Yet that’s exactly what upcoming blockbuster Diablo III has done, an FAQ handed to Kotaku at a recent press event stating:
Q: Will Diablo III include support for bots and/or mods?
A: No, for a variety of gameplay and security reasons, we will not be supporting bots or mods in Diablo III, and they’ll be expressly prohibited by our terms of use for the game.
Just to clarify, mods won’t just be discouraged from this game, they’re expressly prohibited.
Blizzard certainly has its reasons for this, most of them stemming from its use of Battle.net to force all users to connect to the internet to play (not to mention the workings of the in-game marketplace) But that won’t change the fact that this move will piss a lot of people off, especially those looking for a singleplayer-only experience.
The first two Diablo games are still being modded to this day, and the fact people can tweak their experience (and extend it!) is a big reason they’re still being played to this day. Losing that feature in Diablo III will certainly hurt its longevity.
Mike got hands-on time with the game last week; you can read his impressions here.
ripperhugme
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 6:56 PMTorchlight II, ho!
Reoh
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 11:12 PM+1
TBH I had a few problems with the first which primarily centered around the lack of multiplayer. I think T2 will rock. :)
Also, when you read “no modding support” you need to put that through a press release translator, (It comes out as “Lots of paid for DLC”). ;)
SOX
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 6:56 PMBut… my map hack… :’(
rantOclock
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 6:59 PMKind of feels to me like Blizzard are slowly loosing touch with their community.
Ruen
Tuesday, August 2, 2011 at 9:05 AMBeing merged with Activision has that sort of effect. . .
Mase
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 7:00 PMThe more “inner workings” I hear about the game, the less I want it
Jamie
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 7:11 PMThis is nothing new, regardless of what is implied. Mods were banned in both Diablo 1 and Diablo 2. The most notable mod, maphack, got many, many people banned from b.net.
Natto_man
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 7:17 PMAnd then, not a single copy was sold ever…
Dunnowhathuh
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 7:40 PMBlizzard has been on the downward slope for a while. I dunno if it’s because of activision having some sort of influence or if it’s because they’re just another name joining the, lets screw PC players, bandwagon, but they’ve definitely made some errors in judgement in recent past.
Kyle_Katarn
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 7:54 PMYep, let’s fuck with those who made us so rich in the first place.
Seems like a good idea.
Chrissomerry
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 8:04 PMWhile I don’t plan on playing Diablo III, I do find Blizzard’s insistence on making people be connected to the internet extremely irritating, especially since not everyone has access to the internet on a regular, or convenient, basis. Sort of the thing that makes people want to crack games like Starcraft II, which flies in the face of what they want. So, they’re essentially working against themselves.
Now, if they did things EA-style and made you have to register it with an internet connection first, then play it offline as long as you like, that’d be smart. But I think their obsession with developing WoW has clouded their judgement as far as singleplayer goes…
Sekheret
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 8:06 PMThis sounds, once again, like an Activision decision.
alinos
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 8:13 PMWoW they just sent the game from a must buy day 1 title to a eh, maybe down the beaten path.
It seems like the pirates will be getting the superior product once again.
Offline + Mods
Aidan
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 8:20 PMCould it have to do with the fact that they might want to sell extra content as DLC?
Still, whatever their reasons, it’s silly to stop mods when they’re the cornerstone of many PC non-shooter games.
Jumpin' Jellybeans Jon
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 8:44 PMGoodness, could you imagine Fallout without mods? Playable, sometimes excellent, but not the amazingly amazing level of awesome it can reach with the right combo of mods.
The number of people i’ve recommended to get the GOTY ed of FO3 based on it + mods…
Mic
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 8:45 PMLack of Mods I can understand, especially if they’re going to be having a real-world cash Auction-House.
The ‘must be online to play’ aspect however…bleh.
Jem
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 9:11 PMMore whine with your PC games sir?
Kyle_Katarn
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 10:26 PMWhen you feel like actually contributing to the conversation, we’re right here. :)
thyco
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 9:13 PMits obvious here that they are not talking about player made total conversion mods. they are talking about cheating mods such as maphacks and as if they would allow botting to be OK.
I see this as the word “mod” being taken out of context.
The Online part, will be the same as Starcraft 2 and Steam and so forth. Online connection for just installation and to have your save game uploaded to beused on the go. If your connection is lost for some reason, you can still save game and everything else in SC2, you just cant play MP, and if you have coonection when you load the game, you still play the damn game just not MP.
Kyle_Katarn
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 10:25 PMI think Blizzard knows full well what it’s talking about when it explicitly says “mods” and not “hacks”, considering it’s created one of the most modded games I’ve seen (warcraft 3), though for our sake’s, I hope your right.
Alan
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 9:20 PMThat sucks I was already planning a less cartoony looking mod
monkeyd_93
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 9:33 PMThis reeks of Activision
“Why let players have the ability to get mods for free when we can ban it and put a premium on it?”
Chazz
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 10:13 PMHere we have a game where the online part is an addition, essentially it means nothing to your average player.
Now add the fact that mods are expressly forbidden and combined we have a game that I now download for free.
Thanks Blizzard. Once again proving that you have no idea what the frak you’re doing since Burning Crusade.
andy
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 11:05 PMOMG i dont want multiplayer for every game. the thing i enjoyed most about diable was the single player and all the mods not the multi. wtf am i to do when im on holis with no internet and just want to play singleplayer D3. guess the pirates will get another hit.
RocK_M
Monday, August 1, 2011 at 11:32 PMI do find it rather novel how they used the exact same spin on the D3 is “Online Only”
The same way they sold the “advantages” of SC2 being no LAN.
Whats even more tragic is there is honestly still a lot of love for the Blizz brand that people will still flock to buy D3.
TS
Tuesday, August 2, 2011 at 4:55 AMEver since the whole no-LAN business with SC2, and the dodgy replies I’ve gotten in response to inquiries about poor online in Australia, I’ve pretty much decided to boycott Blizzard (and I already don’t buy Activision games).
Seeing how I own multiple copies of Starcraft, Diablo, Diablo II, and Warcraft I-III, it was a rough decision to make. Then again, since I still can’t play SC2 on LAN (or even online) with my wife, I can’t say there’s anything that I’m missing.
Tim
Tuesday, August 2, 2011 at 2:47 PMI understand we all want more for less but they’re a business. Why do people think any of these COMPANIES are or should be anything else but. They spent a lot of time and money developing the franchise so they could exploit it, not feed the starving masses.
Chris Lynn
Thursday, November 10, 2011 at 5:55 PMWhich is why banning something the players loved is incredibly stupid, and just encourages them to buy another company’s game.