Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

[Jan 19, 2013, 6:11 pm ET] - Share - Viewing Comments

Blizzard ~~CEO~~ Chief Creative Officer Rob Pardo has added his thoughts to the forum post from Jay Wilson about leaving the Diablo III team. Rob expresses disappointment at some responses to this, expresses pride in the action/RPG sequel, restates Blizzard's commitment to refining Diablo III "until it is the best game in the franchise," and takes full responsibility for who the game turned out:

This thread saddens me greatly. I know that the Battle.net forums have earned a reputation for rough justice, but I do not believe justice is being served by how people are speaking about Jay’s departure from Diablo III.

I am very proud of the Diablo franchise and what the team was able to accomplish with Diablo III. As a gamer I have enjoyed the game and played for many, many nights with friends and family. I’m not, however, going to use that as an excuse. The Diablo community deserves an even better game from Blizzard and we are committed to improving it. We have a talented team in place and have no intention of stopping work on Diablo III until it is the best game in the franchise.

I’m the only person in this thread who has actually worked with Jay. I hired Jay to head up the Diablo project and had the pleasure of getting to work with him, both in building the team and designing the game. He has great design instincts and has added so much to the franchise with his feel for visceral combat, boss battles, and an unparalleled knack for making it fun to smash bad guys. I’ve worked with many, many designers at Blizzard and Jay is one of the best. He has a great career at Blizzard ahead of him and I guarantee that you will enjoy Jay’s game designs in future Blizzard games.

If you love Diablo as much as we do, then please continue to let us know how you feel we can improve the game. If you still feel the need to dish out blame, then I would prefer you direct it at me. I was the executive producer on the project; I hired Jay and I gave him advice and direction throughout the development process. I was ultimately responsible for the game we released and take full responsibility for the quality of the result.

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72 Replies. 4 pages. Viewing page 3.
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32.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 20, 2013, 01:49

nin

They've just burnt too many bridges with this.

I hope you're right. I'm skeptical, but I hope you're right.




RollinThundr Apr 17, 2013, 12:25: Eh really tossing stuff like that in there only to get your panties all bunched up. If you really want to call that trolling sure. Mr. Tact Apr 17, 2013, 12:33: Pretty sure that's the definition of trolling...

31.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 20, 2013, 01:40

Cutter

Prez wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 21:37:
They're listening alright. They're listening to the sound of $600 million rolling in from the 10 million sales of Diablo 3. With that kind of validation for the deliberate regression of a once-great franchise they have no mandate to do anything differently.

Yes, but that's because many were naieve and didn't understand the online-DRM, AH scheme, etc. I'll be dollars to donuts they won't see a repeat of those sales numbers again, not even close. They've just burnt too many bridges with this.




"Are you crazy? Is that your problem?" - Jack Burton

30.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 20, 2013, 00:59

Krizzen

Prez wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 21:37: They're listening alright. They're listening to the sound of $600 million rolling in from the 10 million sales of Diablo 3. With that kind of validation for the deliberate regression of a once-great franchise they have no mandate to do anything differently. Exactly. And the Blizzard PR machine churns on: No one needs to worry! All the problems will be fixed in the expansion! It's coming out Soon™! The expansion will be released, things still won't be fixed, but atleast they got your $60. Again.

29.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 20, 2013, 00:20

Slashman

I think the saddest part is that Blizzard's reputation alone will continue to let them do whatever they feel like and still be a successful company. When Ubisoft pulled this, they felt the loss in sales and people not supporting their products as much as before to the point where they stopped with online only DRM. But if Blizzard pulls it, complaints are as far as it gets. Everyone excuses them. From game reviewers to blind players, because if it is a Blizzard product, it must be worth the money, inconvenience and dissatisfaction to play it.

28.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 23:22

Creston

Slashman wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 21:51: People knew that D3 was designed around forcing you to the auction house to cash in on RMT and bought the thing anyway. Mixed messages like that only serve to make them think we really do want any crap they dish out. Sadly, you are absolutely correct. Most of the self-same people that (initially bought Diablo 3) then complained the loudest will happily shell out for the next SC as well. Creston

27.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 22:51

StingingVelvet

Way to improve the game: realize a ton of people prefer singleplayer and stop being dicks about it.

26.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 22:18

MisterBenn

I was thinking something very similar. A lot of these design compromises were known up front (online only, real money auction house loot system etc) but millions bought it anyway. You'd also have to conclude that consumers don't listen either.




Playing: Path of Exile, Distant Worlds, Trials Gold.

25.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 22:10

nin

jdreyer wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 22:09:
Panickd wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 20:36:

I think you confuse listening with caving to internet whining.

Listening involves taking in the viewpoints of others that may run counter to your own. It does not necessarily mean you will make changes based on those viewpoints. That is to say, just because they did not alter the design of the game to meet your specifications does not mean that they didn't listen to and hear you.

I might agree with you, but when the outcry is so loud and so universal, and you still don't change, I think that can be fairly called not listening.

1. There was a huge outcry and continuous from the moment it was revealed that the game would require you to be online and that people violently opposed that, yet no offline mode was added. Yes, the game was designed to serve elements from the server, but don't tell me Blizzard doesn't have the resources to offer an offline mode (even as a patch down the line). Yet they continue to refuse.

2. There has been a huge outcry about loot drops being too scarce such that it forces players to go to the AH to get good loot, yet loot drops remain scarce.

3. That the skill tree is a mess and doesn't offer meaningful choices has been continuously brought up since the beta, yet it remains as is.

In all of these cases, the managers of this product, Pardo and Wilson, have chosen to take the route they prefer instead of what the players are communicating makes the game more fun, interesting, and accessible. You might call that listening, I do not.

And when David Brevik offers an honest assessment that mirrors what the rest of the community is saying, and the response is "Fuck that loser," I don't call that listening either.

I would like to frame your post, and put it on the wall.




RollinThundr Apr 17, 2013, 12:25: Eh really tossing stuff like that in there only to get your panties all bunched up. If you really want to call that trolling sure. Mr. Tact Apr 17, 2013, 12:33: Pretty sure that's the definition of trolling...

24.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 22:09

jdreyer

Panickd wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 20:36:

I think you confuse listening with caving to internet whining.

Listening involves taking in the viewpoints of others that may run counter to your own. It does not necessarily mean you will make changes based on those viewpoints. That is to say, just because they did not alter the design of the game to meet your specifications does not mean that they didn't listen to and hear you.

I might agree with you, but when the outcry is so loud and so universal, and you still don't change, I think that can be fairly called not listening.

1. There was a huge outcry and continuous from the moment it was revealed that the game would require you to be online and that people violently opposed that, yet no offline mode was added. Yes, the game was designed to serve elements from the server, but don't tell me Blizzard doesn't have the resources to offer an offline mode (even as a patch down the line). Yet they continue to refuse.

2. There has been a huge outcry about loot drops being too scarce such that it forces players to go to the AH to get good loot, yet loot drops remain scarce.

3. That the skill tree is a mess and doesn't offer meaningful choices has been continuously brought up since the beta, yet it remains as is.

In all of these cases, the managers of this product, Pardo and Wilson, have chosen to take the route they prefer instead of what the players are communicating makes the game more fun, interesting, and accessible. You might call that listening, I do not.

And when David Brevik offers an honest assessment that mirrors what the rest of the community is saying, and the response is "Fuck that loser," I don't call that listening either.




Man is equally incapable of seeing the nothingness from which he emerges and the infinity in which he is engulfed.

23.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 21:54

Prez

People knew that D3 was designed around forcing you to the auction house to cash in on RMT and bought the thing anyway. Mixed messages like that only serve to make them think we really do want any crap they dish out.

Agreed. Diablo 3's terrible design decisions made it easy to skip. Starcraft 2, however, had no auction house and offline singleplayer, so I don't regret buying it for an instant.




Prez on Soundclick http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=604888

22.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 21:51

Slashman

Prez wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 21:37: They're listening alright. They're listening to the sound of $600 million rolling in from the 10 million sales of Diablo 3. With that kind of validation for the deliberate regression of a once-great franchise they have no mandate to do anything differently. They'd listen more if people voted with their wallets instead of internet forum rage. I have neither D3 nor Starcraft 2 and I managed to live without them. People knew that D3 was designed around forcing you to the auction house to cash in on RMT and bought the thing anyway. Mixed messages like that only serve to make them think we really do want any crap they dish out.

21.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 21:37

Prez

They're listening alright. They're listening to the sound of $600 million rolling in from the 10 million sales of Diablo 3. With that kind of validation for the deliberate regression of a once-great franchise they have no mandate to do anything differently.




Prez on Soundclick http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=604888

20.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 21:18

Primalchrome

nin wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 20:40: I love the way it ends us "tell us how to make it better" when people have been telling them how to do that for a year or more now... QFT. I remember the old Blizzard and Blizzard North. Those guys cared about the product and the gamers that would be enjoying it.

19.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 20:53

AngelicPenguin

Panickd wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 20:36: Sempai wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 19:15: You state you're listening? I call bull. Did you listen to the outcry concerning the auction house? No. Did you listen to the outcry of forcing us into logging on Battle.net in order to play our game? No. You are full of shit Rob Pardo. I think you confuse listening with caving to internet whining. Listening involves taking in the viewpoints of others that may run counter to your own. It does not necessarily mean you will make changes based on those viewpoints. That is to say, just because they did not alter the design of the game to meet your specifications does not mean that they didn't listen to and hear you. ssh - you'll unleash the angst.

18.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 20:40

nin

Creston wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 20:38:
Rob Pardo? Fuck that loser.

It's nothing but "Waaaaaah, our game really IS good! We made it good! Waaaaah" out of Blizzard these days.

Just fucking admit you made a mistake. Man up, then build a better game. Or, you know, keep crying about how people justifiably say your game really is kinda bad.

Creston

I love the way it ends us "tell us how to make it better" when people have been telling them how to do that for a year or more now...




RollinThundr Apr 17, 2013, 12:25: Eh really tossing stuff like that in there only to get your panties all bunched up. If you really want to call that trolling sure. Mr. Tact Apr 17, 2013, 12:33: Pretty sure that's the definition of trolling...

17.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 20:38

Creston

Rob Pardo? Fuck that loser. It's nothing but "Waaaaaah, our game really IS good! We made it good! Waaaaah" out of Blizzard these days. Just fucking admit you made a mistake. Man up, then build a better game. Or, you know, keep crying about how people justifiably say your game really is kinda bad. Creston

16.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 20:36

Panickd

Sempai wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 19:15: You state you're listening? I call bull. Did you listen to the outcry concerning the auction house? No. Did you listen to the outcry of forcing us into logging on Battle.net in order to play our game? No. You are full of shit Rob Pardo. I think you confuse listening with caving to internet whining. Listening involves taking in the viewpoints of others that may run counter to your own. It does not necessarily mean you will make changes based on those viewpoints. That is to say, just because they did not alter the design of the game to meet your specifications does not mean that they didn't listen to and hear you.

15.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 20:32

Dades

Jay can dish it out but he can't take it? Why am I not surprised. - *DADES* - This is a signature of my name, enjoy!

14.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 20:19

Cutter

Imagine if these clowns didn't have to toe corporate line and trot out this tired old bullshit. Everyone knows it's bullshit so why bother even doing it? Just say nothing at all. They'd probably choke on their tongues if they spoke the actual truth.




"Are you crazy? Is that your problem?" - Jack Burton

13.

Re: Rob Pardo on Jay Wilson and Diablo III

Jan 19, 2013, 20:18

NKD

Sempai wrote on Jan 19, 2013, 19:15:
You state you're listening? I call bull.

Did you listen to the outcry concerning the auction house? No.

Did you listen to the outcry of forcing us into logging on Battle.net in order to play our game? No.

You are full of shit Rob Pardo.

Saying they are listening doesn't explicitly claim they will be doing anything about it.

I'm sure they listen to our complaints, they just think we're crazy because they can't see the validity of anyone elses viewpoint.




If you don't like where gaming is heading, stop giving your money to the people who are taking it in that direction.

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