Blizzard Launching Public Test Realm for Diablo 3

News
By Kevin Parrish
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Blizzard is setting up a Public Test Realm for Diablo 3 so that gamers can test the upcoming 1.0.5 patch.

One of my favorite realms in Diablo 3. That bug-faced monster looks a little familiar...

Diablo 3 community manager "Lylirra" reports that Blizzard will soon launch a Public Test Realm (PTR) for the popular action-RPG. Patch 1.0.5 will be its first experiment, allowing participants to test the new features and submit general feedback and bug reports. Naturally hopeful subjects will need a Diablo 3 game license attached their Battle.net account that's in good standing to gain access.

"You will also need to create a PTR account by logging in to your Battle.net Account Management page," the blog states. "We will be enabling PTR account creation soon (we'll provide an update once it's available), and once it's up you'll simply need to select your Diablo 3 game license and then click 'Create a PTR account.' After you've created your account, you'll be able to download the client from the Diablo 3 landing page, or from your Games Download page in Account Management."

While the 1.0.5 PTR will only be in available in English, French, German, and Korean languages, accounts from all regions are eligible to participate, Lylirra states. Patch testers will not be able to log in to the PTR client until it's actually live, nor will they be able to copy their existing characters over to the PTR until the realm actually goes online.

"Only one region per account can be copied at a time, however, so if you choose to copy characters from your account in a different region please note that any previously copied PTR characters will be lost," the blog reads. "We'll be providing more details, including an FAQ, once the 1.0.5 PTR is available, so stay tuned!"

According to the patch notes, v1.0.5 will bring a new system called Monster Power. Similar to the "Players 8" command in Diablo 2, this new system is designed to give players more control over how challenging enemies are in each difficulty. The new patch will also add a new event called Infernal Machine which is a device that will allow level 60 players to battle "uber” versions of some of Sanctuary's most nefarious bosses.

"While the rewards for defeating these bosses will be great, some assembly is required," the patch notes read. "Only the most powerful Nephalem can unlock the secrets to building the Infernal Machine, but once forged the device can be used to open portals to special encounters featuring not one, but two bosses which have been augmented from their original versions, both in terms of difficulty and appearance. Defeating each boss pair will provide players with extra items and gold, as well as a chance to find components for a new Legendary ring."

For more information about the upcoming patch, head here.

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Kevin Parrish
32 Comments Comment from the forums
  • frombehind
    A little late... isn't the testing supposed to happen BEFORE you launch the game? But I forgot... these days companies charge consumers 60 bucks a game just so they can test it for them AFTER its released =(
    Reply
  • Miharu
    The game by itself is a BETA - more change that make you feel the game it's still half BAKED. Who want a BETA PREVIEW access seriously!... All this turn in a non-sense. Seriouslyl Blizzard ?!?
    Reply
  • confish21
    I dont have D3... do i need to buy anything for this? oh nvmd then...
    Reply
  • schnitter
    Yeah, no matter how awesome they make it, coming back to that game and trying to find upgrades is going to cost you an arm and a leg because of the depreciation of Gold due to Botters. Now go ahead and add new content only those sick enough to level paragon up to 100 can enjoy and get even more rich selling whatever drops there.
    Reply
  • tomfreak
    people has been enjoying Torchlight 2, why would they want to waste their time on a RMAH focus fail game?
    Reply
  • blppt
    SchnitterYeah, no matter how awesome they make it, coming back to that game and trying to find upgrades is going to cost you an arm and a leg because of the depreciation of Gold due to Botters. Now go ahead and add new content only those sick enough to level paragon up to 100 can enjoy and get even more rich selling whatever drops there.
    I disagree....granted, i'm only halfway through Hell difficulty with a Barbarian (lvl 54 currently), but I havent had to once use the RMAH because I couldnt afford a crucial upgrade. The "regular" auction house has so far never failed to fulfill my character's needs. I'm not exactly the most skilled of gamers either, so its not like I can get away with cheapo equipment on ability alone.
    Reply
  • IQ11110002
    Only the most powerful nephalem can unlock the secrets?
    So in other words we all have to keep grinding out to we hit paragon lvl 100, By which time we have conquered the game 1000 times over and already have the best gear and have no reason to unlock any secrets!
    Just leave the game Blizzard before you make it any worse, Move on to another title, Shift your developers onto Titan and get it right, Make it into another WoW(before expansions) and you will have another cash cow for a decade.

    I will agree with above poster though, There is no need to use real money AH at all I am lvl 60 (24) paragon barbarian and the normal ah is just fine so far. Sure it's now at the point of next gear piece being 100,000,000 but at the same time I just sold an item for 30,000,000 so it's not impossible to achieve with a little effort. I refuse to use real money in this game and cheat my way to the top, I have done so in many other games especially MMO's and it just totally destroys the game once you buy your way to the top there is nothing left to do,Whole fun is getting there no matter how long it takes!
    Reply
  • dragonsqrrl
    Tomfreakpeople has been enjoying Torchlight 2, why would they want to waste their time on a RMAH focus fail game?From what I've seen Torchlight 2 is basically D2 v2, not that that's in anyway a bad thing. It seems like much more of a traditional action RPG than D3. The builds are more locked in stone, and there's all the potion/mana spamming you could ever want. It comes down mainly to personal preference I suppose, and if that's what you prefer then by all means go for it and have a blast. But I must admit, after watching several reviews and gameplay videos I'm a bit at a loss as to how Torchlight 2 is waay better than D3, like some people love to boast about.

    It's definitely not the loot driven gameplay, as at it's core it looks very similar to the type of highly addictive gameplay in D3/D2. I can't help but think that a lot of the hate and negativity directed at D3 isn't based on the gameplay at all, which is my primary concern when playing an action RPG. It seems to be based much more on word of mouth principle (bandwagoning), regarding D3's required online login, optional RMAH, and lack of modding support. People pledging from the get go to never support such a game, despite the fact that they have a constant internet connection, will probably never use the RMAH, and probably wouldn't have modded the game if given the chance.
    Reply
  • @dragonsqrrl

    its really hard to explain it. its like explaining why you prefer cs 1.6 over css. but the best i can dexcribe it is it has great flow, the action is way more epic then d3, the speed of the game is awesome, the interface is clear, the game works offline, the character classes are more unique then the average heroes we usualy get. the items are insanely well made. the socketing is worth doing from early on, which adds a new element to the game instead of just saving and combining. legendary items are well... legendary.

    the story... i dont know what going on there ,i just love the gameplay. apparently i need to kick some guy in the nuts... but thats about as much as i got, but i dont pay attention to story in general.

    d3 is horrible, the only good thing about d3 is the combat animations. the loot is horrible, the farming is horrible, the patches are horrible, the Always online is not always online.... the account theft of people who only play single player. the lag for people who lives in countries that dont like to offer speedy internet. the story is very meh... compared to d2. diablo looked shit in my eyes, but that is just person preference
    Reply
  • thecolorblue
    Blizzard Launching Public Test Realm for Auction House Simulator

    the D3 sidegame is receiving the scheduled monthly nerf to push players to regear. Blizz finance is eagerly anticipating the guaranteed nerf-induced surge in RMAH trading and Blizz profiteering. The next scheduled RMAH profit surge is scheduled as content patch 1.0.6. 1.0.6 content consists of nerfing whatever builds become most popular after the 1.0.5 patch goes live. The release for 1.0.6 is scheduled to arrive after players have finished regearing via the RMAH and profits from 1.0.5 induced RMAH'ing have subsided.
    Reply