The Diablo IV Early Access Beta was plagued with connection issues and server crashes that impacted the experience for many players who pre-purchased or received promo codes. Some took longer than expected to enter the game, while others were expelled due to connection problems with the servers. However, for Blizzard, more than a threat, this represents an opportunity to deliver a final product with fewer problems.
In an interview with NME, Diablo CEO Rod Fergusson explained that the beta was somehow meant to acknowledge bugs and limitations, beyond commercial purposes: “today the word beta is misunderstood, where people start calling things beta which is (actually) a marketing beta, and that’s another term for a demo”
“That is not our case at all. Our beta is to test our technology – especially in the area of our servers. We had a pretty tough start on Friday.”
The results of the March 17 beta helped fix many issues during and after the activity: “We released 6 hotfixes over the weekend, fixed dozens of issues, and all that work will be rewarded next weekend (with the open beta) and then it will be ready for launch.”
Fixing these issues will allow for a better open beta experience on the weekend of March 24, and pave the way for the official launch on June 6. Fergusson appreciates the patience of Diablo IV fans during the limited access beta, as well as helping to find the issues that won’t be there at launch thanks to them: “sometimes as a player it can be frustrating, but you have to admit that you are helping us to make the launch of the game much better”.
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