Maybe you forgot, but the internet didn’t. The Last Epoch launch is not alone.
I’ve been playing a lot of Last Epoch recently, and I’ve noticed a trend in the chat. Some seem to have forgotten about all the issues we faced during Diablo 4’s release (while disparaging the Last Epoch launch). So, in the spirit of keeping things honest, I’m going to outline all of the major issues here. Feel free to comment on anything I’ve missed.
Error 300008
Server/connectivity issues are quite common for game launches. Diablo 4 is absolutely not immune, particularly when we look back on what is now an infamous error.
That’s right, virtually the same issue we’re currently experiencing in Last Epoch absolutely plagued Diablo 4 upon release.
While we’re on this topic, let’s also remember that this error persisted for over a month in some scenarios. It took over a week for the widespread error 300008 to be reduced to more “edge-case” scenarios. Yes, players were unable to seamlessly play for over a week. Sounds worse than the Last Epoch launch so far, right?
Invisible Walls
Ah, yes, perhaps everyone’s favorite issue with Diablo 4’s launch: invisible walls. Upon attempting to transition to a different area, servers were so bogged down that your character simply could not move outside of the current zone’s boundaries. This resulted in what appeared to be invisible walls holding the player back.
Players were stuck in one zone for hours waiting for the servers on the first few days of release. Yes, hours.
This one still exists, by the way. It’s far less common, and it doesn’t last for hours like the first week of release, but it still exists.
Queues
Who doesn’t love a nice, lengthy queue when attempting to wind down and play a game? For weeks after Diablo 4’s release, queue times were absolutely dismal, with 2 nights in particular resulting in 5+ hour queue times. The few who bravely held in queue were then rewarded with the dreaded error 300008 above rather than, you know, being able to play the game.
“But This Is Worse!”
It isn’t. A multi-billion dollar company spent 5 years in development with over 5 thousand employees working on Diablo 4, and it was still largely inaccessible to ~70% of the player base for over a week on release. This is not worse, and it is absolutely not a matter of opinion when there are concrete metrics we can use to compare.
Furthermore, to shill for Blizzard and bash an indie studio is a travesty. You may have been brainwashed into forgetting about the horrible, rocky launch. You may even have been brainwashed into believing that Diablo 4 is a decent ARPG. That’s fine, but to make patently false statements in Last Epoch’s general chat is foolish when you can easily be fact checked.
“This Launch Is Still Bad”
Finally, a statement that isn’t filled with fanaticism and Blizzard-shill-syndrome.
Yes, this launch is rocky. Yes, you have an absolute right to be upset that a game you paid for has downtime. There is nothing wrong with that opinion, and there is nothing wrong with being frustrated.
Frankly, I’m frustrated as well. However, I’m not directing my frustration toward EHG or any of their hard-working, dedicated staff. They’re doing everything they can to rectify what can only be described as issues stemming from explosive, unexpected growth and success.
I’m not here to tell you to calm down or demand less from a product you purchased. I am here, however, to tell you that insults in the Last Epoch Discord will not improve anything. Nor will it speed up progress with online services. It will only work to potentially distract, at best.
While you should be able to play with friends right now, enjoying one of the greatest ARPG releases in modern times, that’s not going to be a highly successful endeavor. At least offline mode exists (unlike Diablo 4), and at least the game isn’t riddled with dupes (like Diablo 4 was by this point in their release).
Wrapping up
You can say Diablo 4 had no issues on release, but you would be very, very wrong. It had major issues. I won’t be convinced by fanatical fanboyism in Last Epoch’s general chat.
I’m also not saying that Last Epoch is without issues. Of course there are issues on launch. I just won’t buy into the false claims that Diablo 4’s release was even “slightly better”, let alone “flawless”. It wasn’t.
Worth a read: Last Epoch’s services are improving.
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