Battle.net 2.0 Article Series >> Rumoured Battle.net 2.0 Additions >> (Pg 1) | (Pg 2) | (Pg 3)
Custom Tournaments, Stat Feeds and XML
Featuring either in-game ability to start custom ladders/tournaments, or related to the web, more tools will be available for you to use, and they will be stored in one location.
The amount of things you can do with current web design that were unavailable back in 1997 is staggering, and we will most likely be able to pull feeds and xml data directly from Battle.net onto our websites or blogs, to display our own status. Things like your (or friends’) official StarCraft “APM” stats (yes, people do like ePeen) would be easily available directly from Battle.net. A perfect solution for managing your own ladders or tournaments, with no need to use any other gaming network as base besides Battle.net, while at the same time making it possible for your blog visitors to satisfy all their specific needs at one site. An “open-ended” solution.
Battle.net Security
As explained in the rumour about the security token above, regardless if that is a real source or not, we’ll most likely see that feature when Battle.net 2.0 launches. It is another logical step to get people more interested in valuing their accounts higher, and probably related to Blizzard Accounts.
Ban List
The man list might be too simple of a feature to even bring up, but a lot of fans seems to press this button a LOT. A personal ban list, or a combined friends/foes list, is very probable for Battle.net so that you easily can handle people you DON’T like. Alerts, when such a person would enter a game you joined, automatically ban him from all games you make or a simply squelch him when he tries to speak to you. Simple, but wanted (and probable). This will probably also be related to the Blizzard Accounts in the previous article.
Free Gaming for the Masses!
The question about any payment fees for Battle.net has so far been dodged by Blizzard, but not more so than other features and Blizzard have not really disclosed very many details anyway. Still, a great debate has been raging over Diablo III and StarCraft II fansites as well as the current Battle.net, and while a few are more than happy to pay a bit, the majority seems to ardently oppose the idea. The fact that the network is free is one of the most popular things about Battle.net, so the reactions of fans are hardly surprising.
Another reason to keep it free could be Blizzard’s online legal liabilities. Strictly speaking they are liable for online harassment on their servers. If the service is free, and somewhat easy to become part of the community, they are better off from a legal standpoint.
On the economic side of things the devs are talking about “business models” for the games, citing WoW as one, and StarCraft/Diablo 2 as another. This naturally means that a subscription fee or a one-off priced box are both two different “business models”, of which it’s more likely with choosing a box in this case. As Jay Wilson said, Blizzard are going to see what fits best for each game. The fans most certainly think that the one-off priced box will work best, and looking back, it HAS sustained the previous games!
As we followed the panels at WWI 2008, they didn’t show any indication to make the game pay-to-play, and UGO even specifically mentioned this in their latest Diablo 3 preview:
Pricing for the game is still being decided, but don’t expect to pay subscription fees for access to Battle.net. Sure, there/s always the possibility that different membership tiers will be introduced later on, but nothing we heard during our chat suggested that the team has anything other than a free-to-play model in mind for Diablo III’s online play.
In the end, Battle.net is just an advanced matchmaking service and even if Battle.net 2.0 will be way more advanced that the current network, it is still possible to get most of that content for free today from other sources. Blizzard wants to keep all gamers under one roof, and can make considerable revenue from the “in-game advertisement” that Bobby Kotick mentioned a few months back (the banners you see when chatting or selecting games). If they get everyone to play on Battle.net, that would equate to hundreds of millions of ad impressions per day, more than enough to make a nice profit without subscription.
On the Whole
Over all, if you weren’t already excited about Battle.net 2.0, I hope you are now. Blizzard is known for using the best ideas, and taking them to a new level, and this is as important as a whole new game. Why do you think Mike keeps talking about how PC gaming is alive, and one of the most profitable platforms for games. World of WarCraft certainly backs up his statements, and you don’t have to be a Blizzard-fan to appreciate the fact that whatever Blizzard do, they do well.
On the last page is a collection of some of the more prominent quotes that I based the article on, and those that didn’t quite make it to one of the three main articles.
