Consumer group urges Blizzard to clarify always-on DRM requirement

Matthew DeCarlo

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Over two months after its launch, Diablo III remains the subject of much criticism among gamers and consumer rights groups around the globe, including a German organization that has threatened legal action against Blizzard. Concerned about what it believes to be misleading packaging, The Federation of Consumer Organizations urged Blizzard to update Diablo III's retail box to better reflect the nature of its always-on DRM.

The current text -- at least as we understand it from Google Translate -- essentially says the game requires an Internet connection, but it doesn't explicitly stress that the connection must be persistent. This could mislead consumers as certain games only need brief one-time access to the Internet for activation, but allow you to play offline during subsequent launches or at the very least only require you to phone home periodically.

As you know, Diablo III offers no such luxury: you must play online. The Federation of Consumer Organizations originally gave Blizzard until July 20 to change the wording on its box, but it seems the developer refused (either flat out ignored the demand or gave an undesirable reply -- again, the translation is rough). In any case, the group has issued a final deadline of July 27 and if it's not satisfied by that date, it's prepared to file suit.

This news follows a month after the conclusion of an investigation by Korea's Fair Trade Commission over complaints about Diablo III's connection issues. Blizzard initially refused to issue refunds over the network problems, but that violated Korean law, which guarantees refunds for defective products. The probe prompted Blizzard to introduce several compensation offerings, including a 14-day refund window for new customers.

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Had this been posted a couple weeks ago I might have had more to comment on, however as it stands I have already grown bored of Diablo. The idea of endless death just doesn't appeal to me I suppose. That being said I hope blizzard doesn't change their box and thus force The Federation of Consumer Organizations to take legal action, this may be enough for more people to see this always online BS is not a solution to DRM, but rather just another hindrance to the paying customer.
 
Yup bliz screwed this game bad, I havent loaded it up in at least a month now ,They got my money and thats all they care about. Im hoping Torchlight 2 doesn't disappoint like D3 has.
 
Just about 60 on a Barb going through Hell, literally. Will be finished with this game once I'm there...
 
I completely agree. I hope they get the crap sued out of them for this terrible game. I'm really disappointed, as I loved Diablo 2, but this game is just ridiculous. You can't progress through inferno without spending real money in their auction house. What a scam.
 
I am mostly disappointed in the fact that I have played for 60 hours and cannot find good gear to save my life. Literally. I am on Hell difficulty with a lvl 56 monk and I get my *** beat. Then I add to that the nerve to drop me ONE ultra rare in normal difficulty for my entire D3 career.
 
So, people play a game that has tiny characters and not great graphic detail in 2012 and play $60 for it? That sure sounds like a scam to me!

If Diablo III was a gameboy or NDS game I'd understand but a PC game like that!?
 
Yea, the game was a rip off. I only managed 20 hours before getting too bored to continue on. I did at least 100 times that in Diablo 2. Looking forward to Torchlight 2, having played the beta, this game is actually fun!
 
Blizzard went from one of the most respected companies in the industry to mainstream/dumbed down with Diablo 3 and its always on DRM isn't helping.
 
For those complaining about the game being too hard to progress through inferno, you must be daft. I've beaten the game on 2 characters and have the other three in Act III inferno. I haven't spent a dime on the RMAH and I've never had more than 5 million gold on me at one time (stats say I've collected about 10M in drops and I estimate another 10M from the AH).

Just figure out a play style that works for you, buy/farm gear to support it, then execute. Does it take patience? Will you die some? Yes, but you make progress.

For additional support check out Diablofans.com Lots of builds and the type of gear you need to support it. In-fact, right now a person is beating inferno with only 1M gold worth of gear on each of his characters because he tweaked his builds to know exactly what stats he needs for the synergy between skills.

And maybe I'm in the minority, but I enjoy the game and am looking forward to truly beating the game (all characters beating inferno + 1 hardcore).
 
The game is boring and kittified. I havent played it since the first month of release, was to bored by it to even bot. It sealed the nail in my gaming coffin havent played more then a hour of a video game since.
 
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