Diablo 3 Player number Health

[sacridoc]

The RMAH isn't a big deal actually. I think most people don't find the game enjoyable enough to be driven to spend much real money on it.

Originally I thought the RMAH would be really problematic. I mean I still think it's a terrible idea. But the way the game works, the people who actually use the RMAH are probably people who have extra cash and just want to have the fun of buying something. Similar to how people would go out to a clothing store or something.

I mean you can spend like $1500 on the RMAH and get really good gear, but what's the point? Aside from using it for PvP down the line... it just robs you of the experience of getting gear. So now you're farming A3 instead of A1, you're getting better loot, but it cost you $1500... seems pointless. I can understand buying a couple of items you found cheap or something... but beyond that it's just people with too much money and nothing to do.

You don't need the RMAH to beat Inferno or to farm effectively... not even close. You don't even need to spend much time playing the game to beat Inferno.

D3 just comes down to an endless farm with no customization, no specific item hunting, no level progression, etc.

It's just farming day in and day out for the most complete set of stats (not even specific cool items) so that your bank tab can eventually read 300,000,000 gold or something. And once you're farming A3 with even just mediocre MF, why use your capital to even improve your gear further? At that point you're selling that 300 million on the RMAH (or somewhere else) or you're selling the items on the RMAH before you get that much gold.

Honestly, there's not even an incentive to improve your gear to the point where it would be near-perfect. At that point you should just sell the ultra rare items you get on the RMAH one way or another, assuming people will actually buy them.

[Lorderan]

I mean seriously? How many times does it need to be said that the in game drop rates have been REDUCED because of the AH/RMAH! It HAS to be otherwise the game would be hopelessly overrun with gear in the first 7 days. Why don't people get this? Seriously? Why don't people get this? The drop rates are hundreds of times lower than D2, they statistically have to be! They have to be! Is this so hard to understand? Sigh, I just bloody give up!

It's not Blizzard being EVIL. The system has to be like this because they don't have bind on equip.

[darkslayeromg]

@Lorderan So what? Like seriously whats up bro? You claim that such drop rates are bad? Lets increase them 100 times than, right?

Now tell me pls what will happen to game in that case.

[sifuedition]

@Lorderan So what? Like seriously whats up bro? You claim that such drop rates are bad? Lets increase them 100 times than, right?

Now tell me pls what will happen to game in that case.

Um...he said that the drop rates do NOT need to be increased. Not sure what you are going at here. But I do have a comment on it anyways.

I mean seriously? How many times does it need to be said that the in game drop rates have been REDUCED because of the AH/RMAH! It HAS to be otherwise the game would be hopelessly overrun with gear in the first 7 days. Why don't people get this? Seriously? Why don't people get this? The drop rates are hundreds of times lower than D2, they statistically have to be! They have to be! Is this so hard to understand? Sigh, I just bloody give up!

It's not Blizzard being EVIL. The system has to be like this because they don't have bind on equip.

Why does it "have" to be? You say that, but there is no verifiable factual support for that. Statistics would indicate the bell curve would be the same, just the absolute values would be higher. In the immediate future, there would barely be more really high or really low end gear at the edges of the curve. That gear would still be very very rare instead of very very very rare. The junk would still be junk. The usable gear would see an increase and that would be the key. Usable...not OP. Just SOMETHING to be a reward to the players.

The only reason I can see to make usable gear more rare...is to artificially increase difficulty, which even Blizzard said is a bad thing, or to artificially increase value of those items.

What would be the REAL problem if usable gear was selling very cheaply and the AH really only catered to OP gear? Wouldn't that be basically what D2 had in trade? D2 didn't have reduced drop rates even though EVERYONE wants to tell you D2 centered on trade and so anyone is a moron who expected D3 to be anything but what it has turned into. It didn't hurt D2 or the D2 economy. Bots and dupes did. Drop rates did not.

So really, tell me, with factual support, why it HAS to be that only the people who enjoy the AH should feel a steady stream of reward in this game?

Edit:
And for clarity, I don't actually think drop rates need to be increased. I get enough junk already. I just mean, I see lots of drops as it is and more drops would just seem silly. I just see no useful drops. I would be more in support of fixing the randomization on items some to give better odds of being usable gear while keeping the OP gear very rare.

I would also like to see more interesting itemization so that more types of gear can be useful and we get some customization out of gear.

[Lorderan]

And for clarity, I don't actually think drop rates need to be increased. I get enough junk already.

You right dude. But I'm not going to waste my time talking about this with you or anyone else for that matter. This has been therised a thousand bloody times, please for for the love of god check a couple of thousand threads about this (I admit I've been following this much more closely than you). . I really appreciate your interest in this subject, but before you try and destroy people, learn about the subject first. I'm seriously just getting to the point of giving up. Blizzard has admitte do major and significant problems with the game. What ever.

[Lucas S]

It is really not rocket science. D2 has single player mode right? That means that not only is there no AH, D2 is not even designed with trading in mind. Blizzard can afford to be generous in drop rates to give you the maximum pinata effect and give you that heady dopamine rush, because there is no economy is worry about. The only rule is simply that if you are moderately dedicated, you will be able to find most high level items. The endless runs and the grind become worthwhile because the effort/reward ratio is pretty sweet.

D3 on the other hand is online only and has a superbly efficient AH (GAH or RMAH, doesn't matter). There are only 3 servers and we have potentially a couple million players per server. When you have a very large player base and a superbly efficient trading system, it is a recipe for disaster if the drop rates are not carefully calibrated. Trading in D3 is serious business involving real money and there is an economy to worry about. Blizzard has no choice but to watch the economy closely and limit drop rates of high level items severely so that the AH is not flooded to the point of triviality.

Take an example of a set or legendary item you have never found in the game after 400 hours of gameplay and then check the AH for that item --- there is likely to be 20 pages of it. Even if Blizzard loosens the drop rate just slightly in 1.04 or whatever, the multiplier effect of that change may result in 200 pages of that item in the AH, which means the economy will become a joke.

There is no need for statistics and bell curves. It is simple logic.

[Kinmaul]

Kinmaul seriously AH/RMAH the same bloody thing. Since you can buy and sell gold. across both systems.

Except for people that refuse to buy and sell gold. The point is that people are complaining that in order to be successful you must use the RMAH, that you must spend more than the 60 dollars you paid for the game, and that's simply not true. You can do just fine in the game without the RMAH. Time = money, you can either put the time in or you can rush the procces buy spending your money, but it's not a requirement.

You right dude. But I'm not going to waste my time talking about this with you or anyone else for that matter. This has been therised a thousand bloody times, please for for the love of god check a couple of thousand threads about this (I admit I've been following this much more closely than you). . I really appreciate your interest in this subject, but before you try and destroy people, learn about the subject first. I'm seriously just getting to the point of giving up. Blizzard has admitte do major and significant problems with the game. What ever.

You act like you've got it all figured out, but you are just stating the obvious. If the state of the game is upsetting you that much then take a break for a bit. Acting like you are an "authority" on the matter, and that your statements are superior to others, is just plain silly.

[sifuedition]

It is really not rocket science. D2 has single player mode right? That means that not only is there no AH, D2 is not even designed with trading in mind. Blizzard can afford to be generous in drop rates to give you the maximum pinata effect and give you that heady dopamine rush, because there is no economy is worry about. The only rule is simply that if you are moderately dedicated, you will be able to find most high level items. The endless runs and the grind become worthwhile because the effort/reward ratio is pretty sweet.

D3 on the other hand is online only and has a superbly efficient AH (GAH or RMAH, doesn't matter). There are only 3 servers and we have potentially a couple million players per server. When you have a very large player base and a superbly efficient trading system, it is a recipe for disaster if the drop rates are not carefully calibrated. Trading in D3 is serious business involving real money and there is an economy to worry about. Blizzard has no choice but to watch the economy closely and limit drop rates of high level items severely so that the AH is not flooded to the point of triviality.

Take an example of a set or legendary item you have never found in the game after 400 hours of gameplay and then check the AH for that item --- there is likely to be 20 pages of it. Even if Blizzard loosens the drop rate just slightly in 1.04 or whatever, the multiplier effect of that change may result in 200 pages of that item in the AH, which means the economy will become a joke.

There is no need for statistics and bell curves. It is simple logic.

The problem is that neither you or me can say what the effect on the economy would be to shift the bell curve. As a thread here a while back pointed out, the gear necessary to defeat Inferno Act 4 is quite far to the right on the bell curve, if you leave the ends alone (OP gear is still extremely rare), but shift the bell (sometimes called a shark fin), what would the actual impact on the economy be? We don't know...unless you are an unannounced economist, and if you are, I'd love to see some actual numbers here.

My opinion/theory, which is totally unprofessional but is based off of previous examples (like D2), is that this would not hurt the economy. It might hurt the appearance of "difficulty" in Inferno, but since that's artificial difficulty anyways, what's the harm? A large percentage of those in Act 3/4 didn't get there legitimately anyways. Who are we supposed to be hurting?

[Lorderan]

Kinmaul I agree with you that the AH/RMAH is not necessary for success in game. But, do we agree that the AH/RMAH has an affect on the game? Do we agree that the drop rates in game have been reduced because there is a AH/RMAH in the game? Therefore, my gameplay and yours I suspect is negatively affected because of the AH/RMAH. Now, the AH/RMAH is in the game and it isn't going anywhere. My arguement is that too many game systems and design systems are way too skewed to favour the AH/RMAH or the AH/RMAH exaserbates other game problems. I'm sure the developers would love to make the game without the AH, but that won't ever happen.

P.S. about me being an "authority", I'm currently quiting smoking and I am a bit more snappy to people than usual. I apologise.

[sacridoc]

Kinmaul I agree with you that the AH/RMAH is not necessary for success in game. But, do we agree that the AH/RMAH has an affect on the game? Do we agree that the drop rates in game have been reduced because there is a AH/RMAH in the game? Therefore, my gameplay and yours I suspect is negatively affected because of the AH/RMAH. Now, the AH/RMAH is in the game and it isn't going anywhere. My arguement is that too many game systems and design systems are way too skewed to favour the AH/RMAH or the AH/RMAH exaserbates other game problems. I'm sure the developers would love to make the game without the AH, but that won't ever happen.

P.S. about me being an "authority", I'm currently quiting smoking and I am a bit more snappy to people than usual. I apologise.

I don't know who you're arguing with really lol... no one seems to disagree with what you're saying.

The game is obviously balanced around having an Auction House, which makes the drop rates super low.

People were just responding to the idea that the RMAH is needed to beat Inferno, which is a joke. The RMAH = spending real money. GAH = still using the AH, just no real money.

Like I said, the RMAH is really just a small addition to the GAH, it doesn't seem to ruin the game like people originally thought it could. That being said, having an AH period is awful, and the various other problems with the game make it bad before you even get to complaining about the GAH or RMAH.