I’ve been thinking about D4 and what makes the franchise overall so popular, especially D2, which to this day is still popular. I would like to provide some possible solutions for Blizzard on how to regain your player base and support. I want to try to keep this post solution-oriented as opposed to just complaining. Anyone who has recommendations please feel free to chime in and share.
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Mirror itemization/loot from D2 - D2 has things like set items, runes, lesser/lower level uniques, and a host of things that players can play toward and look forward to possibly finding as they progress each season. I don’t know why, but finding low level uniques at lvl 30 felt good, and helped tide me over until I could get into T5 and start doing Baal runs, cow level runs, etc.
1.a. There is not enough build/loot options right now. I do realize that D2 is a far more mature game and has years and years of development and upkeep compared to D4. But, if the formula is already there, why not emulate at least some of it? A sorceress could be looking for a Tal Rasha set item, or 2, or 3, but may also stumble across the right runes to create a rune word item that buffed power as well, and also felt like an accomplishment. They might also find a unique item instead that could supplement their build until their desired item is dropped. Right now, there are typically specific unique items for classes that players are dependent on to make late game builds, or uber uniques with .00001% drop rates. I don’t want to speak for the rest of the player base, but I’d rather have a variety of things that I can potentially stumble across or work toward that can fill the gaps for my build.
1.b. Targeted farming for specific items, like those that only dropped from certain bosses, such as Mephisto, might also be helpful. The relative loot tables that can drop the same thing, or even lower items as you push, don’t seem exciting or relevant. Repeating boss fights isn’t even an option right now. Doing Diablo runs, Baal runs, etc. was a key part of farming and player decisions on what they wanted to focus on. If some of the boss-specific drops included uber uniques, that would be fine. The player can decide if they want to grind that encounter for the small chance of obtaining one. But at least it’s their choice. -
Change loot tables and how loot levels work - The loot feels entirely random and incongruent with nightmare dungeon level. There’s no feeling of progression, or reason to progress higher tier dungeon levels to get better loot because the drop you get from a level 40 nightmare dungeon might very well be better than the drop from a level 80 nightmare dungeon. Yes, you get more experience toward your level (if you aren’t already 100) and more points for leveling glyphs, but in terms of efficiency, players (especially those at level 100) tend to do nightmare levels within a range that they can clear quickly and not die (thus blowing gold on repairs), rather than slowly push through higher tier dungeons and get marginal increases to glyph points. There’s no sense of accomplishment, or noticeable reward for pushing high level nightmare dungeons. If players know that their gear will be generally better in most ways in higher level dungeons, they will be more excited to play them.
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Universally good builds - Right now, many players have to alter their builds or respec entirely to specifically kill Uber Lilith (which can only be done once for 1st time rewards if I’m tracking correctly? If this is incorrect, please let me know). We shouldn’t have to respect for a single boss that reaps no real rewards except a title. If boss runs were a thing and that boss was repeatably killable for a specific drop possibility, it would be different. But spending 6-8 mil gold to respec for one mob…including rerolling gear, extracting aspects, imprinting aspects, unsocketing gems, upgrading all gear, redoing skill points, redoing paragon points, etc., doesn’t feel good. I’m not sure what this solution would look like but if someone can clear a lvl 100 dungeon, they should be able to use that same build they have spent so much time progressing to beat a boss.
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Looting everything/Market mechanic - D2 still has marketplace websites where people trade items. The first few years of D2, this was done in person, in game. It would be nice if players could have the potential to drop anything, including unique items not for their class. We can already get rare item drops that are not for our class. Getting a unique item to drop will allow players to barter and trade for an item that they actually need or will incentivize them to try that class out and hand it off to them when they hit the eternal server. Having some kind of market in game would provide players an additional way to interface with one another if they so choose and would allow them to essentially help one another with progression.
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Patching - Don’t nerf everything. Try marginal values and see if that makes a difference in balancing. Going scorched earth with everything deflates people. Even if you think that upcoming content, such as malignant hearts, is going to turn everyone into a God, at least see how it plays out a bit first. Try to mitigate the pendulum swing of OP to irrelevant. In addition, don’t nerf everything to a point where only one particular build or function is viable in high tier content.