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Diablo 3 Delayed Until Early 2012; But Beta Extended

by - source: Activision Blizzard PR

As Blizzard explains, why release a game that's almost ready?

Friday morning Blizzard Entertainment said that it has pushed back the release date of its highly-anticipated action-RPG PC game, Diablo 3. Instead of a Q4 2011 launch, the game is now expected to arrive on retail shelves and Battle.net in "early" 2012. The news isn't unexpected, but unfortunate nonetheless for those who were hoping to hack/shoot/electrify their way through the holiday season.

"With every game we make, the temptation is always very strong to launch as soon as possible. However, we didn't put so many years of work into Diablo 3 to release a game that was almost ready," said Mike Morhaime, CEO and co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment. "The beta test is going very well, and we look forward to making the most of the extra time we're taking to deliver an experience that lives up to our vision for the game and the expectations of our players. Next year is going to be an incredibly busy one for Blizzard, and we hope an incredibly fun one for Blizzard gamers."

As indicated, Blizzard will use the additional time to extend the Diablo 3 closed beta test which launched earlier this week. This means there's a potential for additional players, and anyone with an active Battle.net account that has a Blizzard game attached to it (any Diablo, Warcraft and StarCraft title) should visit Battle.net account management to opt in for a chance to participate in the beta test.

According to Blizzard, additional testing phases, as well as further details regarding the launch plans for the game, will be announced on the company's Diablo 3 community website. In the meantime, check out the first part of our hands-on with the closed beta by heading here.

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rh_dog 09/23/2011 6:07 PM
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Rats, I see this news on other sites too. Oh well, I hope TL2 comes out before D3. It will help pass the time. I wouldn't mind the delay so much if I got in the Beta for D3.

Arkive 09/23/2011 6:11 PM
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Diablo 3 and Guild Wars 2 are actually just rumors created many years ago to tease us.

fyend 09/23/2011 6:15 PM
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Who cares. It was totally underwhelming when I played the beta. All aboard the Blizzard hype train! Choo Choo!

dontcrosthestreams 09/23/2011 6:28 PM
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i wont be playn this time around, they have squed the drop rates to make money off of chinese slaves. if there is to much of a good item it will stop droping, making it more valuable in their marketplace

Arkive 09/23/2011 6:32 PM
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dontcrosthestreams :
i wont be playn this time around, they have squed the drop rates to make money off of chinese slaves. if there is to much of a good item it will stop droping, making it more valuable in their marketplace


I agree. It would be much wiser to invest your time in basic spelling courses.

Netherscourge 09/23/2011 6:40 PM
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Oh well.

(Psst. Hey, RUNIC GAMES..... Torchlight 2 ready yet?)


;)

dark_lord69 09/23/2011 6:41 PM
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gnookergi 09/23/2011 6:43 PM
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For some reason it doesn't bother me at all. I always expect this from Blizzard and have just learned to only get excited once they officially announce a release date (usually a month before it comes out).

Slomoshun 09/23/2011 6:51 PM
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dontcrosthestreams :
i wont be playn this time around, they have squed the drop rates to make money off of chinese slaves. if there is to much of a good item it will stop droping, making it more valuable in their marketplace


Then give me your key!

AerieC 09/23/2011 6:55 PM
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gnookergi :
For some reason it doesn't bother me at all. I always expect this from Blizzard and have just learned to only get excited once they officially announce a release date (usually a month before it comes out).



Totally agree. I mean, I can see why people get upset over constant delays, but I'd much rather wait longer for a polished product than get something fundamentally broken or incomplete and wait for patches to fix it up.

In the business world, I think it makes sense to get your product out fast to make sure you capitalize on the market, but games aren't the same as a revolutionary business product. Games are art. There's always a market for good art.

yapchagi 09/23/2011 7:02 PM
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I don't care LOL.

dcompart 09/23/2011 7:02 PM
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maxinexus 09/23/2011 7:05 PM
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amk-aka-phantom 09/23/2011 7:06 PM
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Arkive 09/23/2011 7:06 PM
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dcompart :
Does D3 have Bind on Pick up for certain items? I hope so.


Diablo 3 is not WoW. BoP would completely ruin what Diablo is about.

ikyung 09/23/2011 7:12 PM
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amk-aka-phantom :
Early 2012? GTFO Blizzard, we'll have Skyrim, BF3 and Mass Effect 3 by then... no need for your DRM-infested hack&slash... xD


Actually Skyrim and BF3 are coming out Q4 this year and ME3 is coming out late Q1 2012. They made the right choice to push it back. There are like tons of games coming out Q4 this year and most people probably only have the budget to get like 1-2 games for Q4 this year.

officeguy 09/23/2011 7:12 PM
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Quote :Diablo 3 Delayed Until Early 2012
This is a suprise, lol.

mobrocket 09/23/2011 7:16 PM
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I am glad it is delayed.... there are so many good games coming out between now and mid 2012... i just dont have the time

johnners2981 09/23/2011 7:21 PM
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obviously scared off by skyrim which will be thrice as good

Anonymous 09/23/2011 7:28 PM
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In typical Blizzard-esque fashion they have the delayed the release of their game. Any real Blizzard isnt surprised by this because it always happens.

Theres a reason Blizzard has and does produce the best games available on the market. Its because they take the time they need to finish their products.

Slomoshun 09/23/2011 7:38 PM
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johnners2981 :
obviously scared off by skyrim which will be thrice as good



Why would DIABLO be scared of Skyrim? They're not even close to the same thing. The only similarities is they're both RPG's. They have different stories, concepts, artwork and completely different views of the game.

bejabbers 09/23/2011 7:46 PM
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I'm not surprised by this delay. Blizzard seems to put all their resources into WoW, leaving the rest of their line rotting. Maybe they could take this extended period of time and fix the things they've been doing that are ruining this game.

This real money auction house is BS, Blizzard has no business making money off of item trades (changing the drop rates of items so that certain the quantity of certain items remains low so price remains high in their market is a total conflict of interest.)

And this on-line only is BS, what happens when my connection goes down? what happens when the blizzard server goes down? How am I supposed to be able to play the game that I've paid for. This is one of the reasons why cloud computing is ridiculous.

I won't be afraid to return this game if it's a complete let down (as I'm afraid it will be), besides, by the time this game actually releases I'll probably be over it.

spookyman 09/23/2011 8:01 PM
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Talk about spoiled brats?

Maybe the game is not ready yet? Maybe some bugs where found and they are fixing them?

At least Blizzard goes out of its way to fix broken games.

thrasher32 09/23/2011 8:07 PM
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gm0n3y 09/23/2011 8:34 PM
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This is a good move on their part. Going head to head with Skyrim would probably tank their sales.

DroKing 09/23/2011 8:42 PM
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Good keep delaying because this game is gonna be so garbage. Im already moving on to TL2 n many other BETTER games by more creative companies unlike this bloated lazy fat blizz.

dread_cthulhu 09/23/2011 8:43 PM
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Owchers... you make me cry Blizz!

Clonazepam 09/23/2011 8:54 PM
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mobrocket :
I am glad it is delayed.... there are so many good games coming out between now and mid 2012... i just dont have the time



Agree. I already have BF3 and SW:TOR pre-ordered. I'm really only comfortable with maybe one more and that's likely to be Skyrim. I'm still on the fence about Rage so I'll have to wait until after it hits and gets the full review treatment. I'll be lucky to have time for BF3 and Skyrim. SW:TOR will probably hit after the New Year, so even imagining having the time for it all is impossible.

Torchlight is a good Diablo clone so they can push it back until next summer if they really want to. I don't think I'll be effected.

alidan 09/23/2011 9:10 PM
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Arkive :
Diablo 3 is not WoW. BoP would completely ruin what Diablo is about.



you know that sound a cash register makes? the ka-ching sound... thats what diablo 3 is about...

slomoshun :
Why would DIABLO be scared of Skyrim? They're not even close to the same thing. The only similarities is they're both RPG's. They have different stories, concepts, artwork and completely different views of the game.



diablo - hack and slash loot fest
elderscrols - first person melee combat loot fest without the item variation and able to ware anything regardless of "class"

i kind of wish that elder scrolls games had the loot tables of a diablo... at least that way there would be variations thoughout the game, where i still need to loot people after 10-20 hours into a 200+ hour game... i always hated that the moment i get glass gear, i can stop looting, as i have the best gear and next to nothing will ever be better.

borisof007 09/23/2011 9:19 PM
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I've played Diablo III at every blizzcon so far that it's been available. It does live up to the hype, it's an awesome effing game, I cannot wait to get my hands on it.

Anonymous 09/23/2011 9:44 PM
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lives up to the hype? You gotta be some softcore carebear noob....


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