BlizzCon 2011

出自【暗黑百科】DiabloWiki_凯恩之角

在2011年10月26日 (三) 16:52由Shavoc (讨论 | 贡献)所做的修订版本

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嘉年华2011

今年Diablo的头像被摆在了最中间的位置,已经说明了问题:Diablo3是本次嘉年华的重点!

暗黑破坏神3相关内容

2011年暴雪将年华将在10月21日和22日两天召开。随着之前9月底暗黑3测试的开始，本次暴雪嘉年华必将是属于暗黑破坏神3，这点也可以体现在官方的海报中。每年海报中间的人物所代表的游戏都会成为当年的重点。在大会的时间安排上，我们发现游戏所占的比重比去年有了显著的提高。

同时，今年两个随门票赠送的重要实物奖励都与暗黑破坏神3有关，一个是魔兽世界中的鱼人破坏神，另一个是超萌的泰瑞尔手办！这个手办也是为了配合暗黑破坏神系列15周年纪念而限量制作，收藏价值非凡！

在距离大会开幕前的一周，暴雪又陆续放出了一些神秘的暗黑3截图，我们可以看到“史诗”般的CG水准。简短和寓意深刻的文字说明让人浮想联翩。

暴雪悄然的更新了符文石系统的资料页面，预示着这个尚未在测试中开放的系统可能面临巨大的变革。而Bashiok大叔明确表示，本次大会会有这一系统的重要信息放出。

其他我们可以期待可能还有以下内容：

全新的场景和BOSS
新的CG或电影片段
新的试玩和全新游戏系统展示
游戏最终发售日期或典藏版更多消息

无论如何，有了去年的经验，在本次大会没有正式宣布结束前，绝对不能放弃任何期待和希望！以下是截止目前一些重要信息和预告：

现场布置图:

时间表:

周边

服装类

名称：大会主题T恤（男）售价：22 美金
名称：大会主题T恤（女）售价：22 美金
名称：魔兽世界主题T恤售价：22 美金
名称：星际争霸主题T恤售价：22 美金

名称：暗黑3主题T恤售价：22 美金
名称：暴雪20周年外套售价：70 美金
名称：暴雪20周年帽子售价：15 美金
名称：星际争霸2游戏手套售价：17 美金

名称：豪华部落挂绳售价：8 美金
名称：豪华联盟挂绳售价：8 美金

书籍类

名称：暗黑破坏神3日历售价：15 美金
名称：星际争霸2日历售价：15 美金
名称：魔兽世界小说“狼之心” 售价：26 美金
名称：魔兽世界音乐选集售价：20 美金

名称：嘉年华签字本售价：10 美金
名称：魔兽世界日历售价：15 美金

收藏模型类

名称：鱼人破坏神玩偶售价：16 美金
名称：Murloc Murhawk 售价：13 美金
名称：刺蛇模型售价：13 美金
名称：狂战士模型售价：13 美金

名称：枪兵模型售价：13 美金
名称：狮鹫宝宝（送游戏内宠物）售价：25 美金
名称：双足飞龙（送游戏内宠物）售价：25 美金
名称：迷你死亡鱼人宝宝（限定版）售价：30 美金

2011暴雪嘉年华上你必做的20件事

20 thins ur ganna do on BlizzCon 2011.jpg

1. 假设每个人都是Rob Pardo（暴雪娱乐的游戏设计副总裁）, 哪怕他们在抗议之后。请求和他们合影，握手并继续感谢他们付出的辛勤工作。

2. 在会议中心大厅和人大声谈论“昨天公布的泰坦的内容”。

3. 在竞技天梯处找到个对手，大声像他们挑战，并拿出一份“糖果世界”大喊“来做个了断吧！”

4. 在故事板块，表示你的名字是吉安娜.普罗德摩尔以展示你对Chris Metzen(暴雪创意设计部副总裁）的死忠。如果你是男的还有额外奖励。

5. 天真无辜地问每个人《星球大战》的展台在哪里。

6. 告诉Mike Morhaime你喜欢他和大工匠梅卡托克（侏儒的阵营领袖）一样的表演。

7. 1:1比例的雷兽cos！

8. 遇到一个暴雪员工并让他签名，而且一定要他写“我的朋友，女伯爵安吉丽娜.路易萨.弗朗西斯卡.芭娜娜.法娜.波.贝斯卡三世”（老动画狂欢三宝里的台词）。

9. 坚持你曾经是L10TC乐队的鼓手。

10. 在板块演讲人停止发言喘气时，趁没人注意马上憋足尽头大喊“首先！”。

11. 溜到后台去，并开始扔纸团打台前的人。如果有人问你在做什么，回答说“收集数据”。

12. 极度兴奋的语气要求将凯恩血蹄加回下一个资料片里。并在他们告诉你凯恩已经死了的时候大声哭泣。

13. 大声抗议说“我是那要求暗黑3今年出片的99%的人中的之一！”

14. 马上进行微博直播发布假信息。然后看其他直播的微博要多久才能反映过来。

15. 穿着一个T恤，上面写着“凯瑞根是塞隆人”（星际大争霸Battlestar Galactica 里一个虚构的人形种族）。

16. 前往每个展台询问“有翅膀的狮子玩具”（双足飞龙，魔兽世界里部落的阵营飞行坐骑）多少钱。

17. 穿着你去年的cosplay装参加化妆比赛。然后当他们叫你上台的时候，你要解释这是一件全新的服装，但你只是使用了“幻化系统”（魔兽世界4.3的内容）而已。

18. 头上顶个牌子，上面写着<嘉年华巡游者>。

19. 在讨论版块是愤慨地向系统设计师们抗议将死亡骑士从魔兽世界里移除的行为。并拒绝相信他们的任何否认。

20. 驯服鬼蟹。（Ghostcrawler，魔兽世界美服论坛的蓝贴发言人）

BlizzCon 2011 D3 Gameplay & Auction House Panel

嘉年华上D3 游戏与拍卖所座谈会于美国时间21日下午4:45开始,历时近1个小时. 到场嘉宾包括Jay Wilson, Jason Bender, Andrew Chambers, Wyatt Cheng以及Chris Haga. 座谈会内容大致包括以下几个方面, 部分消息我们都已经有所耳闻.

成就与战旗

这是暴雪第一次深入谈论成就系统. Jason表示, 在现场(包括在线观看)BlizzCon的观众他们的实时收看已经算完成了成就系统的一部分. 成就系统包括但不限于一些极限玩法(例如, 在专家模式达成60级), 及一些恶作剧(例如, 不装备任何武器击败游戏中的所有boss).

成就系统的目的之一, 在于令玩家的战旗更佳丰富多样. 战旗是你在游戏中成就的一种代表形式; PVP里程碑会为您提供新的可供攀登的高峰, 成就的数量将增加您的锦旗, 而专家级玩家的战旗低端则与普通玩家的不同. 当你与其他玩家组队合作时, 队友能清楚的通过你的战旗了解你的能力, 并通过点击它传送至你的身边.

物品的循环

Andrew指出, 游戏中的非后期物品仍存在问题. 当你打出一件物品时, 实际上只有两个选择, 一个是装备它直到你找到更好的替代品, 另一个是直接丢掉它. 不论你的选择是什么, 卖掉还是与他人交换物品, 都会造成金币的囤积. 当然, 赌博可以消耗一定量的金币, 但是他们发现玩家并不觉得这是一个好的体验, 从而多数人不会去选择用金币赌博.

D3有很多种既延长物品的使用寿命, 又保证他们退休后不会造成经济系统崩溃的方法. 秘术匠(Mystic)是D3中的3个工匠之一, 她几乎可以帮助你以任何可能的方式(GF, 属性, 职业属性等) 提升你物品品质, 当然这些属性是随机出现的. 如果不幸你得到的属性不理想, 你可以继续强化你的物品直到其获得令你满意的提升. 铁匠和珠宝匠也是一样, 他们都能升级至10级, 但你需要提供训练书页(Pages of Trainning), 而且他们的等级是账户内所有人物通用的, 所以当你换人物游戏时不用重新升级你的工匠们.

珠宝匠专门对付各种宝石.他可以为你合成宝石, 为物品添加凹槽, 从凹槽中取出宝石. 铁匠可以依怪物掉落的制作书打造对应的武器. 只要你的铁匠学会了配方, 而且你有足够的材料, 想打多少打多少.

最后, D3中的物品循环与前作相比更加充实丰富. 你可以通过购买, 打造, 掉落和拍卖所得到各种物品, 可以将你的物品出售获得金币以供打造和维修装备之用, 可以将他们分解以供打造新的装备, 或挂到拍卖所, 或者帮助需要它们的朋友们, 也可以将打造的成品挂到拍卖所换取游戏内的金币或实际货币.

PVP

最终的D3中奖包含组队死亡赛(Team Deathmatch). 与去年消息中不同的是, 比赛的人数变更为4v4(之前是3v3), 每次死亡你将在3秒后获得重生, 比赛时间为十分钟, 杀敌数最多的一方获胜. 在竞技场中, 玩家将不能够切换装备和技能, 这一决定主要是暴雪希望鼓励玩家多多思考战术, 了解你的对手, 并作出正确的选择. 为消除玩家之前的疑惑, 暴雪专门生命PVE角色可以参与PVP游戏.(译注:可能有玩家认为PVP需要专门的角色, 且不能进行PVE?)

拍卖所

除了物品筛选之外, 拍卖所没有什么新鲜消息. Jay解释了为什么暴雪需要建立一个方便玩家交易的系统, 以弥补D2的不足. 在D2中玩家只能角色当面交易, 为了找到交易的对象, 不得不在频道中刷屏, 或在第三方网站上购买物品. D系列游戏, 交易始终是游戏的重点, 因为想要独自在游戏中找到所有自己需要的所有物品几乎是不可能的任务. 而在拍卖所中, 你可以轻易找到几乎所有物品, 除了绑定角色是任务物品.

每个玩家的免费挂单商品数量是有限的, 以周为时间单位进行更新.

游戏平衡

目前的问题之一是近战职业比远程职业杀怪效率略低, 因为近战攻击显然比远程攻击要更易躲避. 为了解决这一问题, 暴雪设置了一种新的怪物前缀, "Mortar", 这类怪物会投掷炸弹, 近战玩家可以轻松躲避这些炸弹造成的伤害, 而远程职业将受到致命伤害.

另一个改变是令被动技能更好的辅助职业的战斗特点. 例如, 野蛮人有一种能力被称为钢铁意志(Nerves of Steel), 提升25%的活力, 明显的T职业技能.

Wyatt逐一解释了每个职业的变化.

野蛮人:该职业很成熟, 但是他们对一些玩家忽视低级怒气产生技能(如顺劈)比较不满. 他们会做出一些调整, 使低级的怒气产生技能更具吸引力. 暴雪发现野蛮人在游戏后期的AOE能力明显不足, 他们会做出一些调整, 以保证其生存能力.

法师:整体很好. 目前他们正考虑是否在特殊环境下限制特征类技能(Signature Spell)的使用. 他们已经将所有的伤害技能调整为基于武器伤害. 为了防止玩家追求高伤害而让法师拿上巨大的双手武器, 施法速度被调整为取决于武器速度.

巫医:反馈中存在的最大问题是玩家担心魔法值近乎无限. 设计的初衷是考虑到WD在初期几乎没有任何形式的回复魔法手段. 所以, 回复问题会是玩家将来头疼的最大问题, 主要有3个选择:被动技能, 符文, 和装备. 玩家可以打造出一个高回魔的char, 但是DPS肯定会有所损失, 究竟如何选择则要看玩家的了.

武僧:该职业在游戏初期的生存是个问题. 但是后期这将不再困然玩家. 暴雪正有目的的修改武僧的初期技能(例如, 为Fists of Thunder的第三击增加击退效果). 他们要增加一套连击的时间, 这样玩家就要在多种连击组合与无脑按1之间做出选择.

恶魔猎手:憎恨值短缺是最大的问题. 我们知道技能的修改多少减缓了这一问题, 除此还有一些技能会增加憎恨与戒律值. 恶魔猎手的陷阱效果也得到了一定增强, 以保证DHs的安全性.

技能更佳绚丽

Chris Haga的讲话很简短, 但是很幽默. 通过其演说, 我们了解到一些技能在开发早期的形态. 例如, 武僧曾经有一个召唤4个真言柱的技能, 你可以点击召唤出的柱子, 令其倒塌砸伤周围的单位. 这技能无疑很Cool, 但是视觉效果太庞大了, 而且放一个技能点5次鼠标也相对繁琐了点. 最终该技能被修改为召唤1根柱子, 打击并击退周围敌人, 并持续燃烧造成后续伤害.

难度等级

如果你经常到BN论坛逛的话, 你会发现玩家抱怨最多的是Beta太简单了. 本次座谈会也专门谈到了这个问题, 普通难度ACT 1的第一部分基本就是一个游戏教学的难度. 暴雪不喜欢专门做一个教学片段, 所以他们的游戏基本都是游戏初期内容作为教学, 随后难度逐渐增加. 暴雪专门放了一段D2视频, 女法师站在冰冷之原周围围满了小怪但完全无碍, 所以D2初期也是一样很简单的.

随着难度等级的提高, 怪物的AI和能力也随之提高. 嘉年华上暴雪专门准备了一段游戏后期的视频, 告诉玩家其实游戏后期的难度完全不可以根据Beta来揣测. 暴雪表示内部员工测试时曾经杀一个boss用掉1小时.

稀有和冠军怪的掉落在游戏中是最好的, 但是在后期难度中他们会非常非常强力. 普通难度2项属性, 噩梦3项, 地狱和炼狱则是4项. 玩家无需在不断像D2中那样run boss, 你只需在炼狱模式多转转尝试打打装备.

Beta 反馈

技能切换机制将作出改变. 暴雪不希望玩家随时打开技能面板切换技能. 目前, 要的想法是改变技能得先回城, 如果这一方法也不好的话, 暴雪会另想办法, 无论如何战斗中是不能切换技能的.

之前, 暴雪表示追随者将在普通后的难度中不可用. 这次追随者有所改变, 后期游戏难度中追随者将变为可用.

最后一点改变, 就是Zodiac戒指的属性. 如图

原文地址:http://d3db.com/article/read/blizzcon_2011_gameplay_panel 翻译:Lucarl 校对:人人都是和命运抗争的斗士

BlizzCon 2011 Diablo III Lore Panel

Let's begin with the stuff we already know, or at least we thought we knew. With the introduction of the Book of Cain, the aim of this release is to help consolidate, sharpen, and retcom the lore of the previous games. Chris Metzen commented how the original lore of the franchise was basically a mess with so many people with their hands in its creation. Much of the lore is remaining the same but there are some clarifications and minor changes that they needed to change to help tell a better story.

The Beginning

Starting at the very very beginning, the Diablo team has created an origin of their Universe. Legend in the Book of Cain, two primordial beings were in a constant struggle between good and bad. Anu, a creature representing good made of primarily diamond and Dragon Tathamet, a seven-headed dragon who breathed evil. The two destroyed each other and the after math essentially created the High Heavens and the Burning Hells. A part of Anu, the Crystal Eye, created the Worldstone. The Worldstone is said to be able to create worlds and reality. It is this Worldstone that the Angels and Demons are fighting over.

This fight takes place in Pandemonium. You may remember a part of this area from Diablo II before going into Hell. For hundreds of thousands of years, Angels and Demons have fought over control over this area and the Worldstone itself. Inarius, an Angel, and Lilith, a demon, were sick of this eternal struggle so they decided to leave this battle and create their own world. They manage to get to the Worldstone and essentially steal it from the Pandemonium. They bring the stone into another dimension and in this dimension they create Sanctuary, a paradise. Eventually, Angels and Demons procreate and create the Nephalem. The Worldstone slowly drains the Nephalem's powers reducing them to mere men while innately, they hold the power to be stronger then both Angels and Demons.

Now, some Angels and Demons eventually find out what Inarius and Lillith has done and discovery Sanctuary. However, both sides agree to let man live without influence of either side. However, demons being evil, they decide to try to corrupt man. The three prime evils set a plan in motion while Azmodan and Belial are unhappy with the break of the pact with Heaven. After exiling them to Sanctuary, Belial and Azmodan create a civil war for power in Hell.

Back on Sanctuary, it has been retconned that the actual hero from Diablo I is Aidan, King Loeric's eldest son. As for his back story, Aidan was missing from Tristram right before the events of Diablo I because he was leading an attack on Westmarch, an order made due to Diablo's corruption of King Leoric. He comes back to Tristram to find out his father has gone mad and his younger brother has been kidnapped by Lazarus and we all know what happens from there. Just to note, a big reason for this change was merely to give this character more weight and importance to help tell a better story.

Angels

Moving on from the past, the panel moved to the importance of the role of Angels in Sanctuary. It was mentioned that they have developed a lot more into this side of the conflict to help build and expand the world of Sanctuary. It was mentioned that their role will only get bigger as the franchise progresses. The Angels are created from the Crystal Arch, Anu's spine, of light and sounds. As far as going to the High Heavens themselves, it was not answered one way or the other. The biggest section of the Angels and the High Heavens is the Angris Council. A group of five Angels comprise of the council and rule over the Heavens.

Tyrael the Angel of Justice - Tyrael becomes the rouge angel after he witnesses Uldyssian's self-sacrifice and sees man's potential. Auriel the Angel of Hope - Auriel is the Angel the holds the group together. Malthael the Angel of Wisdom - Malthael begins to go mad and darker due to the unknown reasoning and existence of man. Imperius the Angel of Valor - Imperius is a warrior at heart and wants to destroy all semblance of demons including humans. Itherael the Angel of Fate - Itherael can see all paths of future except for that of mankind since their existence was unforeseen.

Demons

Opposing the Angels are the main Demons of Diablo III. Belial and Azmodan are the only two remaining Evils after the events of Diablo II. With the destruction of the Worldstone, their focuses have moved to Sanctuary.

Belial the Lord of Lies

Belial uses coercion and lies to get others to fight for him. The Triune and vipers are underlings to Belial. It was also noted that in gameplay, many of his underlings will appear human and then turn on you. Belial's pressence will be encountered in Act II around Caldeum. The once prosperous city has fallen and refugees are on the verge of death. Your hero will come into the story trying to figure out how the city has fallen and why Belial is there.

Azmodan the Lord of Sin

Azmodan has two of the sins in Diablo III who work for him. Much more pronounced and hands-on the Belial, Azmodan had ruled Hell for over 300 years and is now emerging in Sanctuary to obtain the Black Soulstone to obtain the greatest power. His siege will pour forth from Arreat Crater to attack Sanctuary. On a side note, Sedeah, the Maiden of Lust, was originally the Mistress of Pain who was removed but brought back thanks to the costume contest winner of the 2010 Blizzcon.

Black Soulstone

While not much was revealed about the Black Soulstone is was said that Leah is trying to use it to capture and destroy Belial and Azmodan. However, Azmodan is trying to obtain it himself because it will bestow him power that will make him stronger than any other Demon in Hell.

Areas

Three new areas were shown from Act II. All three of these areas are playable and play an important part in telling the story as we progress through this Act.

Caldeum - Caldeum was the jewel of the East. In became the trading center for all of Sanctuary. However, there was turmoil due to the Zakarum, rich merchants, and Wizards all vying for power over the city. Hakan eventually took rule and united the three groups to create the most prosperous city. However, his death left a son to young to rule the city. The Iron Wolves, lead by Asheara from Diablo II, were hired to protect him until he was old enough to rule the city. However, Hakan II removed them and replaced them with his own Caldeum guards. However, Asheara is unsure of why he made this decision.

Dahlgur Oasis - This small paradise was the birth of Caldeum. A mysterious man rose from the waste and showed the original settlers this source of water which was used to help begin Caldeum. However, the story is said that this mysterious man disappeared back into the waste after showing them.

The Archives of Zultun Kulle - Zultun Kulle was one of the original members of the Horadrim who helped capture the Prime Evils the first time. However, he eventually became corrupt and evil. He was so strong that they could not kill him they cut him in half. They removed his head and buried it underground surrounded by magical runes. His body has sent into another dimension.

Questions and Answers

I will be paraphrasing these questions. We will have complete video coverage of the panel later for direct reference.

Q: Is Adria dead? A: Yes, you will find out how in Diablo III

Q: Can Angels become Demons? A: No, but they can be corrupted and become evil. You will also see Izual again in Diablo III.

Q: Who is Leah's father? A: No comment (Although this is odd because it was already released that Aidan, the hero from Diablo I, is her father.

Q: Will the heroes from Diablo II have an appearance? A: To some degree. Some are hinted at. The Necro's apprentice is in Act II.

Q: What was the effect of the Worldstone's destruction? A: Azmodan's invasion is a direct effect. Also, it is possible it was not actually destroyed since it was only in Sanctuary as a shift in its dimensional existence.

Q: Will Trag'Oul be in Diablo III? A: No, after putting the Necromancers' on their path, he has disappeared.

Q: What about the lesser evils not having soulstones? A: "I wouldn't leave them"

Q: Why is Arreat Creater the place of the invasion? A: Logically, it is where the Worldstone disappeared so it is likely the place where reality is weakest currently.

Q: Will items connect with lore? A: Yes, a lot of Legendary items are tied to lore of previous and new lore.

Q: Will Ormus appear in Diablo III? A: He was and then removed but I would like for him to come back.

Q: Will we see any areas from Diablo II? A: Other than Tristram, no.

Q: Why does Diablo need a human body but not always? A: He primarily needs a body because he is weakened in Sanctuary. It is also because being a human host helps anchor him into the dimension of Sanctuary.

BlizzCon 2011 Diablo III Open Q&A

After the massive lore panel, it was time to get some feedback from the diehard fans that managed to pilgrimage to this year's convention. Here are the highlights from the Open Q&A; just keep in mind that this isn't meant to be a transcript, so all of it is paraphrased.

Caution: The following may contain spoilers.

Q: You made the followers more powerful for end game content. Will they be viable all the way through Inferno?

Blizzard representatives responded positively, saying that companions will be able to fight adequately alongside heroes through each difficulty. They have done some testing with companions through the difficulties, and although this is a very recent change, they do believe that changes they have incorporated into the hirelings will make then viable in the endgame.

Q: Is Diablo a girl?

The cover art for the event booklet made Diablo look anything but the usual muscular, bulky monster we've seen in his more animal incarnations in the previous games. While nothing was confirmed on why Diablo looked so distinctly female, with the sleekness of the abdomen and the wide hips, they did acknowledge that it was done. So it was on purpose. Maybe there's something to the popular Leah-possession lore speculation prevalent in our lore discussion forum.

Q: Can you elaborate on hardcore mode and how it's different from the previous games?

They mostly confirmed what is already known about Diablo III's hardcore mode: it will have its own Auction House that does not interact with normal, softcore players, said Auction House will use only gold as a currency (not real money), and so on. However, it was mentioned that if a player is killed, other players will not be able to pick the gear from the fallen character. In Diablo II, players were able to set their hardcore characters to "lootable" to other, trusted party members in the event of an untimely death. Unless misspoken, this is a marked change from the previous games. When you die, your gear is gone. Period.

Q: Can fresh sixty players succeed in Inferno, and will Inferno ever be nerfed for newer players?

In step with sentiments spoken yesterday about the difficulty of Inferno mode at the tail end of the Gameplay and Auction House panel the other day, it was confirmed that newly max-leveled characters (sixty is Diablo III's cap) will not be able to succeed easily, if at all, in Inferno mode. It's meant to be a challenge in every sense of the word, no matter what level characters are at.

While they were vehement about not nerfing it for the newbie's sake, they did add a caveat: as they address hardcore, there may be some balancing to account for hardcore players in Inferno mode. But they will not be simplifying Inferno mode for casual players.

Q: Why is light radius not in the game?

Light radius is not entirely gone, and it still works well in some contexts, like deep dungeons, but they found that using the new 3D engine really looked lack-luster when limiting light sources to only that of the player. They really want to utilize different light points to add interest to the 3D environment, so it's no longer a major element throughout the game.

Q: What's being done to protect against botting?

Probably a topic near and dear to any players getting ready to compete in Diablo II's upcoming ladder reset, botting has always been a controversial and annoying issue. Bots served as everything from farmers to level grinders, making the ladder ranking system essentially a hopeless, pointless list of bots outstripping human players. It was argued that the actual gameplay of the game renders botting more difficult to achieve, but that they will be policing it well, likely actively and with more robust security measures. It is also important to them to address spam bots, likely by watching join/leave events.

Q: Will WASD control be available?

While it had been played around with, they ultimately felt that non-analog controls didn't work well with Diablo's very analog-focused gameplay.

Q: Will runewords ever be added to the newest game?

They stated that the new gameplay mechanics and customization options account for what was previously done with runewords. The new, more robust crafting system allows for vast player-generated gear, runestones allow for heavy skill customization, and any other number of mechanics compensate or surpass what was accomplished with runewords in Diablo II.

Q: Can you confirm a console version?

They did not want to officially confirm a console version because they want to be completely sure it's something that will work and work well. They have been hiring console developers to work internally on console ideas, and they feel that it plays very well with the kind of game Diablo is, but they don't want to announce anything until they're entirely sure everything will work out.

Of primary concern is not wanting to compromise the PC version, likely in playability or release (as stated any number of times over the last months.) For now, they're focusing on filling out a console team.

Q: Attuned runes essentially allow for a ton of specialized runes for each character skill, creating a huge inventory problem with storage. What's being done to address this?

They acknowledged that they are aware of the issue and are thinking of ways to fix it. They believe that attuned runes add an interesting new facet to skill selection, customization, and build commitment, so they don't foresee removing them, but there is definitely an inventory issue that needs to be addressed.

Q: What are some of the issues seen in developing a console version?

Targetting skills becomes more difficult when using a controller and not a mouse and keyboard although they feel that player movement is greatly improved. Monster AI seems somewhat different when interacting with the game in a new way. They found that they spend the most time working with controls with a console iteration. They don't want a potential console version to feel like a port of the PC version, but a quality version that plays well as it is.

Q: Can we get more beta keys?

They have more waves coming out after the BlizzCon and are very happy with the feedback that they've received so far. In addition to more beta access sweeping across Battle.net accounts, they also said that a major patch is coming for the beta version of Diablo III very soon. We can guess that this will likely include the skill updates and other changes seen in the beta iteration seen in the PvM demo here at BlizzCon.

Q: What comes after Inferno?

While the team feels that Inferno mode will pose huge challenges for players for a long time to come, they have said that they will add more endgame content should they find that players demand more. There's also secret content, which they have confirmed to be in the game, so perhaps we'll see content similar to the Cow Level for endgame enjoyment. At the moment, they are more focused on just getting the game as-is out to the public.

Q: With the Wizard's cast rate announced as being based on weapon speed, what is being done to reward opting for other items besides cast rate-oriented equipment?

They believe that choosing cast rate-centric gear versus more obscure equipment is entirely based on the build a player opts for. If a player decides to use skills that benefit more from faster cast rates, it will be logical to use weapons that allow for faster cast rates, while skills which do not focus on cast rates, like Meteor, will allow players to focus on more damage-centric weapons.

Q: Will there be more skill slots?

The team believes that allowing more skill slots removes choices and, by extension, build diversity across a playerbase, so they will not be adding more skill slots.

Q: How will RMAH PvP players be matched with PvP players that do not spend real money on the Auction House for gear?

Buying higher gear will cause a player to be matched with peers of a like power level through the hidden ranking system, so purchasing gear with real money will only cause players to be matched against more experienced or more powerful characters. The actual outcomes of PvP games will not be affected.

Q: Will there be more PvP modes besides arena mode? The developers found that PvP in Diablo II mostly split players up for fear of getting ganked, meaning more players were playing in private games than playing together in public ones. This led to a focus on on a dedicated PvP mode with dedicated PvP support, the arena, and a PvP progression system. However, more PvP modes are being considered, and Jay Wilson even said that they are looking into a dueling option similar to Diablo II, although nothing concrete is yet known and they aren't sure if such a mode will make the initial release.

Q: Will there be guild support?

Guilds and clans in Diablo II were often organized using chat bots and out-of-game online communities. Hope had arisen that this would mean the developers saw this need as enough to implement guild support in Diablo III, but the idea was shot down. They will not have guild functionality available for release, but something may be implemented after release. They saw a lot of guild ideas that didn't get implemented in Diablo II as great mechanics that they want to work on in the future, but they want to make sure that if they do implement guild functionality, they will do it right.

Q: Will boss AI be scaled with difficulty to allow for more interesting and less repetitive battles at different difficulty levels??

They're looking across the major bosses for the game and tuning their AI to be refreshing and challenging according to difficulty mode, but they aren't sure if the changes will be really drastic from difficulty to difficulty or only minor, although they want such differences to be big. It seems to be another question of what will make it into the initial release.

Q: Will players be able to use their skills together in combination attacks?

They have seen many players using strategic implementation of skills, like a Wizard freezing enemies and then melee characters shattering frozen enemies. They think that more sophisticated team play would be fantastic, but they don't want payers choosing not to play with other players because of class choices in certain situations, which they view as adverse to encouraging group play.

Q: Will there be an API for the Auction House?

They have talked about it at length, but it will not make the launch version of the game. It may be added after release. They seemed positive about such an implementation.

Q: With the 12-month account for WoW players allowing a free digital purchase of Diablo III, will there be any compensation for purchasing a collector's edition of Diablo III?

Buying a collector's edition of Diablo III will count as credit towards a 12-month account.

Those were most of the more interesting questions asked, but we encourage you to stay tuned as we upload video versions of each of the panels and keep your eyes peeled for full transcriptions. There may be things that you will find more interesting on a personal level, and with so much up in the air with Diablo III, there are a lot of questions that didn't get answered very directly and were cut from this report.