Having just read your two articles, Sulla, I sort of agree, but see things differently. I'm afraid these are going to be scattered thoughts, rather than an orderly exposition, though. But expect comparisons to Path of Exile.
One thing I disagree with: You said that online-only "certainly didn't do much of anything to stop people from pirating D3". Still hasn't been pirated - as I predicted back in 2011.
Earlier in this thread, I'd already mentioned that D3 has load-outs rather than character building, and that's a big part of your reviews. It also ties in to there being just enough slots for two characters of each class - male & female or HC & SC.
The D3 endgame load-outs are set-based with some supporting legendaries for synergy. The removal of the auction house and other changes limiting trading over time have turned the game into something approaching solo-self-found. The loot 2.0 and gambling changes, as well as the cube, had the effect of making it possible get any legendaries/set items needed with some effort.
As for real vs. artificial difficulty - I seem to recall Sirian making similar complaints about D2 as compared to D1, once upon a time. I think Blizzard has done a remarkable job of balancing the game. (GGG is still learning how to do that in Path of Exile.) I love being able to select the difficulty level, depending on how powerful i feel a character to be.
On your DPS vs. health chart, I think that doesn't count that strength-based characters take 30% less damage. I think its a good sign that all the classes are competitive. And the necromancer doesn't seem underpowered - at least at my level of play. In the top tiers, the "meta" shifts when a top player happens to find some item that can tweak their build by a tenth of a percent, and then herd believes that that legendary is now the standard. It's the downside of balance.
On adventure mode vs. the story line, yeah, that's sad. When Chris Wilson of GGG was interviewed by Diabloii.net, the dii.net guy referred to the campaign as "the tutorial" for the game. But that seems to be a trend.
You talk about D3 being abandoned. This leads to a gripe with both D3 and PoE.
In his book "Drive", Dan Pink discusses that once you "pay" someone to do something they were inclined to do anyway, they become less likely to do that something without being paid.
So in D3 seasons, people play until they get the season rewards and then quit. I typify this - I would play through the first 4 chapters of the season journey. Then I would realize I could not achieve the next tier of rewards (the stash tab) and so I would quit - just as my character was getting fun to play. The current season 17 was a milestone for me - I already had the league rewards I could achieve, so I didn't play at all.
In his talk this year at GDC (I recommend watching this), Chris Wilson shows graphs of active players - they drop off dramatically from peak every league. But that doesn't conflict with their business model. (The quality curve 40 minutes in is disturbing. And a month or so after that talk, he had to write a public apology.)
At this point, I'm looking for a game with half the content of PoE, and a fraction of the bugs. The bugs in the Synthesis league really took the fun out of it for me.
On the other hand, I will recommend that you and Liz try Path of Exile. It's free to start, which is a bonus. You can try crazy stuff. And if you like I can invite you to a small guild that is mostly long time supporters (several are "diamonds") who have some crazy theory-crafting skills.
One thing I disagree with: You said that online-only "certainly didn't do much of anything to stop people from pirating D3". Still hasn't been pirated - as I predicted back in 2011.
Earlier in this thread, I'd already mentioned that D3 has load-outs rather than character building, and that's a big part of your reviews. It also ties in to there being just enough slots for two characters of each class - male & female or HC & SC.
The D3 endgame load-outs are set-based with some supporting legendaries for synergy. The removal of the auction house and other changes limiting trading over time have turned the game into something approaching solo-self-found. The loot 2.0 and gambling changes, as well as the cube, had the effect of making it possible get any legendaries/set items needed with some effort.
As for real vs. artificial difficulty - I seem to recall Sirian making similar complaints about D2 as compared to D1, once upon a time. I think Blizzard has done a remarkable job of balancing the game. (GGG is still learning how to do that in Path of Exile.) I love being able to select the difficulty level, depending on how powerful i feel a character to be.
On your DPS vs. health chart, I think that doesn't count that strength-based characters take 30% less damage. I think its a good sign that all the classes are competitive. And the necromancer doesn't seem underpowered - at least at my level of play. In the top tiers, the "meta" shifts when a top player happens to find some item that can tweak their build by a tenth of a percent, and then herd believes that that legendary is now the standard. It's the downside of balance.
On adventure mode vs. the story line, yeah, that's sad. When Chris Wilson of GGG was interviewed by Diabloii.net, the dii.net guy referred to the campaign as "the tutorial" for the game. But that seems to be a trend.
You talk about D3 being abandoned. This leads to a gripe with both D3 and PoE.
In his book "Drive", Dan Pink discusses that once you "pay" someone to do something they were inclined to do anyway, they become less likely to do that something without being paid.
So in D3 seasons, people play until they get the season rewards and then quit. I typify this - I would play through the first 4 chapters of the season journey. Then I would realize I could not achieve the next tier of rewards (the stash tab) and so I would quit - just as my character was getting fun to play. The current season 17 was a milestone for me - I already had the league rewards I could achieve, so I didn't play at all.
In his talk this year at GDC (I recommend watching this), Chris Wilson shows graphs of active players - they drop off dramatically from peak every league. But that doesn't conflict with their business model. (The quality curve 40 minutes in is disturbing. And a month or so after that talk, he had to write a public apology.)
At this point, I'm looking for a game with half the content of PoE, and a fraction of the bugs. The bugs in the Synthesis league really took the fun out of it for me.
On the other hand, I will recommend that you and Liz try Path of Exile. It's free to start, which is a bonus. You can try crazy stuff. And if you like I can invite you to a small guild that is mostly long time supporters (several are "diamonds") who have some crazy theory-crafting skills.
