Respec was a QoL. Synergies and the mass of OS Skill based runewords were not QoL, but massive changes to the gameplay and skill system. The ideas were fine, but they were not properly balanced imo, which is why Diablo 2 turned into “Rise of the Hammerdin.” Does the Hammerdin being powerful bother me? No. Does it being OP to the point that it almost completely overshadows the other classes and outperforms the balance of the rest of the game (ie, very few Magic Immunes)? Yes.
There is a reason that this has been a hot topic since 1.10, and a reason that out of all potential questions that could come from Blizzcon during the Panels, that this was one of them. Devs know game is unbalanced, and plan on releasing it at launch that way. Don’t be surprised and shocked that balance changes come with a patch a ladder season or two into launch.
Personally, D2 was my favorite video game at that time. Things change, technology evolves, tastes differ. There is no reason not to introduce a separate mode where there is personal loot (either selected at game creation or character creation based on what Blizzard decides). The original global loot mode remains. Old school D2 players get the game they want. Other players can choose to have a different experience.
“Loyalty to petrified opinion never yet broke a chain or freed a human soul.” – Mark Twain. While loyalty is usually a positive value, it can turn into a burden for people who like to stay loyal to subjective things such as opinions or convictions. Change is the law of life and our loyalty must always know how to navigate changes.
Originally, you could not respec at all in D2. I think it was patch 1.10 (I think) that allowed respecs. To me, this was bad game design of early patches.
My response was mostly directed at the fact that respec was a QoL addition in post 1.10 patches (I think 1.11 or 1.12), but the bulk of 1.10 was a massive shift of gameplay and balance changes, which was a fundamental shift as opposed to a basic QoL shift. I’m fine with the respec. It is limited to one per difficulty, then if you want more, you got to farm them. Makes one think “do I really want to farm these, or just roll a new character?”
To be honest, with the way the game changed it’s system in 1.10, you kind of needed those respecs. It isn’t like the game progresses the player into immune monsters beyond boss types bit by bit, it slams them into you around mid Nightmare, to where whatever build a player completely new to the game might have issues and quit the game.
At the time, many players complained that adding respecs was a fundamental change that “killed” D2. I liked the ide. That conversation has similarities to the current discussion of adding the option of instanced loot but not removing the anility to also have games that are exclusively global loot.
D2 diehards at the time said respecs would ruin the game and kill longevity. We now know that was not the case with 20/20 hindsight.
Yep. And I’ve also been wondering, why back in 2011 people pre-purchased D3 when it seemed, that they hate the franchise in general.
Then they would troll the forums and oppose any reasonable request for improvements, and they would support all the craptastic features, that ruin D3 to this day.
That’s not to say, that D2 is perfect, and that it can’t use few quality of life improvements, but some of the demands are truly unreasonable.
Being a beggar in D2 almost seems like a legitimate and honorable tactic, especially when compared to some of the crap I’ve read on these forums in recent days.
I imagine many of those people would even fail at begging for gear, considering, that the way they conduct themselves is… quite frankly annoying…
Because there isn’t anything else to talk about. the base D2 stuff you said has been talked about for 20 years. People can find answers for any base stuff on the internet much easier than posting here. People want to talk about new stuff. This is human nature.
I agree. The game is great, but I always usually quit playing for the same reasons too; how unbalanced the game is since the 1.10 patch. I primarily play the succulent mod anymore, a solo self found mod with infinite stash that balances the game towards single player, such as 1.10+ monster stats, but closer to 1.09 monster resists, and some other qol features. I had more fun on it than I had on Bnet since before the 1.10 patch.
All I can say is that this forum is filled with toxicity, from both D2 and D3 players.
Actually, the toxicity is everywhere: reddit, twitter etc.
People complain about every single aspect of every game; there will never be consensus among the forum gladiators, as long as they continue to live in this “virtual” world.
I, for one, like the idea of letting the development of the games - be it D2R, D4 or any other game - in the hands of the people that came up with the idea, in the first place.
When the devs start giving too much attention to people outside the developers’ inner circle, things start falling apart.
I hope, sincerely, that they stay resolute about what was shown at Blizzcon about D2R and move forward with THEIR OWN IDEAS for D4.
I don’t think the people calling for all the changes realize the longevity of the game is tied directly to the rarity of certain uniques and HR and then the variety of builds available not seen in later iterations of the game. D3 is stale after just a few days of play and it based on primarily sets which are basically given to you for free at the beginning of the season. My last witch doctor jumped from T4 to T15 in just a couple hours of play. If I did that with every class I get a month of play out of the game then wait for the next season…it’s just bad.
We need to just have D2 be D2 where I’ve never seen a zod rune, never made the best rune words, never made a hammerdin, because all of this gives players something to look forward to and it’s still true after 20 years that there are still things to do without making a single change to the game.
That was exactly how I felt when we heard that a Diablo 2 Remaster was coming.
I thought people should be overjoyed to hear this good news
But it seems that some will change how Diablo 2 was like a game.
Now they want to copy things from Diablo 3 like Personal loot, Auto Gold Pick, Higher Drop Rates, Stackable items etc.
Blizzard wanted to give Diablo 2 fans something great, so they decided to make a refurbished game with better graphics.
Diablo 2 is a masterpiece, that’s why it’s a refurbished game with better graphics, because fans have been waiting for this for many years.
Do not change what makes the game masterpiece, change that and this game is going to be a totally garbash game as Diablo 3.
Now that I hear all these awful ideas, I get a feeling of the game is going to be a huge disasterThen the waiting time for a Remaster is completely wasted of time.
I mentioned in a few posts that I think personal loot is a good thing, and it doesn’t really affect me, since I play SP or closed games, but I think it encourages group play, or, more specifically, shared loot discourages open games. Look, I’m sure a lot of folks are willing to die on the hill of group loot is the only way to play, and maybe it is better, but I can tell you that it was one of the bars for me back in 2001 and it will be 20 years later.
And in truth, we don’t really need to change it, because the option of offline play or closed games does exist. But I’d really like to try an 8 player game; what’s it like to have Necro curses and pally buffs and Barb shouts all at the same time? I’ve soloed Hell on /players 8 in SP, but man it’d be a lot faster with 7 more players! And maybe I can get a group of players together to do just that. But it’s not always possible, and isn’t it a good thing to have more players engaged in the game? How long do you think someone will keep jumping in to help out on a Baal run and always end up with a blue helm and a few mana pots?
But I could be wrong. Maybe for some people it’s just not Diablo enough with personal loot. Like I said it’s just an opinion, but I think we’re a better community when we disagree without toxicity.
Beyond the shared/larger stash, I wouldn’t change anything else either. Don’t screw with drop rates, don’t nerf anything, don’t change loot tables. There’s a reason D2 is such a great game. It offers you a challenge every time you log in. You’re always looking for another rare item, or the things you need to craft something godly. And boss fights and elites are hard, especially when you’re untwinked.
I’ve said it before as well, that D2 can be many things to many people, and it might be difficult to find a plurality in any given issue. I just can’t wait to play it in the modern setting. In the meanwhile, the original game is as fresh as ever in some ways. Good luck to you all, and may your drops ever be gold & green!
the base D2 stuff you said has been talked about for 20 years. People can find answers for any base stuff on the internet much easier than posting here. People want to talk about new stuff. This is human nature.