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The State of the Diablo 3 Beta (Two Videos)
It's been almost four years since Diablo 3 was announced, and its development began years earlier. Its predecessors helped define the action RPG genre, so anticipation is high among fans of the franchise. The game has undergone closed beta testing since September, and a lot has changed since then. Now that Blizzard has settled on May 15th as a release date, we thought this would be a good time to take a look at the state of the game as it currently exists. These two videos show actual gameplay of the various classes, explain the skill and rune systems, take a look at the auction house, and go over many of the other changes since the beginning of development. (Click to play the first video, and the second one will play automagically after the first one ends.)
So you're cheap?
The real state of Diablo III is that is has DRM forcing you to be online even to play single player. As a result, my almost two decade long love affair with Blizzard games has come to an end.
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." ~Thomas Jefferson
It's kind of sad that you're defined by an operating system. Reminds me a bit of the Amish. Their level of technology is a big part of who they are, so they go without modern conveniences (including video games) just to stick to that. All fine and dandy, but you don't hear the Amish complaining that nobody makes spoilers compatible with their buggies because it's a lifestyle choice.
Will it blend?
Didn't think so, therefore I'm not interested.
It runs on the PS3, and the PS3 (sort of) runs Linux.
*ducks*
Summation 2
If refusing to pay for a sequence of bits is considered cheap, then yes, by all means, call me cheap.
So you're cheap?
Digital media is like love, in that you can give it away without ever running out of it.
So I guess, you are cheap if you don't pay for love
this post contain no useful information, no need to mod it down
So by that level of thinking paying 20k for a chunk of metal fashioned into a car is unreasonable?
I never said I would pay "20k for a chunk of metal fashioned into a car" either.
Yeah! no... I would've been hyped over this a few years ago.
Digital media is like love, in that you can give it away without ever running out of it.
Digital Media is also like love in that you can't eat it (insert 'witty' innuendo here). Media makers like to eat and giving it away free isn't conducive to the goal of feeding oneself.
I might buy this, but only if I can download a crack and play off-line. If that doesn't happen, then Blizzard doesn't get my money.
Companies in the past have tried selling games for Linux. Including some big titles. However here are some estimates
1. Linux use for the desktop is at around 1%
2. 25% of that 1% are Open Source Zealots who will not pay for a program that isn't open source.
3. 25% of that 1% are just too cheap to buy software.
4. 25% of what is left isn't interested in games.
5. 15% Will just Duel Boot/Virtualize/Wine to play the Windows version of the game.
Leaving 10% of that 1% (0.1%) of sales. Of the product. Is that worth having to program a port, have support trained, and testing and bug fixing for that platform?
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
Trolling hard today, I see ...
Where do the Humble Bundle stats fit in with your assertions?
Actually, there's a huge thread on that very subject in the Amish Buggy Customization forum, but since the responses are carved on a rock out in a field in PA, you probably missed it.
It's kind of sad that you're defined by an operating system. Reminds me a bit of the Amish.
If you keep talking about the Amish that way, you're going to offend them and they'll stop visiting Slashdot! You insensitive clod...
All fine and dandy, but you don't hear the Amish complaining that nobody makes spoilers compatible with their buggies because it's a lifestyle choice.
It's much harder to entertain that asinine entitlement mentality when eating fried chicken means going to the coop and wringing its neck yourself*. If for some reason they thought aerodynamic lift was a problem for their buggies and wanted a spoiler, they'd make one themselves.
* What I really appreciate are people who can enjoy modern conveniences without becoming soft, complacent and fat because of them. It requires this thing that was once called "values" before politicians destroyed any meaning this term had. It could also be called having principles.
It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education. - Einstein
Is that worth having to program a port, have support trained, and testing and bug fixing for that platform?
Probably not, although Blizzard has stated before that having a Mac port of their games has sometimes helped fixed bugs in the Windows version as well. Blizzard also has a habit of making dual DirectX and OpenGL rendering engines, so they probably are closer than most other companies would be to making a port.
Fear is the mind killer.
Nowhere, if he's interested in actual market research, rather than a publicity stunt.
TODO: Something witty here...
I think he lets hundreds of people poke around in his innards.
So I've been playing an isometric arpg called Path of Exile for the last week+. It's still in beta, and the story is fleshing out, but the gameplay itself is really polished, and it has lots of interesting features I won't list, but to name a few:
Diablo 2 is it's role-model.
Skills/spells go into gem sockets similar to FF7's materia.
Passive skills are assigned to a board, similar to FF10.
There is no gold, rather players trade "orbs", which vary in what they do, from turn a normal item into a rare, or change the numerical properties on a magical item, etc., etc. This is also the "crafting" for the game.
Anyways, I'm not affiliated with the company (A 16-man team out of New Zeeland), but am hoping to spread some word of mouth so others can find and play it. Look me up if you have any questions, Harvester is my IGN.
That is the stupidest comment I have ever read.
You know these companies that make software, they have staff, they are not going to work for free because they need to pay for food, shelter, travel, fuel, health care, entertainment, education and save some up for an emergency, For themselves and often for other dependents as well. These people are good at "sequencing bits" in new original ways, when executed on a computer that will give entertainment to others. You are not paying for the bits you are paying for the work to make it. Well if you think about it you are probably more likely paying for them to work on their next project.
Standard GNU methods of making profit doesn't work too well with games.
1. You are not going to charge for consulting. If the game needs a consultant they wont play it.
2. If you are not going to charge for support. They just won't pay for it.
3. You could sell add ons. However you need to be careful as those add ons may break the GNU.
4. You package the game on a piece of hardware. Which may work... However after they get the source there will be a PC version soon and they will no longer need your hardware.
Sorry but the GNU model doesn't lead itself for a market of developers. if all software was GNU then Programming will be strictly a part-time/hobby thing and quality will go down the toilet because in order to make money they will need other full time jobs with a different discipline and less people willing to study computer science.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
Diablo 2 was great... good enough graphics for its time, with a challenging skill system and, most importantly to me, a fantastic story. Then it ended on a cliffhanger, with one of the Prime Evils still loose. Then the expansion ended on somewhat less of a cliffhanger: "I'm going to destroy this thing, and I have no idea what's going to happen to the world."
I want to play the next installment, I really do... but I probably won't. I've been hearing about it for two years, and the excitement's gone. Sure, it was neat to read about the new classes and see the new baddies. It was fun to go back and play the first two again to remember the story. Now all I hear about is DRM and auctions.
If I wanted artificial restrictions, I'd go lock myself in a dark room for a few hours. If I wanted an auction, I'd go browse eBay. I don't want those, though. I want a visual interactive story, so I'm going to play a video game. Perhaps someday I'll be able to buy D3 off of GOG to find out the end of the story, or perhaps even get a pirated version (ignoring my usual attitude toward those lazy mooching pirates). Maybe I'll break down and buy the retail version, if I get excited again.
My attitude right now is an utterly non-committal "meh." Sorry, Blizzard, but you've lost my attention, and I doubt you'll get it back again.
You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.
So computer programs appear out of thin air? They don't require programmers, artists or project managers? With automobiles, there's heavy costs on both design and production. With software, almost all of the cost is shifted to design... but there's still significant cost that needs to be recouped.
Trolls work on the myth/legend system. They work because in the back of your mind you know people who believe that.
There are people I know who are so cheap that they attempted to use a slice of PVC pipe for their wedding ring because they feel jewelry industry is a racket to sell shiny stones. Not that different than people who feel organized bits are a racket. In the eyes of the company, he is the best procurement employee they've ever had.
by Anonymous Coward: I, for one, welcome the shift from car analogies to pizza analogies. um.. overlords?
I hope they don't repeat the same stupid useless feature of World of Warcraft's auction house: stacks.
Why stacks are completely pointless:
- People list dozens if not hundreds of 1-item listings in order to bury others who sell by stacks.
- Sorting by price means you're sorting by stack price, which is pointless. Sorting by price should be based on the price per unit.
- Selling items should never "stack". You have 56 items for sale, that's all there is to it.
- If I want to only buy 8 units and you've got the lowest price per unit, then I buy 8 of those 56 units that you have for sale.
- If people are selling at the same price as you, then items listed earlier have precedence.
Whoever thought using stacks in the auction house was a good idea never actually used it.
Great, but the people making the digital media have bills to pay. Unlike you, they don't have mommy and daddy paying their way.
It's a shame that numbers you've made up off the top of your head are meaningless, especially when youre entire argument is based on them.
Karma: Terrifying (mostly affected by atrocities you've committed)
It's much harder to entertain that asinine entitlement mentality when eating fried chicken means going to the coop and wringing its neck yourself*
Now, I have a few Mennonite friends who've explained this to me, and from my understanding, this is exactly the point. Religion aside, the Amish culture values hard work, cooperation, and human interaction above worldly things like material goods, entertainment, and wealth. Putting in a good day's work to produce something is valued more in their society than coming home to a store-bought meal and the latest TV show.
In that way, Linux fans are much like the Amish. Open-source developers often contribute not for money, but for the pride in having contributed to a larger goal. Sure, there are some who sell their open code to earn money, just as there are Amish who have cars, phones, and radios to interact with the world outside their hometown.
It is the ideals we live by, not the technology we use, that truly defines who we are. Linux embodies a certain set of ideals, that the OP claims to live by.
You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.
If I'm not going to buy it, you're not going to eat in any case
this post contain no useful information, no need to mod it down
You're logic files in the face of idealism. Damn freeloaders need to be put in their place. Bunch of knuckleheads around here, I swear.
As for the rest of you. You don't want pay for a product. Fine. I get that. But don't steal. If it's not yours, hands OFF! Go pick up an OSS game if you're that idealistic.
Life is not for the lazy.
There are people I know who are so cheap that they attempted to use a slice of PVC pipe for their wedding ring because they feel jewelry industry is a racket to sell shiny stones.
The weird thing is, they're right. The jewelry industry is a racket to sell shiny stones. How is it that they're smart enough to figure that out, but not smart enough to realize that replacing it with plastic is even stupider?
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
Can't eat it, but sure can swallow it. Yummy!
The initial version, patches, support, and other infrastructure are all labor that go into making the software. In additions to all this, there are fringe costs, such as the building, power, computers, administrative support, social security fees, and so forth. The fact that the marginal cost of production is zero is neither here nor there. Investments must be recouped, or there will be no investments to speak of.
Exactly. Its disturbing how many pirates only listen to the parts of OSS that they want to hear and ignore the parts they don't. Interestingly enough, the parts they always want to listen to is "free" and the parts they always want to ignore is "money."
Stealing is taking anything to which you are not legally entitled. Piracy is just another form of theft. And before some moronic blow hard jumps in like a three year old child trying to correct an adult, there are many different types of theft in most law around the world. Its just that each type of theft has its own classification and legal requirements. Piracy is just one of many different types of theft.
Honestly, the sheer stupidity of pirates is simply amazing. They will rationalize anything so as to justify their criminal activity.
Other than the 1% desktop Linux estimate, the rest of your comment is pure speculation on your part. And a bit of flamebaiting as well.
Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
First off, not all linux applications need to follow the GNU. You can distribute a linux application with any license you please -- it may hinder repository access with particular distributions, but there's nothing stopping you from creating your own application manager, putting THAT in the repository, and then using that to distribute your games. Just saying.
Second, freemium is how it's all going to be in a decade full stop. You might as well get on that wagon now. And GNOME and KDE are almost to the point where Grandma can be trained to use it just as easily as Windows, which is the benchmark I tend to use when I consider the emerging market for a particular operating system. So, I expect that in another decade, there'll be a fair whack of linux machines with a fair whack of non-nerd users.
Finally, why you'd write anything in any language you can't cross-compile without great expense or redevelopment I just don't understand.
I've heard of a few Mennonite cultures that allow them to work at call centers and the like (their use of technology is accepted as its part of earning a living) and the supervisors love them because they work very hard, take pride in doing a good job and never complain. My only complaint is that they let their kids play in the road far too much, I've almost hit a few of them on blind curves and hills when traveling through the backwoods.
This man more or less has the right of it. Without sales data from regular (i.e. non-Humble Bundle) games, it's kind of impossible to tell, but the Humble Bundle strikes me as a serious statistical outlier.
1) Some or all of the proceeds go to charity.
2) The sales totals are published right there on the page, making it a great place for Linux lovers to make a case that Linux users will pay for games.
3) It's DRM free.
4) It's a bunch of independent game makers, which adds another crusade-style cause to the sales and probably skews the market more than a little bit.
The Humble Indie Bundles probably say something positive about Linux gamers, but I'm not sure that they say that there's really, truly a big potential market there for major PC game developers.
...I am really enjoying the beta.
The gameplay feels smooth and polished, the updated graphics are a nice touch and not very over the top. The story is a little dull compared to even the original release of the game, but it's not hard to follow and does not overly bore me. The witch doctor class is all kinds of fun and the random comments made by the characters are sometimes witty and soft chuckle worthy.
As much as I hate Blizzard, I may just end up buying this game anyway.
Actually, that's not really how the Amish relationship with technology works. They don't eschew technology because it is technology, but rather they eschew some technology because they feel it doesn't facilitate community/interpersonal relationships with people or a relationship with god, or, even if it does, in some cases the disadvantages are not worth it. When technology doesn't impinge on those things and if it is sufficiently needful they use it.
I met an Amish who owns a computer and uses a cellphone for his work. Doesn't have them in his home, doesn't carry the phone with him all the time, but he uses them.
Since I can't tell them apart, I treat all ACs as the same person.
How can we possibly disagree with your statement "I an really enjoying the beta"??? If you were to say "YOU will really enjoy the Beta", there'd be some wiggle room for the possibility for someone to disagree. But unless we can read your mind and see that you're telling porkies, how on EARTH can anyone disagree with your statement about YOUR enjoyment?
1. Linux use for the desktop is at around 1%
No. Even those who don't want to admit Linux has a desktop presence typically quote 2%. We know 2% is the lower bound. Factually, the number has consistently trailed that of Apple's OSX. Which is to say, right around 5%-6%.
Now the trick is, how many of those desktops have the video and muscle to play a specific game in question. The answer is, no one knows.
The rest of your argument is pretty true. Interestingly enough, 1 and 2 combine to pirate software and then these guys will complain that no one supports their platform. Oh the irony of stupidity which prevails amongst pirates.
Nowhere, if he's interested in actual market research, rather than a publicity stunt.
Heh, that's it...go for "market research" when you don't like what the real world figures say!
Igor Presnyakov stole my hat
They will rationalize anything so as to justify their criminal activity.
Well...yes. They're "pirates". Why would you expect anything different?
It's closer to 0.63% last time I checked (and dropping), but I suppose 1% is close enough.
>1. Linux use for the desktop is at around 1%
Who cares about the Linux desktop?
100% of all game servers are run on Linux.
Desktop is for the end-end-end-end-user.
Media makers like to eat and giving it away free isn't conducive to the goal of feeding oneself.
Really? Jonathan Coulton and loads of other people seem to give their media away (to the general public) and live just perfectly fine.
Random Thoughts From A Diseased Mind (Not For Dummies)
Where do the Humble Bundle stats fit in with your assertions?
It fits in nicely, I've bought two of them as all computers in my house have Linux on them.
Also there's the little fact that Linux users on average will pay more for the game unless Humble Bundle stats lie.
by TheSpoom (715771) Uncaring Linux user here. I have nothing to add to this but please continue. *munches popcorn*
But the kinds of estimates he is making are what matters to game developers and the shareholders if the company is traded. They are going to lose money porting to linux if it takes a significant amount of time. You can't really blame Blizzard ...
The game seems kinda dumbed down and I really don't want to bother with the restrictions in place for the AH and economy. I'll wait for the YouTube video to see what happens to the prime evils. Also since Windows 8 is around the corner and I'm avoidig that like the plague I don't feel like buying games for Windows like I used to.
~~ Behold the flying cow with a rail gun! ~~
i don't watch content that forces you to watch ads first.
Blizzard also has a habit of making dual DirectX and OpenGL rendering engines, so they probably are closer than most other companies would be to making a port.
Blizzard is not going to port the game to Linux, and they're not going to officially support Linux/Wine as a platform.
However, Blizzard has worked with Wine and Transgaming to fix issues specific to their games -- in particular WoW, which ran great on Wine. Also, while D2 always worked pretty damn well except for Battlenet, recently even that has worked.
I'm a Linux-exclusive gamer. I understand that means I won't be able to play all the games I might want to. But the odds are better than most that D3 will be among the games I can play.
The enemies of Democracy are
Then you CAN blame Blizzard.
It took them nearly as long to get StarCraft 2 out the door and it really was only a part 1 of 3 release. Why can't they finish working on the games that they start on?
Speaking as a Linux user, there has always been problems with third party programs in Linux, nonstandard installers, manual updating and so on. I, and I'm probably not the only one very seldom install third party software in my operating system (something not in the distro). I know if I use the distro supplied packages the system will work, like forever. I've seen (and used) Windows installes which have crawled to an halt in a year, mac likewise (although some would say this can't be). I've never seen a Linux install just getting sluggier as time moves on. I do believe this is because we use mostly distro supplied programs. Breaking this barrier is hard and probably one of the reasons Linux users don't like to buy programs, a normal distro have most of what we need anyways.
Now, late to the game, there has finaly come a technology which will not only offer games to Linux, but also don't screw with our operating systems. That tech is Google NaCL (I'm sort of a fanboy for NaCL if you check my history). I believe this to be the premier way to deliver games, not only to Linux (which most devs don't really care about anyway) but also to Windows and mac. Sandboxed (No possible way to screw around) is the way of the future for this type of programs. I do not want to install my games (And yes, I game in Windows), I want them playable from the net, and just trash them (could even be automatic, similiar to a web cache) when I'm through playing them. Not leaving anything behind. I have payed for a few Linux games over the years (Not enough to justify a Linux version I admit), but now I no longer want a Linux version at all, I want NaCL, it's just superior tech, for any OS.
Totally, that's why you buy a nice sturdy chunk of tungsten.
I got here through a series of tubes
I know you're just throwing numbers out there, but the way you arrived at your figure is flawed. You claim that Linux use on the desktop is 1%; okay, fine, I can live with that. You then go on to show that only a fraction of those Linux users are interested in games, and that fraction of the total computer population is the market size.
Your assertion that this is then 0.1% of sales presumes that 100% of the non-Linux market is interested in games, which is clearly not the case. That is, in order to make the numbers comparable, we have to make the same comparison with other platforms that you did with Linux:
1. PC use for the desktop is at around 92%.
2. 50% of that is installed base in corporate systems (market share is common derived from units sold, not 'platform preference by person').
3. 25% are not interested in games.
4. 15% of what is left will pirate any game that comes out.
So, again, maybe 10% of that is actually a viable market. Sure, 9.2% is > 0.1%, but that presumes that any of these ballpark figures are meaningful. What if the average Linux user is actually more likely to be a gamer than the average PC user? That is, there might exist a correlation between being a gamer (or at least being the kind that buys blockbuster titles) and platform preference. What if the average linux user is more likely to pay (when they aren't open source zealots) than the average PC user? All of these ideas need to be factored in to any real calculation of market size.
#4 is probably true, at least in my case, since I stopped buying the HIB when I fired up Shank and got a nice, putrescent EA logo for my efforts.
Either that, or I just don't like being falsely advertised to. Maybe that's it.
The linux version of this?
http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2002/07/12/
Outliers. I have run a few of my humble bundle purchases on a couple of my linux machines and thought "hey neat", but my main workstation at the house is Windows for a lot of reasons, so I don't feel compelled to use those purchases on linux just to prove a point.
Corporate/private patronage and episodic content releases based on player prepayments could solve this problem. It's true the industry would be different and possibly smaller, but not gone. Someone would find a way to make money even if software was free, and the public domain would greatly benefit.
microsoftword.mp3 - it doesn't care that they're not words...
So computer programs appear out of thin air? They don't require programmers, artists or project managers?
Why don't they sell that service, instead of doing it entirely on spec and then, once it's totally complete, trying to recoup their costs by selling something demonstrably worthless, instead? Seems like kind of a broken business model.
Oh, wait, I know the answer: "BECAUSE THAT'S HOW IT'S ALWAYS BEEN DONE."
If I'm not going to buy it, you're not going to eat in any case
And if you're not going to buy it, you shouldn't have possession of it (barring gifts and inheritance, of course).
Most people are trying to frame the anti-piracy efforts of companies as simply "we want money" when it's actually more like "we want money for that product of ours that you've acquired". Yes, quite a few of those efforts are absurd and limit the second-hand market, which is bad, but this "I wasn't going to buy it anyway" justification for piracy is complete and utter nonsense.
Companies aren't guaranteed a profit, but you're also not guaranteed possession of their products for free simply because you disagree with their pricing.
People will pass up steak once a week, for crap every day.
Well if you think about it you are probably more likely paying for them to work on their next project.
Yes, if you think about it. In fact, even if you don't think about it, that's STILL what you're really paying them for. In fact, every single dollar that goes towards making the next game comes directly from customers giving money to the publisher.
The problem is, if the people actually MAKING the game successfully promote this angle, then pretty soon the people PUBLISHING the game have to get a job making french fries or something. And they don't want that, no they don't.
But don't steal. If it's not yours, hands OFF!
It's no one else's responsibility to make your poor business model work. Using language like "steal" where it's not appropriate just makes you look foolish.
Great, but the people making the digital media have bills to pay.
Perhaps they should have thought of that before making the product.
So you own and operate a convenience store. A flash mob of 100 storm your store and starts picking stuff off the shelf and quickly scurry off out and about.
And you call that a poor business model? What, you just broke out of prison or something?
Life is not for the lazy.
Me either, I've bought a few humble bundle titles but for the most part I've given up on PC gaming completely as I'm not interested in running multiple operating systems on my PC. I did my bit for PC gaming back in the DOS era, have bought a few boxed Linux titles that interest me since then (from Tux Games and LGP apart from a few exceptions), but these days get my gaming fix elsewhere.
I still buy a lot of games, just very few of them are on PC any more.
So computer programs appear out of thin air?
Well, yes. That's why you need alcohol to get vaporware into an finished product and use ethernet to download it.
"Common sense will be the death of us all"
I met an Amish who owns a computer and uses a cellphone for his work. Doesn't have them in his home, doesn't carry the phone with him all the time, but he uses them.
That offends my Boy Scout sensibilities: "Be prepared". I very much respect their goal to not have technology interfere with their lives and relationships. So just turn the ringer off and don't use it when at home. But a cell phone can be extremely handy to have in an emergency, and you don't want to waste time running to go get it, or worse have to leave it behind.
I guess that'd probably get into a gray area for them. I'm sure they have their reasons.
The enemies of Democracy are
Linux users, like Buddhists and atheists, tend to be a more understanding group than a random sample of people. So I contend that it would be cool if they produced a Linux version, just with the understanding that they not going to support it especially. Distribute it DL only only to those who purchased the regular version. Take out the unneeded parts, cross-compile and fix any clear and obvious problems, and put it in capital letters that support and bugs aren't priority for the Linux version. Many players will bitch about the bugs, but many more will be happy it exists. And I bet they'd break even on salary vs. Linux sales.
This wouldn't be a good idea for say a CAD IDE, but this is a game we're talking about. Game developers can take unorthodox steps in platform support.
If refusing to pay for a sequence of bits is considered cheap, then yes, by all means, call me cheap.
Sweet. You refuse to pay for software that isn't being developed for a non-existent gaming platform. Good to know. Go buy an xbox or a mac.
Ooh, let me make up numbers as well. Tell me where I'm going wrong according to some imaginary standard:
1. Windows use for the desktop is around 90%. .5% of the market as sales.
2. Of those, 95% don't play video games, at least not the AAA kind.
3. Of the remaining 5% of 95%, Blizzard would be thrilled to have a 1% market. But fuck it, let's say that 10% of these buys the game (insane). That leaves
Are you telling me that it will cost 20% of the _total game budget_ to port the game to Linux, and it will thus not be profitable?
This man more or less has the right of it. Without sales data from regular (i.e. non-Humble Bundle) games, it's kind of impossible to tell, but the Humble Bundle strikes me as a serious statistical outlier.
1) Some or all of the proceeds go to charity. 2) The sales totals are published right there on the page, making it a great place for Linux lovers to make a case that Linux users will pay for games. 3) It's DRM free. 4) It's a bunch of independent game makers, which adds another crusade-style cause to the sales and probably skews the market more than a little bit.
The Humble Indie Bundles probably say something positive about Linux gamers, but I'm not sure that they say that there's really, truly a big potential market there for major PC game developers.
Yeah, possibly $10 million in total sales over the years. That's pennies compared to what a normal publisher pulls in profit.
My guess is that it would be something like they have dealt with emergencies in the past without it' what new kinds of emergencies are happening now that are so different they require a cellphone? And maybe it's a wedge thing, too.
Why not just go whole hog and add all kinds of things - early warning systems, tractors and combines, cars, etc and so on. If the argument that something were handy but optional were enouh the Amish wouldn't be, well, Amish.
Doing business has changed and so the technology needed to do business has changed, but it gets emoyed only for business. Emergencies haven't changed, so the technology they will use to deal with emergencies doesn't need to change, either. You and I may not agree, but I have a sense neither of us is Amish so we don't get a say :)
Since I can't tell them apart, I treat all ACs as the same person.
Also there's the little fact that Linux users on average will pay more for the game unless Humble Bundle stats lie.
The stats are tainted by live updating. No Linux enthusiasts want to drag the average down.
Also, you'll notice that Linux brought in maybe 20% of the total by paying nearly twice as much per copy.
Contributing $10 instead of $5 for a indie/charity thing is all well and good, but would you tolerate being charged $120 for a AAA title while your Windows buddies are only paying $60?
This isn't Diablo 3, it's either Diablo 4 or a World of Warcraft expansion.
GNU can work with online games like Diablo III is expected to be.
People will pay to access the server. The fact that unofficial servers can be used is not really a problem if the official server is well maintained. There are many games where the official server is more popular than the free alternatives.
Also keep in mind that GNU code doesn't mean that the graphics, sounds, levels etc... are free. Take Quake3 for example : the code is GPL but if you want to play the original game, you still need the original CD, because the data are not included in the opensource release.
Hey everyone!
:D
:D
Tonight I am streaming Diablo 3 Beta! I do a little show about Diablo 3 you might find enjoyable.
Streaming starts at 6pm PST. I will be taking questions and requests and answering and demoing on stream.
http://twitch.tv/DrZealotTV
This video is so impressive! Hype-free, calm, informative, competent, well thought out and well structured, non-judgemental, etc. - the list goes on! All these - qualities unheard of in the modern age internet. A true feast for analytical minds, such as my own. I wish all video-game reporting was like this.
Your work is much appreciated, Slashdot TV. I'll have to keep a closer eye on your future productions.
It's a long, long lasting publicity stunt that seems to have generated a lot of money. Doesn't really seem like much of a publicity stunt.
So computer programs appear out of thin air? They don't require programmers, artists or project managers?
Why don't they sell that service, instead of doing it entirely on spec and then, once it's totally complete, trying to recoup their costs by selling something demonstrably worthless, instead? Seems like kind of a broken business model.
Oh, wait, I know the answer: "BECAUSE THAT'S HOW IT'S ALWAYS BEEN DONE."
Could you explain how the service would work, because I can't envision it.
I tried playing the embedded video to watch the Diablo 3 Beta video, but when I hit play it started some weird commercial or something for HP instead.
Please fix the video link, mods. Thanks.
Modern copyright is theft of culture from everyone and it retards the progress of the useful arts and sciences.
Like this, or this
Modern copyright is theft of culture from everyone and it retards the progress of the useful arts and sciences.
The magnitude of complexity of "Recording music" to "writing complex software" isn't exactly apples to apples.
It takes JC himself and time to make an album. Very seldom can one person see an entire current-generation AAA game from conception to workable, much less mostly finished. Art, music, sound, story, and the engine underneath, even if you're using a known quantity like the Unreal Engine to drive all of it, add layers of complexity that are non-trivial in my observation.
Not to say that recording music is EASY by any means: I've done a handful of studio sessions, and learned that I hate sitting in the studio. It's just significantly easier than producing a AAA title like Diablo 3, where music is just one aspect that needs to be addressed.
If someone can get enough people bought-in to work on an ambitious project and make it happen, more power to them. Minecraft/Mojang started out that way (and there could be some debate the "AAA" designation for Minecraft), but even that became a purchase product, and I don't think it's EVER been open source. There is a promise of that happening, but only after Notch says "I think we've made enough money on that".
I sincerely believe that Minecraft/Mojang is an exception rather than a rule. At the end of the day games are entertainment, and seldom world-changers on a grand scale like TED or Kahn Academy which will attract more talent due to the nature of the end product.
They did, and said "this seems like it could make money, I'll work for them". Just because some don't agree with the method that it generates revenue doesn't mean it's not going to at all.
Well played.
Bay12 is an example of a game developer who is able to do this. It's a two man team that produces only free games, and they are able to live comfortably just on donations from fans. Dwarf Fortress has the most depth out of all the games that I've played, despite its ASCII graphics, and it just might be the best game ever. Although, the learning curve is rather steep.
Would it be fair to say that these two projects got a fair measure of their massive lifts from industry vets that had already been through the model that you are disparaging?
Star Trek replicators actually consume an immense amount of energy. They're not "free." They just happened to have conveniently solved that problem with matter/antimatter reactors to power them.
He'll eat fine when there are 20+ million other people perfectly willing to buy, as will be the case with Diablo 3.
Back before I had said "I do" (or whatever it is they say in here Japan), I brought up this very discussion with my bride to be. What followed I can only assume was some sort of ninja mysticism that resulted in me buying an even more expensive set of wedding bands.
if your videos don't cache, they do me no good (stupid IDSL).
alive to the universe, dead to the world
Well; regardless of more controversial positions on copyright, I've thought for a while that software copyright should be about 7 years or so, and then completely expire. I really don't think all works are created equal. Things that have a short value on the market should not have the near-indefinite copyright that they do today. Rather, it should transition to the commons soon enough that it still has some value to the commons.
Using my approach, the creator of the software still has every reasonable ability to monetize their work, and yet the commons still greatly benefits. This gives all software 7 years until it becomes "legally" abandonware. I can't say it would hurt very many people very much, and the market would thrive.
Software patents, which I despise and would rather have go away, should have equally short periods (say 7 years and not 17)... if we're going to tolerate them at all.
Joe.
Ah, ok, so "copyright infringement" and refusing to pay when you owe the money required to pay, breaking EULAs and service agreements and such is now "broken business model."
"I don't want to pay for things that require money to make" is just defying a "broken business model."
Not to say that recording music is EASY by any means: I've done a handful of studio sessions, and learned that I hate sitting in the studio. It's just significantly easier than producing a AAA title like Diablo 3, where music is just one aspect that needs to be addressed.
Not least because a AAA title often includes a full album's worth of music now!
Looking at the latest humble bundle, Linux was one eighth of the sales. That's still a pretty small slice of users. If porting to linux would cost more than those 1/8 would provide in sales....
I wonder if humble bundle was only windows/mac, how many linux users would buy a windows or mac version because they dual boot or own multiple machines? In other words, maybe no lost sales to the linux crowd if you don't have a linux version, because most linux users have a windows or mac also?
I know I've bought bundles in the past, and the first one was for linux. Just to see it run. Later I ended up buying windows and mac versions, because when I'm in a gaming mood, those are the OS's I boot to.