!? Really? They have been trying to fix the grouping bug for weeks and giving updates frequently. Several fixes were tried, and did not work. They hoped to have another try at fix today, a fix that has been in the works for days. Maybe, just maybe, it is NOT easy to fix?
Saying the only reason they don’t have this fixed is because it is not a “priority” is really really short sighted and disingenuous in my opinion. You can WANT something and prioritize it all you want, does not make it happen any faster. I am sure you have life experience with that. How many times have you really really wanted something done but it just plain takes time and work?
FACT:
lol, if Eggman had not done the solo 150 trick this past week then there would have been no patch for that!
It has taken over two months to fix the group bug problem.
It has taken them over a month to even begin to understand that this bug from Bnet Services had ruined group play.
MissCheetah, I know you feel this group bug is a minor issue because you don’t play D3 at all in the past few years.
You have no experience with this bug in group play.
The past two seasons have been ruined by this group play inability!
I have stated this very clearly, and I wish you knew how bad this bug is personally.
A number of people have stopped playing because this group bug has ruined the game.
Anyone that only plays solo will see little and have no effect from this group bug.
It has been 3 months, actually. We knew from the start that it was due to the Bnet update that was done, or at least I did and it was stated on the forums a few times.
You are right! I don’t do group play. Pretty much ever. Just because something does not impact me does not mean I think it is MINOR though. It sure as heck is not. Group play is a core aspect of D3 gameplay and something Blizz does prioritize. Believe this or not, I want good things for other people in all aspects of life. That is why I have spent my time here, for at least 7 years now, mostly helping answer Tech and CS questions. I get nothing from that. It is not about me. It is about players being able to play the game, or understand it at least.
My point is that they have been trying fix after fix after fix for this. They have been really really good about communication on it, especially lately. It IS a priority. IF they could have fixed it already they would have.
Don’t slam Blizz for fixing a critical bug (maybe easy fix?) because the Bnet and Diablo3/Classic team have not fixed another important, but stubborn, bug.
This bug is NOT an easy fix.
That much is very clear.
This bug is about an old legacy C++ coded game that was blindsided by the Bnet Services updates.
I have no doubt there is some serious political problems in house about Blizzard Classic games talking with Bnet Services to fix this group play bug that has ruined the game.
The programmers are working in the wrong area to make this work.
Like Matthew C. said in another post about it may require a rewritten D3 code patch that will take programmers they most likely let go or quit in the last year to complete.
Getting legacy software/hardware to work seamlessly with new product is a challenge.
I am fully aware of the nuances of this type of work.
I understand this group fix will not be easy and most likely will be very expensive as well.
The only thing I even slightly disagree with is about team relations. I don’t think there are political issues between the Bnet team and the Classic team though. Blizz teams work really well together if mgt allows and funding is there.
I’ve worked with companies where legacy systems and current money making systems under same roof are in different worlds.
I imagined what would have happened when a Diablo Classic team member stopped a Bnet Services guy in hall and said, “Hey, we’ve found a bug from your maintenance that is impacting group play with D3!”
At this point the Bnet Services red faced guy has steam rising from his head and things don’t go well from here.
I know that Bnet Services is not going to change their code.
And I know that little patches here and there will not fix the bug.
So the middle way around this is to rewrite the actual D3 code to accept input proper from Bnet Services and give output back to Bnet Services proper.
When this happens finally, D3 will be a happy game once again!
Nah, they have a structured process. While sometimes hall conversations do make wheels turn, this is a bit big for something like that!
I really don’t think so. I have spent time there. Distinct lack of steaming heads running around. I have met with a lot of folks from many teams. I am impressed by how personable they are, open, and professional. I really don’t think anyone would get angry about a bug. Concerned, sure, angry, nah.
Probably true. I suspect Bnet would change it if it did not impact the other games and other features. Which yeah, puts it back on the Classic team to fix D3…which has very old code.
Thank you Matthew for the steady stream of updates. Please pass along to the rest of your team mates, our appreciation for their time and attention dedicated to fixing this bug.
Hopefully a patch is in the works that fixes group issue once and for all.
Tangentially related to this, I also have issues switching between appearing offline and online. I’ll switch myself to online in the BNet client or mobile app and Diablo 3 refuses to change me to appear online. Nobody can see me or invite me to parties, and I can’t request invite.
Hopefully this is related to the same BNet bug(s) that are being fixed and will go away too.
To be fair, the bug’s been outstanding for over three months now and the frequent updates have only been happening in the last couple of weeks. Prior to that, the original Bug Report thread hadn’t seen a blue response in weeks. Hell, they didn’t even sticky the thread so people could find it.
Really hoping for an update today. Since yesterday’s patch to fix the exploit, it is even harder to group with friends now. It was so bad last night, we simply gave up. No matter how many times we made a new game, tossed leader to someone else, swapped from seasonal to non seasonal characters, etc. Nothing worked.
It’s not game-breaking at all nor, has it ruined group play in the slightest. Annoying? Yes. Irritating it has taken this long and, it’s not been patched yet? Yes. but, it hasn’t ruined the game. since so many are familiar with it now, it’s a simple matter of switching from a NS to S toon and, back again to fix the problem or, something similar. And, it doesn’t happen all the time. If someone actually claims they stopped playing because of it, it just shows they have no patience. And, since they have been communicating more with the player base as of late, I think we can show a bit more patience with them than in the past. I’ve been getting antsy about it myself but then, saw the posts by Matthew showing they are indeed trying to address the issue.
As far as fixing the exploit? Doesn’t matter if it just came to light. Best to nip it in the bud as soon as they know than to let it go and, have others abuse it. I give them props for doing that. I play without cheating. I expect others to do the same. So, no issue with that as they knew how to fix it immediately. Hope they keep up the good work.
That only works when the party leader has been playing for less than 2 hours.
A group that has been doing gr’s for several hours and leaves game for pools or to do more bounties, suddenly nothing works to be able to rejoin.
The entire group has to log out their client/launcher and then open Task Manager and clear all instances of Battlenet and D3.
This works many times but after the group has been on for 4 to 6 hours they are completely lost and unable to group.
They have to reboot their computer and clear their DNS & IP.
This ruins the game and is the reason why serious players that love the game quit.
Please do not use this approach ^^. Diggs is wrong. I’m casual. I’m low paragon. I’m affected like everyone else simply because I tried to group up with and help clan mates and friends. You are right that folks will become quite angry/frustrated, give up, and log off. I haven’t even bothered to go into D3 in the last 2-3 days because of this bug (last session ended at 12-9-2019 @ 10:15pm). Folks began to think its just not worth logging in and grapple with this bug. Once that idea is in the minds of the players the season is ruined. The idea was in the minds of players within the first 48 hours of the season start.
You know there is definitely a big problem when a friend, one of the biggest procrastinators on the planet, prefers to do house chores instead of dealing with this bug.
In the short term, I’ve been playing Deus Ex: Mankind Divided on Linux. If Crate ported Grim Dawn to Linux I would be playing that most likely.
@BossDogg,
I’ve seen so many solo players say nothing for weeks then they attempt to group up to join a bounty offering and it fails.
Then that solo player makes a gen forum post that announces “Hey my friends show NS SC and they are season!”
The problem with not playing D3 much is one doesn’t really know the bug problem.
I’m HC and the past two seasons have been so painful with this join group bug.
I am not playing much because of it.
The game is painful with this bug.
I’ve been aware of it since that horrible September patch last season.
