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Diablo Immortal is heavily pay to win. Don't login for a day you will lose items you paid for

ANDS

King of Gaslighting
This is a spectacular OP. Imagine pulling every lie or half-truth from the OT and then repackaging it as some exhaustively researched (it isn't) critique of the game when you could have made a more reasoned and fair thread that didn't rely on outright lies or dishonest takes (like those "Oh my god it costs X to max your character. . ."). As has already been mentioned (for anyone who actually cares to try out the game and isn't looking to spend money"): No, progression/upgrades are NOT solely tied to the cash shop, yes you get rewards for Elder Rifts whether you purchase a Rift-boost or not, there is exactly one premium currency that can only be purchased with cash , the other you can earn each day by just - shock - playing the game, you aren't losing items in the "Boon of Plenty" as you only gain them by actually logging in (which is clearly noted before you buy the fucking thing). I mean, look at this list:

  • Upgrading gear is only possible through shop items
  • Loot progression is tied to rifts which need to be enhanced through ingame currency
  • Drop chances are heavily gimped for non-paying players
  • It costs around $20 (1.600 eternal orbs) to get a 45% chance at having a 5-Star gem drop in a rift
  • Ingame currency packs are inconsistent with item shop prices, so you always end up paying more than you need
  • Multiple ingame currencies to obfuscate your expenses
  • Upgrading gear costs materials which are available through subscription passes

Which is it? Can you only upgrade gear through Shop Items or is it only available through the Battle Pass? These observations are false either way, but I'm just curious why you co-sign something this lazily hacked together.

At the end of the day, it is a free to play game with all the pros and cons of that. If you are actually legitimately concerned for the folks who lack any patience, that is noble, but who are you talking to here? I haven't taken a poll but I haven't seen anyone - who is playing and enjoying more DIABLO - say in the other thread they've actually boosted themselves. I haven't and I have had no problem clearing content on the way to 60. . .which is a point knuckleheads will ignore or just shift the conversation to "But it's the principle!" Yeah. . .ok.
 

ManaByte

Member
This is a spectacular OP. Imagine pulling every lie or half-truth from the OT and then repackaging it as some exhaustively researched (it isn't) critique of the game when you could have made a more reasoned and fair thread that didn't rely on outright lies or dishonest takes (like those "Oh my god it costs X to max your character. . ."). As has already been mentioned (for anyone who actually cares to try out the game and isn't looking to spend money"): No, progression/upgrades are NOT solely tied to the cash shop, yes you get rewards for Elder Rifts whether you purchase a Rift-boost or not, there is exactly one premium currency that can only be purchased with cash , the other you can earn each day by just - shock - playing the game, you aren't losing items in the "Boon of Plenty" as you only gain them by actually logging in (which is clearly noted before you buy the fucking thing). I mean, look at this list:



Which is it? Can you only upgrade gear through Shop Items or is it only available through the Battle Pass? These observations are false either way, but I'm just curious why you co-sign something this lazily hacked together.

At the end of the day, it is a free to play game with all the pros and cons of that. If you are actually legitimately concerned for the folks who lack any patience, that is noble, but who are you talking to here? I haven't taken a poll but I haven't seen anyone - who is playing and enjoying more DIABLO - say in the other thread they've actually boosted themselves. I haven't and I have had no problem clearing content on the way to 60. . .which is a point knuckleheads will ignore or just shift the conversation to "But it's the principle!" Yeah. . .ok.
Sir, this is the internet. Truth doesn’t matter when you can generate outrage with lies.
 

Filben

Member
We're at this point because retards most gamers accepted the baby steps needed to get here.

But... but whales are good bro! They support the game for you bro! That horse armor doesn't change anything in my game bro!

Fucking blind idiots.
Don't forget the "you don't have to pay" or "you can ignore it all and still play for free!" arguments.

If I could pay let's say 5 EUR or even 10 EUR for a complete (good) mobile Diablo I'd rather do that. But somehow people accept f2p games more where you'll spend hundreds of Euro (or even 20 or 50 bucks) over time instead of a small one-time payment that cost half the price of a skin.

And seeing this works more and more developer will turn brands and IPs and series into this money printing scheme.

And in 10 years time people, also those ignoring this shit and talking down critics, will wonder "how could that happen???"... if at all and they haven't taken it as standard already. We are at this point right now where it already has begun and it only get worse from here on.

The game employs every dirty trick to fleece your wallet:

  • Upgrading gear is only possible through shop items such as legendary gems
  • Loot progression is tied to rifts which need to be enhanced through ingame currency
  • Drop chances are heavily gimped for non-paying players
  • It costs around $20 (1.600 eternal orbs) to get a 45% chance at having a 5-Star gem drop in a rift
  • Ingame currency packs are inconsistent with item shop prices, so you always end up paying more than you need
  • Multiple ingame currencies to obfuscate your expenses
  • Upgrading gear costs materials which are available through subscription passes
v5xqR3W.jpg

  • You need to login daily to receive the items that you paid for through your subscription
  • Pay 2 win, meaning that you get double the attack and health stats than a regular character
  • Game lures you in first, before nickel & diming you mid-game
  • Battlepasses seem like good value, but you'll still be an absolute scrub compared to customers investing in the item-shop
  • Completing dungeons and fighting bosses does not give you rewards, instead you will get promotions for the ingame shop
  • etc...
Thanks for writing this up. Everything as bad and as expected.

HOWEVER, Battle Passes in other games (except for Deep Rock Galactic) do that: you pay for the OPTION to unlock additional stuff. Nothing is granted. If I pay for a Battle Pass in Apex Legends and play so little I don't reach certain levels before the season is over, I'm "loosing" the stuff... stuff I haven't bought to begin with.

And that's a mighty difference and why I never invest in Battle Passes because I buy the option to unlock, not the stuff per se.

People made fun of horse armour dlc but at least you a) know what you get, no slot machine tactics and b) you definitely get it and keep it.

Imagine selling DLC for let's say The Witcher but only the chance to accees a new region or quest and if you dont manage in time it's lost forever. No reload, no second try... it's gone. People would be pissed.

Yet in F2P it's accepted for whatever made up reasons.

I'd like to turn around things for once: taking things for free and give those greedy corporation the CHANCE getting my money, like they have to deliver daily patches, weekly content. And only if they reach customer trust level 50 they get payed.
 
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Reactions: Fuz
Another moble game with microtransactions, another circle jerk of pearl clutching. Apparently people just can't dislike something anymore without the need for acting like it's the end of humanity.

The gameplay is fun, particularly for mobile which is all that matters until, like every other game out there, you get bored and quit. If you have even an ounce of self control and don't want to spend anything on the game - don't! Or do it if you want. We're well beyond this being a new thing to act like it's the end for all other games out there ffs.
 

darkangel-212559

Dreamcast Love
So many idiots on here with the same old BUT YOUR NOT FORCED TO DO IT SO IGNORE IT LUL U DUMB ASSES argument.

Yeah wait until this shit ruins your favourite game series and we'll see if your so accepting of this shit then.

It's not even about being 'forced' or not. It's about designing games around Mirco transactions and ruining them in the process.

If you don't care about game design and the future of any IP I could see why you use that moronic argument though.
 
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SmokedMeat

Gamer™
OMG I’m clutching my pearls that a mobile game is using predatory tactics!

Ok, so let’s get rid of Diablo. Does that solve the problem? Is mobile still a cesspool of shit?

This is par for the course for mobile, so you either enjoy Diablo on your phone for free, or you don’t. Complaining on the internet will do nothing.

Now if this shit shows up in Diablo 4, then we can give them a ton of shit. Otherwise, it’s whatever. Be smart about it and play it for free.
 
Even if you took out all microtransactions it would still be terrible. Focusing so much on the awful monetization that we forget the game itself is an embarrassing husk. It’s a game for people who don’t actually like playing games and instead use it to fill a void by watching pointless numbers on a screen increase. It’s addiction to distraction. There’s nothing here that requires thought. Everything is set up for you. It’s Diablo via conveyor belt.
 

Dr. Claus

Vincit qui se vincit
Well, yeah you kinda should accept it, this is how free mobile games make money, they sell advantages so they can take your screen time, so you engage more with their product, so you spend more.

If you don't want this, buy a mobile game that isn't free, or wait for the traditional Diablo product.

There are plenty of free mobile games that make bank without relying on predatory pay to win mechanics. Suggesting otherwise is having your head in the sand. So no, we don’t have to accept it and we shouldn’t. We should be fighting back to get a better product.

It is because of folks like you that this has become normalized in the industry. You are actively making things worse and supporting the creation of lesser products.
 

Dr. Claus

Vincit qui se vincit
The people on NEOGaf shilling for this game should be ashamed of themselves. I feel like people argue about a lot of things on this site but there’d be 100% agreement that this sort of garbage game should be shunned. Guess some people just like to play crap.

If they like it or enjoy it, I won’t badger them much for it. It is the defense of the predatory actions and pay to win design that gets my goat. I still play Black Desert Online and Lost Ark despite its cancerous monetization as the games are simply *fun*, but I still greatly criticize them for it and push for their removal.

But so many of the folks in here defending the game aren’t even doing that. They are trying to hand wave away the mountains of data, the numerous videos showcasing exactly how to break the game early on by spending *hundreds* of dollars. How the core game systems are infected with this pay to win design, and refusing to even accept that these are terrible, god awful choices that actively hinder the game for most.

There aren’t many people I wish I could see removed from the community, but I do wish that these folks would be given a timeout for the egregious amounts of shilling they are doing for trash like this.
 

II_JumPeR_I

Member
Mobile game has pay2win mechanics.. shocking news at 11..

And people keep playing it. Hypocrites. Dont play it and move on tbh
 

Panajev2001a

GAF's Pleasant Genius
Free 2 Play game has pay2win mechanics.. shocking news at 11..

And people keep playing it. Hypocrites. Dont play it and move on tbh
Fixed ;). Mobile is just the land where game’s perceived value for gamers cratered first, expect the same in other platforms if gamers stop buying games and expect them out of a subscription or something ;).
 

killatopak

Gold Member
Fixed ;). Mobile is just the land where game’s perceived value for gamers cratered first, expect the same in other platforms if gamers stop buying games and expect them out of a subscription or something ;).
Free to play isn't necessarily pay2win. In fact I play some of them and 100% of those that I play have microtransactions that are purely cosmetic. League Wild Rift for example.
 

Panajev2001a

GAF's Pleasant Genius
Free to play isn't necessarily pay2win. In fact I play some of them and 100% of those that I play have microtransactions that are purely cosmetic. League Wild Rift for example.
As pointed out by T Three I was talking about the fact this is not mobile only than anything else… exceptions to the rule would be there, but pay2win is not the only bad thing about games designed to squeeze you out of money once you buy them… the bigger the budget the more likely games would try to force you to spend at every turn.
 
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clarky

Gold Member
G
As pointed out I was more pointing the fact this is not mobile only than anything else… exceptions to the rule would be there, but pay2win is not the only bad thing about games designed to squeeze you out of money once you buy them… the bigger the budget the more likely games would try to force you to spend at every turn.
Games designed to "squeeze" money out of the player are as old as time its self.

Nobody grown up in the arcades in the 80's? shits been around forever.
 
Daily quest and similar mechanics that require you to log everyday is why I have no interest in online games anymore. It's absolutely tasteless, the opposite of what anyone should want in a game.

I quit WoW forever as soon as they were introduced, Blizzard sucks, they did a similar thing again with Hearthstone, they think it's fun to turn every game into a boring job, where you have to clock in every day.
 
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MiguelItUp

Member
Seeing this thread makes me think I have become jaded from playing all of these mobile games when I am bored.
I think it's less jaded and more so knowing what to expect. If you dabble in mobile games pretty frequently then you know what to expect regarding monetization. Lord knows in the few I've played over the years I couldn't help but laugh at currency bundles that were $100+ and shoved in my face.

"Man, I'm just deucin' and wanted to get a free quick game in. Get that nonsense out of here!"
 
@Mods: My last comment was a bit overboard, I apologize.

It is just so frustrating seeing these predatory payment schemes being implemented into franchises that people hold dearly. Not only that, but because of the uncritical consumption of these products, we will inevitably see more and more of these microtransactions. Other platforms are already seeing a rise in f2p and p2w schemes and more will follow if consumers remain silent. Mobile games will slowly infect consoles and PC, considering how much money can be made by employing shady gambling tactics in order to hook players.

It is quite evident that monetization took precedent over gameplay, which only leads to worse games for everybody.
 

Black_Stride

do not tempt fate do not contrain Wonder Woman's thighs do not do not
Activision-Blizzard was a mistake.

Close that whole shitshow down.

Absolutely disgraceful, I hope they get sued to oblivion.

Never spending a dime on anything related to these clowns.

Fuck this trash
Cat Lol GIF by Cartoon Hangover
HAHAHAHA.
A mobile game gouging its players for money getting sued?
hehehehe mate i dont know what reality you are living in but you need to stop taking those crazy ass drugs.

MS bought these guys for 70 billion.....they want that money back ASAP!

P.S You can still play the game and never spend a dime.
I have yet to spend any money in Genshin Impact or COD:Mobile and those are some of the highest earning videogames on the planet....so its relatively easy to still enjoy these games and NOT pay.
I let the whales pay for the constant development....I just reap the rewards.
 

clarky

Gold Member
Why anyone need this game while have perfect Diablo 2: Resurrected?
A: you don't, sensible people like yourself can just carry on and enjoy that game while the warriors can carry on searching Youtube to find others who are outraged about this crime against gaming.
 

Fuz

Banned
P.S You can still play the game and never spend a dime.
I have yet to spend any money in Genshin Impact or COD:Mobile and those are some of the highest earning videogames on the planet....so its relatively easy to still enjoy these games and NOT pay.
I let the whales pay for the constant development....I just reap the rewards.
No, you reap more games designed as casinos as a reward for supporting them.
 
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killatopak

Gold Member
Yeah but I think he's more pointing out that this isn't limited to mobile games but now extends to consoles games.

As pointed out I was more pointing the fact this is not mobile only than anything else… exceptions to the rule would be there, but pay2win is not the only bad thing about games designed to squeeze you out of money once you buy them… the bigger the budget the more likely games would try to force you to spend at every turn.
I guess this is one of my fears. Blizzard seeing how successful some of these predatory practices are and how there's little pushback to it. They may decide to implement these on Diablo 4 in limited capacity.

Basically Diablo Immortal is a massivr beta test for D4.
 

clarky

Gold Member
I guess this is one of my fears. Blizzard seeing how successful some of these predatory practices are and how there's little pushback to it. They may decide to implement these on Diablo 4 in limited capacity.

Basically Diablo Immortal is a massivr beta test for D4.
Tales pulled from your ass part one.

Nothing to suggest D4 will go that way, although im all for it just to see the meltdowns if this is what a mobile game does.
 
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Black_Stride

do not tempt fate do not contrain Wonder Woman's thighs do not do not
No, you reap more games designed as casinos as a reward for supporting them.
As long as the gameplay loop is fun and I dont have to pay a dime, with the whales covering the cost I would have had to pay.
Bring them on!
 

killatopak

Gold Member
Tales pulled from your ass part one.

Nothing to suggest D4 will go that way, although im all for it just to see the meltdowns if this is what a mobile game does.
Is it though? I've been burned waay too many times by Blizzard. Expected the worst yet still let down. Warcraft 3? WoW? Overwatch? It's their tradition at this point.

Only gem in this pile of shit that I enjoyed was D2R.
 

manfestival

Member
I think it's less jaded and more so knowing what to expect. If you dabble in mobile games pretty frequently then you know what to expect regarding monetization. Lord knows in the few I've played over the years I couldn't help but laugh at currency bundles that were $100+ and shoved in my face.

"Man, I'm just deucin' and wanted to get a free quick game in. Get that nonsense out of here!"
Yeah I suppose you are right about that. Difference in perspectives going on in this thread for sure. On one hand, I get the outrage but yeah I guess I just knew to expect this. Just comes with the territory. Not that it makes it justified or good because it falls in line with expectations. The only silver lining here is that this is definitely at the top of the f2p pile of games. Between this Ni No Kuni, Genshin Impact, and a handful of other games. There are pretty interesting options for those gamers that want to play without dropping a dime. That is, if they don't get caught up in the monetization. Which is easy for me lol
 

sainraja

Member
It's standard in mobile games.
How did it become standard?

Then there's no problem at all, right?

Who thought you could casually play and maybe enjoy a mobile game without spending a penny?!

The kneejerk to this is hysterical, it's like people haven't been paying attention to F2P mobile gaming practices, none of this is new. At all. It's been absolutely standard for years. I think it's primarily because it's Diablo that people are like, "OMG! THIS IS ABSURD!" Honestly all these influencers and content creators are relishing in this "drama" as it just gives them more clicks and views. Stop watching the dumb garbage, lmao.

Is it a F2P mobile game? Yes.
Can you casually play it without spending a penny? Yes.
Could you spend a ton of money on it? Yes.
Are you forced to spend any money? No.
Are these practices new? No.

It'd be great if we didn't see predatory monetization at all in any form, but considering how much money the industry makes, it's not going anywhere. So, I'd highly suggest just ignoring it, if it is bothering you that much. I've already been called multiple things here for just saying that the game is a decent casual F2P mobile Diablo experience where you don't need to spend any money, and I still think that's true. But wtf that doesn't make me a shill, lmao.

Here's a link to an article showing how much money F2P mobile gaming makes: https://clevertap.com/blog/free-to-play-games-monetization-strategy/


EXACTLY!
I don't see the need to be defensive about a game that just made its debut on mobile platforms, a game that has traditionally been a PC/console game with fans on those platforms. Some of those people will definitely check the game out on mobile and will react to things they don't like about it, even if it might be 'standard' practice on mobile.

---

It doesn't bother me that much personally — not right now anyway.
 
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Neolombax

Member
If anything, this thread made me want to play the game more to find out for myself if this is really true. Haha. Its already taking up 11gb of space on my phone, might as well do some exploring.
 
for those of you shitting on the Diablo franchise saying there is no hope for future games, I'm cautiously optimistic given how fucking amazing D2R is, and it was a very recent release

I've played D2 for the past 20 years on and off, and D2R managed to exceed most my expectations

it's really, really good. I even had concerns about them making additional changes with new rune words and other tweaks to mechanics, but everything was handled surprisingly well.

edit: I should add that I didn't like D3, so I probably wouldn't have enjoyed Diablo Immortal even if it didn't have the p2w mechanics. hoping D4 feels more like D2. not all that worried as long as they continue to support D2, which I'm sure they will. they were running the servers for 20 years prior to D2R
 
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for those of you shitting on the Diablo franchise saying there is no hope for future games, I'm cautiously optimistic given how fucking amazing D2R is, and it was a very recent release

I've played D2 for the past 20 years on and off, and D2R managed to exceed most my expectations

it's really, really good. I even had concerns about them making additional changes with new rune words and other tweaks to mechanics, but everything was handled surprisingly well.

edit: I should add that I didn't like D3, so I probably wouldn't have enjoyed Diablo Immortal even if it didn't have the p2w mechanics. hoping D4 feels more like D2. not all that worried as long as they continue to support D2, which I'm sure they will. they were running the servers for 20 years prior to D2R

Yeah, i've been a long time Blizzard fan since i was a kid, and it hasn't been pleasant watching them ever so slowly fall from grace to a point were they're now a joke compared to what the brand represented.

But, D2R is fantastic, it is an incredibly good package. I took a break and recently began playing again in ladder mode and i'm yet again hooked. It's a bottomless pit of addictive fun. I'm planning another 4 hour session as we speak, brewing some coffee.

I'm keeping my hopes up for D4 just because of how well they handled D2R.
 
Is it possible to see the end credits or go through all of the story content without paying anything? If so, is it relatively easy to the point where the vast majority of players could finish the game without paying? Because if that's the case, after a certain point, I think a more accurate description would be "pay for power" rather than "pay to win." If the main difference is finishing a boss enemy in 30 seconds instead of 60, you're not paying to win, you're paying for character strength.

Of course, if PVP is involved, you're absolutely paying to win. And either way, PVP or not, I'd agree that these games are very predatory.
 

Panajev2001a

GAF's Pleasant Genius
G

Games designed to "squeeze" money out of the player are as old as time its self.

Nobody grown up in the arcades in the 80's? shits been around forever.
Hehe, ah sorry it makes it alright then 😂 (yup I remember, I grew up in those days, do not look forward to more and more games taking a page from that book). I am not sure how you could say it is not a far bigger deal than it used to be back then, but 🤷‍♂️.
 
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Another moble game with microtransactions, another circle jerk of pearl clutching. Apparently people just can't dislike something anymore without the need for acting like it's the end of humanity.

The gameplay is fun, particularly for mobile which is all that matters until, like every other game out there, you get bored and quit. If you have even an ounce of self control and don't want to spend anything on the game - don't! Or do it if you want. We're well beyond this being a new thing to act like it's the end for all other games out there ffs.
Neogaf breaks down like this. We've got Consoomers in Gaming, and Coomers in OT. Neither like being fucked with when they're doing their oooooming.
 
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