Diablo III's Auction House

[explosiveegg]

In this day of age, the industry is all about making money, whether it harms the consumer or not. *cough* EA *cough

 

Yet Blizzard has found a way to do this, that is mutually beneficial to both the consumer and their company. They have set up an auction house in this game. This auction house has two ways of paying for an item, through in game coins, or through real world cash. So basically, if you find a really rare item in game that you dont want, you can put your item in the auction house, to make real world cash! Im sure it wont total that much, well at first, but the higher level you become, the better stuff you will find, the more money you will make. The fact is that I would be playing this game either way, because I love the diablo series, and now I can make real world cash for playing! Im sure it wouldnt even come close to the amount of money being made at a minimum wage job, however, Im going to be playing this game for my own enjoyment anyway!

 

(its kind of like an in game ebay, where you place an item, set limits and stuff, and then people bid on the item)

 

Obviously Blizzard will pocket probably over 10% of the sale, making it beneficial to them as well.

Along with this, the game is designed to use such a small amount of bandwidth, that it wont cost too much to for them to maintain.

 

The thing is, people would have just sold gold and stuff on ebay or a website, thats what happens with WoW. So theyre just making it easier for everyone to sell what they dont want, whether their character class doesnt take it, or they want to go buy a cheeseburger.

 

The only problem I see with this, is items actually worth something, will cost an un-godly amount of coins. Yet still, the point of an RPG is to work up, until you can afford something like that. I personally like to only use items ive found too, just because it has sentimental value to it .

 

Also this gives people a lot more of a reason to try and hack the game...

 

I personally think this is amazing of Blizzard,

that is assuming that Diablo 3 is free to play, as Diablo 2 was (hasnt been confirmed yet).

 

I hope more companies follow this trend of finding a mutually beneficial way to earn a constant revenue from their consumers.

 

What are your thoughts on this?

Do you think this is a good movement as opposed to the trend EA has started?

Do you want to see more games do this?

Is anyone else absolutely thrilled about diablo 3?

Edited August 2, 2011 by explosiveegg

[iswitt]

I was thrilled about D3 until I heard about the online teather. Then I decided not to buy it. However, though I agree that the in-game auction with real cash is a good business decision on Blizzard's end, a lot of people will end up getting screwed. There will be the guys who figure out how to hack (as there always are) and make it really easy to find rare/valuable items. Then they will sell them in the auction house for cash to n00bs who think that BUYING that super duper sword/shield/armor is going to make you good at the game. What's the point if all I have to do is fork over another twenty or thiry bucks for the better items and then own the shit out of the honest players?

[Gabriel]

In this day of age, the industry is all about making money, whether it harms the consumer or not. *cough* EA *cough

 

Yet Blizzard has found a way to do this, that is mutually beneficial to both the consumer and their company. They have set up an auction house in this game. This auction house has two ways of paying for an item, through in game coins, or through real world cash. So basically, if you find a really rare item in game that you dont want, you can put your item in the auction house, to make real world cash!

 

Did I misunderstand? I thought there was an in-game auction house where players exchanged in-game money, and an online store option where players could pay Blizard real cash for items, not a real-cash-money auction house for players to use. That's what the article I read seemed to be saying.

[HammR25]

Did I misunderstand? I thought there was an in-game auction house where players exchanged in-game money, and an online store option where players could pay Blizard real cash for items, not a real-cash-money auction house for players to use. That's what the article I read seemed to be saying.

According to Joystiq you'll be able to use in-game money or real money:

 

Diablo 3 will sport a couple of in-game auction houses to sell items from player to player. One will be run entirely with in-game gold (very similar to the current WoW Auction House), and one will let players sell and buy items with actual money.

 

Yes, Diablo 3 players will be able to spend real money on in-game items, but rather than a traditional item store, Blizzard plans to create a system wherein players sell items to each other -- the eBay of Sanctuary, if you will. Players will be able to put items up for sale in each of the game's various regions around the world (with a different real-world currency for each), and other players will be able to spend real money to buy them, with the real-world money going back to the original item owners.

[HatefulGravey]

I'MMA GET RICH!!!! :D :D

[Emehr]

DRM, online leashes, and in-game transactions on intangible goods using real money. If somebody asks me why I don't do modern gaming I can point to these three things.

[explosiveegg]

I was thrilled about D3 until I heard about the online teather. Then I decided not to buy it. However, though I agree that the in-game auction with real cash is a good business decision on Blizzard's end, a lot of people will end up getting screwed. There will be the guys who figure out how to hack (as there always are) and make it really easy to find rare/valuable items. Then they will sell them in the auction house for cash to n00bs who think that BUYING that super duper sword/shield/armor is going to make you good at the game. What's the point if all I have to do is fork over another twenty or thiry bucks for the better items and then own the shit out of the honest players?

This game is supposed to have the lack of mod support. I think after controlling WoW for so many years, blizzard should know how to prevent that kind of stuff.

 

DRM, online leashes, and in-game transactions on intangible goods using real money. If somebody asks me why I don't do modern gaming I can point to these three things.

I think it would be silly to expect an MMORPG to not be required to be online, after all that is what the 'o' stands for... and you can still use in game coins to buy the items, its not like most microtransactions, where the only way to get the good, is through paying real cash.

[Emehr]

DRM, online leashes, and in-game transactions on intangible goods using real money. If somebody asks me why I don't do modern gaming I can point to these three things.

I think it would be silly to expect an MMORPG to not be required to be online, after all that is what the 'o' stands for... and you can still use in game coins to buy the items, its not like most microtransactions, where the only way to get the good, is through paying real cash.

Word on the street is that Diablo III requires an online connection even in solo mode. Plus, I have never heard of Diablo being referred to as an MMORPG. It's a fancy, real-time version of Rogue, at best.

[explosiveegg]

DRM, online leashes, and in-game transactions on intangible goods using real money. If somebody asks me why I don't do modern gaming I can point to these three things.

I think it would be silly to expect an MMORPG to not be required to be online, after all that is what the 'o' stands for... and you can still use in game coins to buy the items, its not like most microtransactions, where the only way to get the good, is through paying real cash.

Word on the street is that Diablo III requires an online connection even in solo mode. Plus, I have never heard of Diablo being referred to as an MMORPG. It's a fancy, real-time version of Rogue, at best.

I really think they should jsut scrap the whole solo mode, but it will required a connection, to prevent mods.

 

What else would you call it, its an rpg, with millions of players... Who doesnt call it an mmorpg?

[Jifremok]

Word on the street is that Diablo III requires an online connection even in solo mode. Plus, I have never heard of Diablo being referred to as an MMORPG. It's a fancy, real-time version of Rogue, at best.

I have. It's usually considered an MMORPG by people (mainly PSO fans from my experience) who think that four players is massive, let alone eight.

 

I really think they should jsut scrap the whole solo mode, but it will required a connection, to prevent mods.

 

What else would you call it, its an rpg, with millions of players... Who doesnt call it an mmorpg?

Elder Scrolls is an RPG with millions of players...

[explosiveegg]

Word on the street is that Diablo III requires an online connection even in solo mode. Plus, I have never heard of Diablo being referred to as an MMORPG. It's a fancy, real-time version of Rogue, at best.

I have. It's usually considered an MMORPG by people (mainly PSO fans from my experience) who think that four players is massive, let alone eight.

 

I really think they should jsut scrap the whole solo mode, but it will required a connection, to prevent mods.

 

What else would you call it, its an rpg, with millions of players... Who doesnt call it an mmorpg?

Elder Scrolls is an RPG with millions of players...

Elder scrolls (terrible game) isnt online compatible though is it?

 

Thats why Im assuming Diablo 3 is an MMORPG, because it has loads of players, is an rpg, and is heavy on the online aspect.

 

Also, I have never played Phantasy Star Online (I never had a dreamcast), the only MMORPGs ive played in my life were RuneScape, Diablo II, and some random independent one... Im really not to big into that scene.

 

So are you just in a disagreement with it being called an MMORPG, because you are limited to the amount of players per World.

Which im not saying is wrong, that might perfectly well mean its not techniqually an MMORPG.

[Uzumaki]

PSO were available on Gamecube and XBox as well as PC. It's been a while since I played online but it is true the main part is maximum 4 players. However you can meet with a lot more than 4 in the gathering area to chat and to find 3 other players for the game.

[bigbee99]

I'MMA GET RICH!!!! :D :D

AGAIN!

 

B

[HuckleCat]

"So, what do you do?"

 

"I play Diablo 3"

 

 

 

Seriously.

[Jifremok]

Word on the street is that Diablo III requires an online connection even in solo mode. Plus, I have never heard of Diablo being referred to as an MMORPG. It's a fancy, real-time version of Rogue, at best.

I have. It's usually considered an MMORPG by people (mainly PSO fans from my experience) who think that four players is massive, let alone eight.

 

I really think they should jsut scrap the whole solo mode, but it will required a connection, to prevent mods.

 

What else would you call it, its an rpg, with millions of players... Who doesnt call it an mmorpg?

Elder Scrolls is an RPG with millions of players...

Elder scrolls (terrible game) isnt online compatible though is it?

 

Thats why Im assuming Diablo 3 is an MMORPG, because it has loads of players, is an rpg, and is heavy on the online aspect.

 

Also, I have never played Phantasy Star Online (I never had a dreamcast), the only MMORPGs ive played in my life were RuneScape, Diablo II, and some random independent one... Im really not to big into that scene.

 

So are you just in a disagreement with it being called an MMORPG, because you are limited to the amount of players per World.

Which im not saying is wrong, that might perfectly well mean its not techniqually an MMORPG.

 

I brought up Elder Scrolls just to be a dick, and just because you didn't mention online. By the way, I bolded a little part of your message because I felt it needed a little more emphasis. But that's beside the point.

 

The PSO comment was more directed at Emehr, who said he hasn't heard of Diablo II being considered an MMORPG before. Now that you've chimed in on it, you're the first person I've seen outside the PSO community to have called Diablo II an MMORPG.

 

My main disagreement is with calling something an MMORPG when that first M stands for Massive, but the primary thing I think of is indeed the number of players you can interact with within the world. When I think MMO, I think of the possibility of having 50, 60, 100 players in one area (camera view and processing power permitting), often in many separate parties, duking it out with groups of monsters, each other, interacting with NPCs, or just passing by. Diablo II on the other hand, you can have 8 players but they cannot interact with anyone else unelss they leave the game instance. (Basically, Diablo II has loads of players but it sure as hell doesn't feel that way while playing it!) I haven't played RuneScape beyond tutorial island but it at least looked like an MMO. I can't say whether it actually is one.

 

There are other things that make me think "MMO", but they get more complicated and a lot more blurry at this point though, and would require input from people much more experienced at MMOs than I am, so I'll save it for a separate thread regarding what gives an MMORPG that first M. (Preferably made by someone else, because I don't even know where to begin!

 

On the subject of the term MMO, it just bugs the hell out of me for some reason when people misuse(?) (for lack of a better term) genre labels. Then again, "MMO" is a rather subjective term to begin with, and it is lumped together with RPG, another pain-in-the-ass label, and that just begs to have different interpretations. I thought genre labels were meant to avoid that!

Edited August 6, 2011 by Jifremok

[HuckleCat]

 

 

My main disagreement is with calling something an MMORPG when that first M stands for Massive, but the primary thing I think of is indeed the number of players you can interact with within the world. When I think MMO, I think of the possibility of having 50, 60, 100 players in one area (camera view and processing power permitting), often in many separate parties, duking it out with groups of monsters, each other, interacting with NPCs, or just passing by.

 

There are other things that make me think "MMO", but they get more complicated and a lot more blurry at this point though, and would require input from people much more experienced at MMOs than I am, so I'll save it for a separate thread regarding what gives an MMORPG that first M. (Preferably made by someone else, because I don't even know where to begin!

 

Agreed.

 

Having played more than a few, yeah, there's a difference, and many just ignore the line that includes, or does not include, the "MM" part of MMORPG.

 

MMORPGs -

 

World of Warcraft

Anarchy Online

Everquest

 

MORPGs -

 

PSO

Guild Wars

Diablo, I guess

 

If you're not running around seeing hundreds of others while doing your own thing, and I don't mean in a "lobby area", then drop the first M.

[explosiveegg]

 

 

My main disagreement is with calling something an MMORPG when that first M stands for Massive, but the primary thing I think of is indeed the number of players you can interact with within the world. When I think MMO, I think of the possibility of having 50, 60, 100 players in one area (camera view and processing power permitting), often in many separate parties, duking it out with groups of monsters, each other, interacting with NPCs, or just passing by.

 

There are other things that make me think "MMO", but they get more complicated and a lot more blurry at this point though, and would require input from people much more experienced at MMOs than I am, so I'll save it for a separate thread regarding what gives an MMORPG that first M. (Preferably made by someone else, because I don't even know where to begin!

 

Agreed.

 

Having played more than a few, yeah, there's a difference, and many just ignore the line that includes, or does not include, the "MM" part of MMORPG.

 

MMORPGs -

 

World of Warcraft

Anarchy Online

Everquest

 

MORPGs -

 

PSO

Guild Wars

Diablo, I guess

 

If you're not running around seeing hundreds of others while doing your own thing, and I don't mean in a "lobby area", then drop the first M.

Guess that is a better way to define it... ill keep that in mind next time i go to call diablo an mmorpg

[theking21083]

Calling Diablo an MMORPG is like calling Call of Duty Black Ops an MMORPG. Black Ops has massive ammounts of players online and it does have a system where you level up but it's still nowhere near an MMORPG. Diablo is and has always been a dungeon crawler or an action RPG. Just because you can play online and there are massive ammounts of players that play the game, doesn't make it an MMO. You can play the game completely solo and never ever ever ever see another player controlled character if you choose not to. To stay on topic, I think it's cool that there will be an auction house with real money. But I will choose to not use it and stick to the seperate auction house for in game gold currency.

[moycon]

I played Diablo 2 religiously back in the day.

I had a lvl 91 sorc and I recall buying a Tals set for her off eBay for like $15.

There were always 1000's of Diablo 2 auctions going on eBay.

Back in those days people knew how to duplicate items so items weren't too pricey.

I think the Auction house is a good idea.

As long as they can keep people from duplicating items, a super rare item, legitimately found could be worth a pretty penny!

[explosiveegg]

I played Diablo 2 religiously back in the day.

I had a lvl 91 sorc and I recall buying a Tals set for her off eBay for like $15.

There were always 1000's of Diablo 2 auctions going on eBay.

Back in those days people knew how to duplicate items. I think the Auction house is a good idea.

As long as they can keep people from duplicating items any ways. A super rare item, legitimately found could be worth a pretty penny!

Dang, I think the best I had was a lvl 70, and I played that non-stop...

 

... but yeah, that is the reason I find it such a good step. People are going to be selling and buying these items easier. This is cutting out the middle man, and now making it more accessible to everyone, while making blizzard some cash. It seems like a way to help everyone!

 

... and I really doubt they will have much ove a problem with hackers, if they manage to keep all those WoW players happy.

 

On a side note:

I really hope the cow levels make an appearence.

[Karyyk]

PSO were available on Gamecube and XBox as well as PC. It's been a while since I played online but it is true the main part is maximum 4 players. However you can meet with a lot more than 4 in the gathering area to chat and to find 3 other players for the game.

 

You're forgetting PSO's starting point...the Dreamcast. That was some good gaming...

[HatefulGravey]

I played Diablo 2 religiously back in the day.

I had a lvl 91 sorc and I recall buying a Tals set for her off eBay for like $15.

There were always 1000's of Diablo 2 auctions going on eBay.

Back in those days people knew how to duplicate items so items weren't too pricey.

I think the Auction house is a good idea.

As long as they can keep people from duplicating items, a super rare item, legitimately found could be worth a pretty penny!

 

I used to have accounts full of level 99 characters. A friend of mine and I played enough that we knew exactly what runs to make to level a character all the way up pretty fast. We would have the build planned in advance and have the right gear for each level waiting on that character the entire time.

 

There wasn't much that we didn't know about that game. All the rune words, all the ways to upgrade items to the next item level, crafting items, all that good stuff. It was a blast. Now when I think about the amount of time I put into that game its a little depressing.

[Zing]

Anyone whining about the online requirement didn't notice the billions of duped/hacked items in the previous two games. It ruined bnet for me.