Diablo 4 comes full circle as players request controversial Diablo 3 feature

Diablo 4 players are now asking Blizzard to bring back Diablo 3’s maligned Auction House. Not everyone is eager to see its return though.

Diablo 4 Season 4 completely revamped the game with a major overhaul to its itemization. Deeper crafting mechanics and improved gear customization breathed new life into the battle for Sanctuary.

As a result, the perfect loadout is more important than ever if you want to push for 69-second runs in the Artificer’s Pit. The grind for gear and the materials needed to upgrade it seems to be rubbing certain players the wrong way, however.

So much so that some Diablo 4 denizens are actually pushing for the return of Diablo 3’s controversial Auction House. The subject has caused some division within the game’s community of players as veterans of the franchise recall the early days of Diablo 3.

For those who weren’t around during ‘the before times’, Diablo 3’s Auction House allowed players to buy and sell items for real and in-game currency. The result was a feature that removed one of the core tenets of Diablo gameplay; killing stuff and looting them for increasingly powerful gear.

It was seen as so detrimental to the health of the game that Blizzard eventually removed the feature despite genuine fears of a lawsuit. The most vocal portion of the Diablo 3 player base was in stark opposition to the Auction House but there were those in favor of it. Now it appears that a subset of Diablo 4 players want it to return.

Players requesting an Auction House in Diablo 4 point to the game’s existing black market but find the use of third-party sites to manage it rather tedious. “Gold buyers and RMT players will still do those things with or without the Auction House,” one user explained. “People buying all their gear will still happen with, or without the Auction House. Nothing will change except the convenience of it.”

Those opposed are concerned about the potential change to Diablo 4’s gameplay loop that a feature like this would bring. “An in-game Auction House will permanently change the play style of the game. You’ll 99% mainly only upgrade at the Auction House,” a player warned.

“We should never have an Auction House in game. Players in their thirst for efficiency will ruin the game for themselves and everyone else,” another replied.

It’s unlikely that Blizzard will implement Real Money Trading in Diablo 4 any time soon given their experience with Diablo 3. Diablo 4’s trend towards in-game challenges with community leaderboards could also potentially breed pay-to-win accusations which they’ll surely want to avoid.