Diablo 3 Beta

There is a pretty decent choice option in D3, it takes a little more forward thinking though since the beta doesn't offer much. Item stats affect skills differently. So if you really want to commit to making your skill of choice strong, you'll have to itemize properly for it. I think there was an example where the Wizard's Disintegrate beam benefits more from fast, weaker weapons while Arcane Bomb (or whatever its called) benefit from slow, high damage weapons, even if the weapon's DPS is identical.

There's also the compromise of having whatever skill you want, which is the 6-skill limit. My first impression was basically "Dang, there are a lot of interesting skills to choose from; sucks that I can't use em all." That's a much better design than skipping over a bunch of skills that you know are virtually useless and just cherry pick skills that are of any value.

Eventually, there will be an "ultimate 6" for each class, but if the designers do a good enough job making the various possible builds good, I don't really care. They made a short list of reasons why D3's design philosophy is different from WoW and why its ok to have unorthodox, but viable builds with no specialized role to fulfill or a guild to answer to.
 
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Yoshiyuki Blade said:
There is a pretty decent choice option in D3, it takes a little more forward thinking though since the beta doesn't offer much. Item stats affect skills differently. So if you really want to commit to making your skill of choice strong, you'll have to itemize properly for it. I think there was an example where the Wizard's Disintegrate beam benefits more from fast, weaker weapons while Arcane Bomb (or whatever its called) benefit from slow, high damage weapons, even if the weapon's DPS is identical.

There's also the compromise of having whatever skill you want, which is the 6-skill limit. My first impression was basically "Dang, there are a lot of interesting skills to choose from; sucks that I can't use em all." That's a much better design than skipping over a bunch of skills that you know are virtually useless and just cherry pick skills that are of any value.

Eventually, there will be an "ultimate 6" for each class, but if the designers do a good enough job making the various possible builds good, I don't really care. They made a short list of reasons why D3's design philosophy is different from WoW and why its ok to have unorthodox, but viable builds with no specialized role to fulfill or a guild to answer to.
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While I agree to a certain degree that there will be overlap in what skills are sought after for each class, I think you're overlooking the potential to have separate builds depending on class and play style.

An example in Diablo 2 was the Amazon. Depending on play style, one could go primarily with bows or with javelins and then the skill tree would follow that play choice. I believe that Blizzard is still working these play style choices into Diablo 3 so that within the 6 skills you get to pick there is the possibility of having different builds within the same class.

Where I personally think it gets really interesting is that Blizzard has allowed players to change their skill customization. That essentially makes it possible for any single character to change their play type on the fly. An obvious possible use for being able to change on the fly would be from PvM to PvP based skills, or even situational depending on a boss or area with a specific type of enemy. I think Blizzard is really working towards making the best possible use of this flex system and to encourage players to use other skills outside of their favorites.

Finally because of the fact that stat leveling is no longer done by the player, the end game is a bit more controlled in-so-far-as contingencies that the programmers can plan for. What I'm getting at is that I think it's possible and valid for Blizzard to really balance a lot of the endgame spells and make it so that various play-styles are viable as there is less of a chance for something to be obviously over-powered.

These are just thoughts and observations, so I'm really not sure if that's the design choices that Blizzard is making, but seeing how the rest of the game is fleshed out, it would make a lot of sense.
 
I played quite a bit. The indoor areas have better overall graphics.

I am running it on my macbook pro high above 1280 by 800. it runs pretty good as long as I can get a connection to the server.
 
It's fairly fun to play co-op, so that's one saving grace at least. Loot seems to be seperated (as in, you will not see what loot is dropped for other players and vice versa), which is actually kind of a cool idea. Though a couple times I picked something up and said, "Did you want that?" and they're like, "Want...what...?" Takes a bit of getting used to.

Also, having to pay to unlock the stash is pretty lame. Titan Quest did that but the majority was pre-unlocked, whereas this you get like 1/6 of it or something and it costs quite a bit to unlock. I guess ultimately in Diablo 2 you ended up with way more gold than you needed, but in this it seems like gold drops are less...like I almost never get more than 10 gold per drop so far. Usually it's more like 2-3.
 
I got thru it. Graphics aren't great but the special effects and the physics make up for the rest. a 4hr beta? laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaame. Gameplay was good, environment alteration was the best part for sure. Want.
 
MY wish came true and I got invited!!!1 Finally! I had a lot of fun, first play through was with a monk. It was over in like 2-3 hours though and I was level 9....Seemed like such a tease. I guess I can try all the other classes though.
 
First, this is not a beta, it is a demo, regarless of what Blizzard calls it (IMO). Game play was pretty fun and easy, as I'd expect it to be in normal difficulty. When it comes to Nightmare and Hell, I expect it to get more challenging/time consuming.

One thing I don't like is the achievement notification as well as monster combo kill...I could care less that I killed 17 demons at the same time. That part needs to be hideable.

The crafting is a pretty cool concept and the skill tree, though very different from D2 (more WoW like) I think will work out better in the end. It is also nice that you can constantly adjust your skills, instead of having to build another character.
 
UnknownSouljer said:
While I agree to a certain degree that there will be overlap in what skills are sought after for each class, I think you're overlooking the potential to have separate builds depending on class and play style.

An example in Diablo 2 was the Amazon. Depending on play style, one could go primarily with bows or with javelins and then the skill tree would follow that play choice. I believe that Blizzard is still working these play style choices into Diablo 3 so that within the 6 skills you get to pick there is the possibility of having different builds within the same class.

Where I personally think it gets really interesting is that Blizzard has allowed players to change their skill customization. That essentially makes it possible for any single character to change their play type on the fly. An obvious possible use for being able to change on the fly would be from PvM to PvP based skills, or even situational depending on a boss or area with a specific type of enemy. I think Blizzard is really working towards making the best possible use of this flex system and to encourage players to use other skills outside of their favorites.

Finally because of the fact that stat leveling is no longer done by the player, the end game is a bit more controlled in-so-far-as contingencies that the programmers can plan for. What I'm getting at is that I think it's possible and valid for Blizzard to really balance a lot of the endgame spells and make it so that various play-styles are viable as there is less of a chance for something to be obviously over-powered.

These are just thoughts and observations, so I'm really not sure if that's the design choices that Blizzard is making, but seeing how the rest of the game is fleshed out, it would make a lot of sense.
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Not at all. I actually agree with what you said and I'm pretty optimistic about all the possibilities of skill and item customization. I just had to mention that inevitably, there's gonna be a "best" combination of skills for each class, depending on their intent like MF'ing or just being badass. Consequently, they will be itemized in a specific way to maximize their potential.

The main question is how much better those optimal builds will be compared to unorthodox builds. The designers are very aware about this and discussed it at length though. At Blizzcon, they mentioned that they don't want there to be such a huge gap between the best builds and unique ones since it would discourage creativity. Hell, they even demonstrated a viable melee Wizard with a 2H axe, using close-range spells and defensive abilities at a later difficulty (I think Jay Wilson mentioned that it was Hell difficulty). It's up to them to keep things in check, but I think there will be a lot to look forward to. The beta doesn't even scratch the surface.
 
I'm waiting anxiously for the unlocking of arena mode. It will come in due time.....
 
Krenum said:
Well, I'm running it on Windows 8........First!
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Somehow doubting this, and caring even less. :rolleyes:

Ran a monk and wizard up to 10 last night. The crafting stuff is kind of nice, can make some good filler items for empty slots or to replace crappy drops you've gotten.

Still not feeling a real desire to keep plugging away at it though. It's just not drawing me in like I had hoped it would.
 
Played through and beat it with my barbarian just now. I liked what I saw. I don't care that the graphics aren't "ZOMG UBAR HIGH TRI-SLI CRUSHING GRAPHIX"

That's not what I play games for. I had fun playing this and I'll play through with every class.
 
I know everyone has it now but I just got mine... Downloading as I type this at 1.4mbs
 
I'll probably end up getting this for co-op alone (hopefully for less than $60) but I really am disappointed with the graphics. I wonder, though, if some of the textures are just lower quality placeholders. Plus, I think one of the reasons the game can kind of "get away" with it is that the camera is out so far and unable to zoom in, so you don't notice as much. In the character screen before you start, though, it's really apparent at how low-poly and low-res they are. Though, interestingly, the weapon/shield textures seem a lot better. So that kind of makes me think that maybe (hopefully) the graphics will improve in the final game. Or at least hopefully there will be a high-res texture pack option.
 
MavericK96 said:
I'll probably end up getting this for co-op alone (hopefully for less than $60) but I really am disappointed with the graphics. I wonder, though, if some of the textures are just lower quality placeholders. Plus, I think one of the reasons the game can kind of "get away" with it is that the camera is out so far and unable to zoom in, so you don't notice as much. In the character screen before you start, though, it's really apparent at how low-poly and low-res they are. Though, interestingly, the weapon/shield textures seem a lot better. So that kind of makes me think that maybe (hopefully) the graphics will improve in the final game. Or at least hopefully there will be a high-res texture pack option.
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I think they just have lower graphics right now to keep computer specs out of the equation and they can focus on getting real technical errors found and fixed... I wouldn't be surprised if the retail version looked much better on all high/ultra settings
 
You can quasi zoom...by pressing X or Z or C (at work cant remember exactly) I like the game. I've had beta since December and i've played through every class except the Witch Dr. which is my next play through.
 
Limahl said:
Somehow doubting this, and caring even less. :rolleyes:

Ran a monk and wizard up to 10 last night. The crafting stuff is kind of nice, can make some good filler items for empty slots or to replace crappy drops you've gotten.

Still not feeling a real desire to keep plugging away at it though. It's just not drawing me in like I had hoped it would.
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Same boat. I could careless about Windows 8.

ZOMG!!!! I GOTZ WINDOWZ 8! LOOKIE AT ME TILEZ!

Frankly, I don't care. I have to actually do work on my macbook pro, not play with Windows 8.
 
Paying 10 bucks for someones beta info!
I just want to check the game play out.

Seems like I'm not gonna get an invite so figured I'd give this a shot.
 
Operaghost said:
Paying 10 bucks for someones beta info!
I just want to check the game play out.

Seems like I'm not gonna get an invite so figured I'd give this a shot.
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It's tied to the battle.net account. Login and passwords are the same, which means you'd have to find some that's either really trusting of you, or someone that has never had a WoW account. Otherwise you have access to billing information.
 
Koncrete said:
I think they just have lower graphics right now to keep computer specs out of the equation and they can focus on getting real technical errors found and fixed... I wouldn't be surprised if the retail version looked much better on all high/ultra settings
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You're either intentionally trying to kid yourself or just extremely ignorant. One of the main tenets of beta testing is making sure the actual engine in all its various graphical forms is free of problems as it can be on all the various systems it will be installed on. The game looks as good now as it will at release.
 
I would also like to add that it looks the same now as it did when it was announced 4 years ago. It's not getting changed. It really boggles the mind that people still think a beta is something completely unrepresentative of the retail product. Lack of critical thinking and low IQ?
 
It'll probably improve incrementally from now on, but the major stuff is already there. It's not like there will be higher poly counts when the game goes live or something. SC2 improved graphically between beta to current form and both looked much different from the debut shots. I dunno if D3 will receive the same treatment, probably a little too late at this stage.
 
So far I am liking this game a lot. I actually think the graphics are pretty neat and have that dark "wet" look and runs silky smooth on my FW900. Although my GPU only get's about to about 30% lol with all settings max @ 2012x1286 @ 90Hz.
 
So anyone willing to trust me for $10 so I can check out the beta? PLEASE?

You could always change your password after a couple days to make sure everything is safe.

I'm just a die hard Diablo fan that has been waiting far too long for this game and I'm just dying to have a sneak peek.
 
Operaghost said:
So anyone willing to trust me for $10 so I can check out the beta? PLEASE?

You could always change your password after a couple days to make sure everything is safe.

I'm just a die hard Diablo fan that has been waiting far too long for this game and I'm just dying to have a sneak peek.
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No one is going to give you full account access. It is the equivalent of asking: "How about you let me access your Steam account for $10?" or "How about you give me your Apple ID for $10?"

People's credit cards are tied to that account.
 
Krenum said:
Yes with sprinkles and maybe some of those big m&m's if you can swing it. :p
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You realize Windows 8 has been available for download to devs for like 2 months now, right?

You are the first to realize you're not really first, that's about it... lolol
 
UnknownSouljer said:
No one is going to give you full account access. It is the equivalent of asking: "How about you let me access your Steam account for $10?" or "How about you give me your Apple ID for $10?"

People's credit cards are tied to that account.
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You can remove your card from your Steam account, plus they give you an option to save the card on checkout. Just read uncheck the box.
 
Greene420 said:
You realize Windows 8 has been available for download to devs for like 2 months now, right?

You are the first to realize you're not really first, that's about it... lolol
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Dude I'm just messing around......
 
bloodhawke83 said:
anyone else think this game is kinda lame?
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I kind of thought that during my review a few months ago that I got seriously flamed for on these very forums. The lack of attributes, skill tree, and any real customization made me dislike it.

I tried it again a week or two ago, and I think it's gotten better. They took out that whole needing to be at an altar thing in order to change skills, and improved crafting from what I can tell. The lack of being able to customize your character is still a huge minus for me though. I'm not sure when this game is released, but depending on my status of playing a certain MMO which is supposedly out in a few months will determine if my friends and I pick it up or not. That and Torchlight 2, if it's ever released.

Still following Diablo 3 closely though...
 
I'm really enjoying the beta, currently played through Monk and Demon hunter, got a barb to level 12 and enjoying some co-op with it.

Blacksmith is up to level 4. Most of what I want to craft is way above my level, though there's been some great crafting spots available.

Aiming to get all the achievements I can. Im really enjoying the beta, though as others have said, it's more of a demo. the play through isn't very long, but the replay value is there. plus co-op is fun. Though a bit too easy at times. I want more of a challenge, though I suppose that'll come with the full launch.
 
Skizzy said:
I kind of thought that during my review a few months ago that I got seriously flamed for on these very forums. The lack of attributes, skill tree, and any real customization made me dislike it.

I tried it again a week or two ago, and I think it's gotten better. They took out that whole needing to be at an altar thing in order to change skills, and improved crafting from what I can tell. The lack of being able to customize your character is still a huge minus for me though. I'm not sure when this game is released, but depending on my status of playing a certain MMO which is supposedly out in a few months will determine if my friends and I pick it up or not. That and Torchlight 2, if it's ever released.

Still following Diablo 3 closely though...
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i was able to find a class i liked, the mage, they removed chain lightning......
 
Beta caps out at level 13 and the blacksmith at level 4. Beyond that, you could try playing different classes I guess, or doing MF runs. Most MF on any of my toons is 74%.
 
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