Diablo 3 Launch Day Error 37

It’s official, Diablo 3 is out and everyone is on the servers playing the gaming goodness we have been waiting to play for 12 years! Blizzard has done a successful launch once again, something they are notorious for not screwing up, and we are thankful to the Blizzard developers for their hard work and their ability to predict that a Blizzard game launch on this caliber will certainly fill servers up quickly. In fact, there have been no upset customers, and people who have been waiting up until 3AM Eastern time to play the game have been extremely happy with the well-planned wait that was perfectly executed!

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… And then we woke up. Blizzard has once again screwed up a launch event on one of their blockbuster gaming titles, similar to what happened with World Of Warcraft: Burning Crusade and Starcraft 2. Servers crashed, bugs that should have been sorted out since the early beta caused people to crash out of the server with no way of logging back in, and the now infamous error 37, server busy error has kept people out of experiencing the launch that we have all been waiting for. People have been complaining on the official Diablo 3 forums that Blizzard has been unable to launch a game in many years without these kinds of issues turning up. According to many different users on the message boards, this should have been a smooth launch, given all of the experience Blizzard has with launching a game.

Well, ranting aside, here is to hoping that aside from the launch, we experience a great game and the camaraderie that we have seen in other titles such as WoW or SC:2 will roll over to Diablo 3 and create a wonderful gaming experience.

Is Diablo 3 an MMORPG, or just a RPG?

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A topic of hot debate recently on the official diablo3.com forums is whether Diablo 3 is considered an MMO, or if it remains as just an RPG with the option to play co-op with a few of your buddies. There really isn’t a simple answer that is the correct answer without really understanding the distinction between what is considered a Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing game, and what is considered just a Role Playing Game. There are some games that very obviously define one of the categories, such as Diablo 1 being a Role Playing Game, and World of Warcraft being an MMO. The reason these are so obvious in their respective genres is due to the scope of multiplayer; sure they both allow for an online version of the game, but the scope of how many people you will encounter online really defines the game and it’s genre.

 The Hybrid

Take for example the way Diablo 2 played on Battle.net which is the infamous way to play the entire game online with random people in the servers. There are times that you can encounter many different people around you, form a friends list, and socialize with people you have met online in the servers. This makes the game more of an MMO, with the offering of many different people online that you encounter. If you look at a game like Guild Wars, where the game is advertised as an MMO, the actual adventuring out of the large cities is all in a personal instance, where you do not see others than who are out of your group. Despite this fact, Guild Wars is largely considered an MMO, and remains as one of the true hybrids between single and multiplayer.

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Diablo 3 is offering a very similar approach in regards to the way the game is structured like a hybrid. The auction house, a place where the entire server of people can list items ties all of the individual instances together, much like the way Guild Wars has a global economy through the major cities and towns. The auction house is meant to bring a much larger feeling to the otherwise very private experience that Diablo 3 will bring to most of the gamers who play the game in single player, and in a lesser way if they play co-op, which offers the chance of playing with up to 3 other people. The fact that Diablo 3 offers co-0p with only 4 total people is very shocking, as in the previous games, co-op supported up to 8 people in the party, and there is a sense that Blizzard is trying to constrain Diablo 3 to remain as single player focused as possible.

The pure MMO

A pure MMO game is something that is focused entirely on creating a Massive experience, in the sense that everything is about large groups, social gaming, and experience of seeing everything with a lot of people around you. The people who love MMO’s are happy to see thousands of people playing the same game as them and see an active community and even world blossoming around them. This phenomenon creates the sense that something very big is going on at all times, and gives the players a chance to conceive real accomplishments, as there are many people who can witness what you have accomplished in real time, giving you a much more rewarding experience.

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A pure MMO is generally a game with thousands of people on each server, a booming social space, economy, huge competition, and massive awards that are achievable only through a lot of players teaming up together to accomplish a single and glorified goal. In Diablo 3 conversely, any of the monumental achievements that the game offers can only be shared with those who you are able to play co-op with, and therefore the game cannot be classified as a true MMO; there simply are not enough people online at the same time on the same server to constitute being labeled a Massively Multiplayer Online RPG.

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Diablo 3 Launch date just 8 Days away

With the official release of Diablo 3 less than 8 days away, the excitement can be felt all over the internet. People are anxiously waiting for the release of one of the history of PC gaming’s best releases, and we are right there with them. With the ability to play online with your friends, engage in co-op and other awesome features, it is of no wonder that Diablo 3 is one of the most anticipated releases of our time. To help escalate the hype, there was a “blue post” on the official Diablo 3 forums (a blue post refers to a post created by one of the Blizzard staff members, and is widely accepted as official news) that let people know what they can do to prepare for the official release of the game. Here is a summary on what Blizzard is saying:

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#1 Purchase the game

The most obvious advise from Blizzard is to “purchase the game”. This advise is more than just it seems, however, as there is a very high likelihood of the game being sold out at the local retailers, based on previous demand for other titles such as World of Warcraft and Starcraft 2. The digital pre-sale is being pushed as the favorite option despite gamer’s love of an official boxed copy. There is also less incentive to purchase the collectors version if there is not going to be an official boxed copy for gamer’s to reference the manual in (remember those days).

#2 Create your BattleTag

A great idea, as the longer you wait the less likely you will be to claim the name you love; there will be more and more competition for the names as times goes on. Don’t forget that this Battle-Tag is a permanent choice, so don’t choose some name you will be unhappy with later (we have all made that mistake in the past).

#3 Regional Launch and Install Times

The important take-away here is to be around at 12:01 AM PDT, May 15th, with the early install option at 8:01 AM PDT May 14th. This is really helpful so you can install and verify the game so you can be one of the first people online when it launches. Remember to test launch the game after you install it, as you do not want to run into any issues and miss the official launch party of Diablo 3. People tend to get graphic related errors, so be sure to keep your video drivers up to date to avoid any additional problems.

#4 Overflow avoidance

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As with a lot of other online gaming releases, there is a potential that there will be far too many people logging into the game than the servers are capable of handling, and therefore there is a risk of crashing the server. To help avoid this issues (although we all know they will still come up) Blizzard is saying they will limit the number of logins and try to slow them down, to ensure nobody runs of the risk of crashing the servers. There will be an “Error 37″ given to players who are queued for longer than 40 seconds, which the players should then try to login again and wait through the queue time again.

We are super excited to get this game going, and we look forward to seeing you in-game!

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What features we are hoping for in Diablo 3

The official release for the sequel to our favorite game out of Blizzard is just around the corner. Since the beta has been send to the select lucky few, there have been huge hopes and expectations for the final version set to debut on the 5th of May, 2012. We were not able to try to beta as of press time, but we have high hopes and expectations as to the feature set that Blizzard will include in the final version of Diablo 3.

#1 MMORPG Social Feel

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One of the most fun ways to play a game online is with people you love to game with. This was made apparent with the release of the biggest Massively multi-player Online Role Playing Game in the history of computer gaming; World of Warcraft. What was interesting about WoW as opposed to the other MMO’s that have been released far before WoW, was the appeal for social gaming, or the act of engaging socially while playing a game online. There was far more emphasis on socializing than what has been around since the beginning of gaming, including popular releases such as Half Life and even Everquest, regarded as one of the founding MMO’s to our favorite genre of computer gaming. The social appeal brought in gamers that otherwise were turned off by the huge game, due to stigmas, the amount of immersion and the tendency to be socially unacceptable.

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What was groundbreaking was the way World of Wacraft, and what we hope will be the same in Diablo 3, became a social experience for those who were looking for it. There was no “forced” social interactivity, and there was no forced competitiveness. Each gamer was able to play WoW in the way that they would enjoy it; there were the hardcore PvP fans, the hardcore raiding teams and even the trolls; those looking to pray on the weak in the game. But the biggest appeal was the fact that no matter what you were looking for in a game, it was available in WoW, which made the game one of the most popular games to ever come out, save for League of Legends, which is on track to have a larger audience than that of World of Warcraft. Interestingly, League of Legends is also able to appeal to the masses and allow for people to game with each other casual, competitively, or even professionally, as seen by LAN teams such as SoloMid.

What we are hoping for in Diablo 3 is the same social immersion that we were able to enjoy in World of Warcraft. People want to be able to see other gamers fighting monsters, to engage in events happening across the Diablo 3 world, and really get a sense of immersion in the hells of Diablo, which was done so well in Diablo 2. The only shortcoming of Diablo 2, however, was the absence of that massive feel that World of Wacraft did such a good job of displaying. In WoW, you always see people farming their monsters, doing the occasional dungeon, and other wise engaging with each other and making the world feel like it is always buzzing. If Diablo 3 can grow to be able to offer such immersion, we have a great chance at cracking that whip and really gathering together in what can be the greatest game to ever come out.

So, here is to hoping that Diablo 3 offers the same levels of immersion that we have come to love in the other huge titles as outlined above.

#2 Buying your way to the Top

There has been massive talks about the real gold auction house, and what it can do to the brand new economical system and social system that will come with Diablo 3. People love the organic feel of a stimulated economy such as that in World of Warcraft, but people hate the fact that some gamers prefer to simply buy their way to the top of the skill ladder by purchasing real money items capable of giving them and edge against smaller spenders. In fact, on of the games that really took this far, Gunbound, lost most of the hardcore fans of an otherwise engaging and fun game because of the skill gap between paying customers and those who prefer to earn items organically; those who invested real money in the game had such a large edge that it was impossible to compete without shelling out more that$100.00 — and that would only barely get you started. There was no way for people to play without paying for items, it was simply a pay-to-compete model instead of a pay to play.

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If Diablo 3 suffers from the Gunbound curse, we may be doomed to a ruined eco system and a really bad experience in the late game. There may be very little reason to play the game and engage in the long term with other gamers, which can potentially ruin one of the biggest titles to come out for PC in the past 5 years. People crave the ability to compete by organic growth, and by earning their items. If the skill gap is too large between those who invest and those who do not, there may be a really large fallout a few years after launch, creating a large problem for the longevity of the series and the replay ability that we have come to adore on Diablo 2.

We are hopeful that Blizzard will be able to solve these potential problems, and here is to hoping that we have a great time in Diablo 3!

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Diablo 3 Auction house: Will it ruin our gaming experience?

Since the announcement by Blizzard regarding the release and development of Diablo 3, we have become more and more excited about our favorite game, and what the future holds for it. WE were worried, nervous, happy, and excited to see what Blizzard can do to continue the epic journey of the heroin and where the deep hells would take him. As time goes on and more news is released, we can’t but be nervous that a few things can go very wrong and leave us feeling disappointed with the game that we have been waiting for all this time. Here are some of the things that we are nervous about:

The new auction house

One of the stigmas of the free to play model that has become increasingly popular in the gaming community, is the ability to buy your way into a game and move past all of the players, regardless of your personal skill and your ability to play the game well. that is, if you are willing to spend more money than the next guy, you will likely be much stronger than him and defeat him in duels and other important goals in the game. When players are able to do this, it is demoralizing, and players that do not have the same amount of disposable income can feel alienated and have a far worse experience. For example, when a cheater enters a server full of players trying to play fair; regardless of the player’s skill, the cheater has a huge advantage and is more than likely going to empty out the server of hopeful gamers.

Blizzard has said in interviews cited in PC Gamer and other magazines that the auction house will allow for real currency to purchase items. This is a two-way street, as gamers can actually withdraw money from the game and make a profit off of their Diablo 3 efforts. This is an exciting concept, but the fact of the matter is that for most people playing the game, the interest in Diablo 3 is not as a commercial prospect and a profit turning business, but as a way to enjoy a game that we have all looked forward to for so long.

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Additionally, if there is an incentive for people to commercialize the game, there will be a huge amount of “farmers” or people who play Diablo 3 exclusively to “Farm” items and flip them on the auction house for some real money, turning an entertaining game into a job. The idea would be to hire as many people as possible to work for this “Farming” company and sell as many products as possible. The products will be sold on the auction houses that legitimate players list their products on. What can eventually happen, as did in other popular MMO’s such as World of Warcraft, is players will be spammed with item offers and the auction houses will be flooded with far too much inventory on items, causing economic problems in the game for those trying to play legitimately.

Blizzard means well, they are looking to provide the ability to play online and cover costs through virtual sales, but the costs of doing business can potentially ruin the fun for those same people they are trying to “help”.

Official Release Date Diablo 3

Excited news has been bestowed upon the highly anticipating Diablo 3 community. Blizzard has finally announced an official release date for the new Diablo game to be released in blockbuster series, Diablo 3.

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According to Blizzard entertainment, Diablo 3 is going to be released to the majority of the world on May 15, 2012. This means that we get to explore the much awaited Diablo 3 world in less than 2 months! Although this is great news for the majority of gamers worldwide, people may have to wait until June 7th, 2012 if they live in Latin America and Russia, where the digital copies will be released.

A bonus to World of Warcraft players that have people very excited: If you have an annual subscription to World of Warcraft, you will receive a free, digital copy of Diablo 3. For the rest of us, Diablo 3 will be available for $99.99 for the Collector’s Edition and $49.99 for the regular edition. The collectors edition will include an art book, a USB drive with Diablo 2 and the expansion, and some other goodies.

Since beta in fall 2011, Diablo 3 has come a long way and we are extremely excited to see how diablo 3 pans out!

Diablo 3 Release Date

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Diablo 3 is set to release at the end of the second quarter of 2012, by sometime in August at the latest, as reported by Blizzard via conference call: “two titles will be released in the second quarter of 2012, including Diablo 3″. It is thought to be the final release date, as Blizzard is seeing higher and higher attrition rate with World of Warcraft subscribers, a problem that can lead to massive losses in revenue and potentially negative affects on their parent company Activision (ATVI). Interestingly, Best Buy is offering a pre-order option on Diablo 3 despite the lack of a clear release date. There has been historical sales at opening night at best buy for other Blizzard titles such as World of Warcraft: Wraith of the Lich King, and Best Buy will do whatever they can to get in on the Diablo 3 actions. You can pre-order the collectors edition or standard edition here.

Due to the pressures financially on Blizzard, the pressures from the community and various other reasons it makes for a great time to release Diablo 3 to the public (the beta has been open for more than a year), as there is a need for more revenue (paid auction house), more sales, and signs that ATVI should remain stable and is still a strong play, a midst the poor economy and issues circulating around media companies since the whole PIPA and SOPA blow ups. According to numerous reports, multiple gaming and media companies were in support of the now retired SOPA movement which caused bad rep to the companies and the subsidiaries.

According to a tweet by Blizzard, there will also be a potential console version of the game, in addition to other interesting development titles such as a “next gen MMO” (maybe WoW 2?).

Stay tuned for more updates and a clear release date for Diablo 3.