Our clan leader decided to roll up a Hardcore character trying to chase a flag on console. A chunk of us decided to follow suit.
What started off as a bit of a joke has turned into an appreciation of what Hardcore playing brings to the table.
The caution, the focus and concentration, the danger and intensity. All make this an exciting way to play.
From someone who couldn’t see the point of Hardcore, I get it. It’s way more fun and may I dare say a superior way to round off end-of-season doldrums.
Get out of your comfort zone and give Hardcore a shot. I dare ya!
Played two characters to lvl 100 and one to lvl 90(died) HC in Season 5. Do not like. All that work for naught plus losing a bunch of Mythics in the process does not “fun” make for me. Sorry, Bubba.
We’re a small group (maybe 2-3% of the player base) but we play a VERY different game then the rest of the community.
And they do NOT get it. They think losing some digital asset is a tragedy. But 99% of them let everything roll over into non-season and never touch those things again.
I loved playing hardcore in D2, but never dared to do it in an online only game, the fact that some lag could be the cause of my characters permanent death keeps me out of it.
Though I do agree with OP
Let me put into perspective though from my own viewpoint. I picture the soft core Seasonal realm like building a model. I put all the pieces together, I even paint it, and when I’m done with it, it sits on a shelf for me to admire or get rid of as I see fit. Next season rolls around, I make a new model.
Now hardcore to me is like building an extremely delicate model. Where one false move, either by myself, or outside of my control (for analogy purposes let’s use a cat destroying my model as a disconnect or other blizzard bug related issues), destroys the model completely and I can’t salvage it, I have to throw it away every single time.
I understand the thrill of wanting to play HC, but where I’m at currently in my life, it’s not thrilling to me personally. That’s all there is to it. Just as you have your reasons for wanting to play HC, I have mine for not wanting to play it. Doesn’t mean I won’t ever play it, I just have no desire to at the moment.
Ive lost more HC characters in this game to bugs and lag and server disconnects than to personal failure.
Near the end of each season i get the itch, and then i remember, “oh, yeah. The game is online only”. Hard pass.
I Will NEVER Give HC a chance, I’ll quit D 4 before ever doing that. The game is far too inconsistent and I don’t want any investment I put in to be for Nothing.
Outside of any laundry list of issues the games architecture has blessed me with…
I had a very bad experience x2.
One in particular stands out.(Edit - this was 2 nights ago btw)
I was at my favorite/preferred Town - Tree of Whispers, assumed I was perfectly safe having just turned in a cache, I got up to make some dinner.
I left my character in the area between Blacksmith, Occultist and Waypoint.
Like 10+m North East of stash(the stash, which is closer to the exit).
I hear this strange noise.
It’s not the ghostly echoes.
It’s not the “is my cellphone vibrating” murmur.
It’s my Character in PAIN.
WTH?
I go back to my desk and I see those rotating lightning orbs zapping my Sorc.
She’s losing life slowly so I just watch.
They keep spawning - no monster on the screen.
Apparently someone aggroed something, walked back into town and it targeted them but then shifted to me when they went out of range and they just kept spawning those orbs as their cooldown reset.
If that - THAT nonsense can happen while AFK & “safe” in Town then who knows what’ll happen elsewhere.
(The second instance was similar but only one cast of an elite affix that didn’t repeat).
Otherwise, I’m not brave or ‘gud’ enough.
I’ll add this:
I have always had the utmost respect and minor tad of jealousy for those who play HC since long ago in D2
Gg
I understand where the non HC players are coming from. I felt exactly the same way before choosing to try it.
To me it feels like this is what’s missing in playing D4 and other ARPG games to. If it’s too easy, there’s less care about your character and therefore less care about the game. It feels to me that hardcore is how D4 is meant to be approached, carefully and with intent as opposed to carelessly.
As mentioned above by another, I’ve deleted old seasonal characters and there’s only so much I can keep in eternal so losing mythics is no biggie. Losing the time is whet we are doing anyway.
Hardcore for me, has given this game a new lease of life and approached the game in a different, purposeful way…like an art I suppose. Seasonal Softcore will always be my first way and now hardcore, a way to revive a dead season.
I play a SC character to finish the season, and then I start a HC character to play for fun. It’s far superior to playing an SC alt, because you’re looking at a second fresh start for the season. Playing alts is boring with many things already unlocked and tons of resources already in pocket. That’s just going through the motions with no thrill at all. Dying? Who does that?
That’s exactly what I did… I have 1 main for the season and rolled a HC alt and from now on, I’ll do that every season where I am done after 3-4 weeks because things are too easy.
i started HC this season. Paragon 267 now and only 1 character died. It was because of a lag spike. But you save up gear for when you die. So my second Barb is now rocking like never before xD
So. To summarize, you’re saying that there’s nothing to do in the game and it’s boring. So it’s better to play hardcore, since any failure will force you to start over, increasing the time of the gameplay?
