general D2 forums, because... Well, I guess because it didn't feel as comfy and personal as the SPF. I have the feeling that lots of people here might feel the same. I think this has to do with general playstyle on the one hand, but on the other hand with personality also, maybe?

So how is it going to be? Will the large part of the SPF just join the general D4 forum? I can see that this would probably be good for overall interaction there. Or is there a need or want for another D4 SPF? We tried one for D3 back on the day, but it didn't draw enough attention (we'll, probably because D3 didn't draw enough attention among the SPF). I would be especially interested in what @maxicek thinks about this as a long-time moderator who knows all the past happenings from personal experience.

We even had/have our own SPF clan in D3 - anyone up for this for D4? Do you even plan on playing D4?

I myself will try the open beta and decide then if I will give it a a chance. If the game is to my liking, I would love to stay in touch about D4 with you guys here from the SPF, some of whom I've known for almost 2 decades now.

See you around!

 

[maxicek]

I will try the open beta and see if I can run it first

It kind of depends how Single Player it is really. I know it will be the usual always online stuff, but how friendly it is to the things that make the SPF what it is - MFOs, Tourneys, Pat & Mat threads, item finding etc.

D3 was terrible for this as it was basically about rifting and that was it. And there is no point in a build thread when everything is infinitely changeable.

 

[ziambe]

Do you even plan on playing D4?

While it does look promising, I still have too much to do in d2.

If/when i get around to d4 it will be long after the presumed technical and balance problems which are associated with a game of this caliber and depth are resolved. I.e. in a couple years...

 

[snickersnack]

I haven't preordered, and I probably won't. I'll try the open beta out to see if that changes my mind.

I played D3 quite a lot, but since the mechanics are so simple, builds so malleable, and drops tailored, I only played it when I had someone to play with. Even then, while the game was fun, it was pretty mindless. D4 seems to be at least as restrictive as D3 (e.g. many weapons are class restricted) so I'm not sure that I'll play it all that much if I do get it.

My plans aside, I don't see why you can't/shouldn't start a PureSPF clan in D4. You'll be able to track interest pretty easily that way.

 

[LouB]

I played D2 until D3 came out. While playing D2 I was an active participant in the SPF, the SPF trading and some of the character forums especially the Barb forum. For some reason for the 3 years I played D3 I didn't even look for forums, probably because I didn't find it that challenging. When I came back to D2 I immediately went looking for the old forum and found this one.

Currently there are no character forums until D4. I've also visited the Blizzard barb and Pally forums and the only word to describe them is moribund. I suspect that for those of us that frequent this forum that we will want and need a D4 SPF forum and clans.

I haven't decided if I want to play D4, but will probably give the Beta a go. From the little research I've done it looks like they have tried to combine D2 and D3 and are trying to make Sanctuary into a real game world.

Who wants to approach and challenge Silopen to develop a GoMule for D4.

 

[Pyrohemia]

I'll certainly try D4, but to play it long term would require it to have the soul that D2 has and D3 does not.

I would absolutely join people from the SPF in D4.

 

[maxicek]

Who wants to approach and challenge Silopen to develop a GoMule for D4.

I'm assuming D4 characters are stored on Blizzard servers, so that won't be possible.

 

[coju]

I think for the sake of the website (Internet traffic) d4 should be in the d4 forum. Well basically Recognize our names in there and can put a SP tag for stuff that obtained to non-MP play. If we did enjoy d4 and put topics in the SPF, when newcomers looked for info they would find the d4 area vacant. And who knows, a SPF sub forum could drive more folks to the light side.

But, I may wait until it goes on sale, unless the dopamine is just pumping during beta.

 

[maxicek]

Open Beta downloading now - Lets see if it runs.

 

[Grisu]

Open Beta downloading now - Lets see if it runs.

I'm in! Only 2 hours of queueing...

 

[Chaostar]

I don't think I'll even try the open beta of diablo IV, it seems it's a only another version of D3.

 

[snickersnack]

There was an error. (Code 316719)



I did get to make a druid and play for about 5 minutes....

Edit: after closing the game and then getting back in the queue, and after waiting ~30 minutes in the queue, I get this:

Your login attempt has timed out. Please try again. (Code 300008)

 

[Grisu]

@snickersnack: I had the same issue after a disconnect, but was able to play again after staying in the queue for another 2 hours or so xD

So far, the gameplay feels a lot like D3. And I mean major a lot. I get it why there are those sealed off (boss) fights, but I am just no fan of it. It puts too much emphasis on DPS, I think, and causes too much stress for me, especially with no way to pause the game...

I'll try it some more tomorrow, but so far the gameplay just doesn't suit my playstyle.

 

[maxicek]

Well I can run it, that was the first hurdle. I have just played for about 30mins, no queue.

So far, the gameplay feels a lot like D3. And I mean major a lot. I get it why there are those sealed off (boss) fights, but I am just no fan of it. It puts too much emphasis on DPS, I think, and causes too much stress for me, especially with no way to pause the game...

100% this. I'm very disappointed, it is basically a re-skinned D3. I may pick it up when it price drops, but back to D2R for me now.

 

[Cattleya]

From what I've seen so far, it feels way more like Diablo Immortal than Diablo 3. (Which is not a good thing. I still enjoy occasionally popping into D3 for some mindless demon killing. Once I played through the main story in D:I, there wasn't anything left for someone who wanted a Single Player experience to do.)

The environment is really nice, and I'm interested in playing through the story, but I'm not optomistic that it's a game I could play for years. I'm also not optimistic that they won't basically force group play like in D:I — how can they get you to spend extra money if other players can't harass you for being a noob. (And I hate battle passes, which is another thing that has me very wary.)

 

[Jpy]

Oof. I had my doubts for obvious reasons but still sucks to see it confirmed from a community who’s opinions I value. Didn’t really have much time this weekend, think I’ll spend the little bit I get on D2R RFL instead of beta. Gotta admit, they did a surprisingly good job with D2R and the only thing I ever had an issue with was them removing WSG effectively gutting pvp and the loading times. The latter was fixed for me entirely with increasing fps cap.

 

[snickersnack]

I was able to play a bit more last night, and then I got up early this morning (4:30am) and played for about 5 hours before my internet starting acting up.

I'm really enjoying the itemization so far.

So far, the gameplay feels a lot like D3. And I mean major a lot. I get it why there are those sealed off (boss) fights, but I am just no fan of it. It puts too much emphasis on DPS, I think, and causes too much stress for me, especially with no way to pause the game...

Yeah, it feels a lot like D3 to me too, but I'm okay with that. For me, the most egregious thing in D3 was the garbage itemization, and that feels a lot better to me in D4. I've been getting a lot of "well, hmmm, this item does X but this other one does Y, hmmmm" and I like that.

What do you mean about sealed off boss fights? I'm not sure what that is.

Also, I'm very much not a fan of the lack of pausing.

I may pick it up when it price drops, but back to D2R for me now.

I've been enjoying the game (except for the Druid quest not being in the beta), so I'm more sure that I'll get it eventually, but I'm not sure if I'll pay full price for it.

Edit: also, the world-building, sound design and art are very well done. The game is pretty and fun!

 

[Cattleya]

What do you mean about sealed off boss fights? I'm not sure what that is.

When fighting a boss in D2, you can TP out to restock. In SC, you can even run back and continue the fight after you die. In D3 and D4, once you've started the boss fight, you're locked in the room until one of you dies.

 

[Grisu]

@Jpy, @snickersnack : Hmm, maybe my first impressions were too one-dimensional My main concern is that I don't like the playstyle of D3 and modern ARPGs as much, and D4 feels like it. It is true though, that itemization and skill development look more interesting than in D3. I still would like to have more slots for spells - you could never play a D2 Assassin or Necromancer with only 5 skill slots...

Also, it isn't as well suited for the things we like to do in D2. But I guess, the world and ARPGs with it move on and the more tactical approach of D2 isn't what one finds in ARPGs anymore.

I have to second snickersnack's thoughts though on world-building and the like - I think it is well done, too. I like the graphics, the sound has a bit too much combat noises for me. It sometimes sounds like I am playing an ego shooter

Skill choices and builds seem to matter more as in D3: you have more ways to synergise your character or go certain routes which are buffed by certain legendary items. E.g. I found a legendary armor that prolonges the duration of earthe bulwark, an absorb shield for the Druid. And the shield hit points replenish every time I kill an enemy with an earth skill. Combined with cooldown reduction, this skill is more on than off thanks to the legendary item.

What I don't like as much are the number of side quests. But I found that to be true for most open world ARPGs and RPGs nowadays. For me as a completionist it distracts too much from the main storyline. The more linear storytelling of D2 is more to my liking.

 

[Cattleya]

What I don't like as much are the number of side quests. But I found that to be true for most open world ARPGs and RPGs nowadays. For me as a completionist it distracts too much from the main storyline. The more linear storytelling of D2 is more to my liking.

I'm torn on this. On one hand, it's really nice for world building, but on the other hand it leads me to feeling overwhelmed pretty quickly and losing track of the main story. I think this was actually something D3 did really nicely. There were all sorts of little world building events around the world, but they were quick and happened where you found them, so they were something to do along the way not something that sent you into a completely different direction.