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Chat channel

872 bytes added, 02:08, 21 February 2012
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[[File:Bnet-chat-1.jpg|left|thumb|Chat Channel button.]]Chat Channels were a big part of the [[Battle.net]] experience for Diablo 1 and Diablo 2. They will return to Battle.net in Diablo III, in public and private form.[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/the-great-chat-controversy/] There are no chat Chat channels (public or private) available during were added to the Diablo III Betabeta in patch 13 in February 2012, so nothing is yet known about their appearance and received a largely negative fan reaction[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/diablo-3-chat-channel-screenshots] due to the tiny window size and the general lack of text formatting or functionusability features.
Aside from Battle.net chat channels, players can use their Battle.net [[Friends List]] for communication, but only with people already on their list; it's not a tool to meet new people online. Official and fan forums are also useful tools for advertising item sales or meeting new friends to play with, and there are unofficial means of live chat, such as the [http://diablo.incgamers.com/diablo-3-irc live IRC chat] run by fansite Diablo.IncGamers.com.
Blizzard intended to phase chat channels out of B.net with their newer games, starting with Starcraft 2. They did not include chat channels in the design, and resisted adding them until continuous player requests wore them down. Chat channels were not supported during the beta, but after huge fan complaints the developers agreed to include them. They were not ready for the game's launch, but several months after Starcraft 2's release they were added in[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/d3-will-have-chat-channels-on-battle.net/], though many fans strongly dislike their implementation.
[[File:Chat-channel-large.jpg|thumb|450px|See that little box in the lower right corner?]]
During comments on the Starcraft 2 chat channel controversy, [[Bashiok]] said they would be included in Diablo III as well. This guarantee seemed to be in doubt in early February 2012, when Bashiok said that only private chat channels would be present,[http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/chat-channels-remain-in-diablo-3] much as they are in Starcraft 2.
While most fans were happy about this news, quite a few people suspected that Bashiok was being ordered to fall on his sword to cover for a policy change, and that his first comment, and later explanation, had been 100% correct at the time. Blizzard's previous efforts to force mandatory [[Real ID]] and the removal of Chat Channels from SC2, both decisions that were reversed after thousands of fan complaints, were referenced as support for the conspiracy theory.
 
Regardless of that issue, the chat channels were introduced in the [[Beta Patch 13]] to general fan dismay, due to their small size and lacking feature set. [http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/diablo-3-chat-channel-screenshots]
 
Sample images of the chat channel function, showing off the features and options, can be seen below.
 
<gallery>
File:Bnet-chat-1.jpg
File:Bnet-chat-2.jpg
File:Bnet-chat-3.jpg
File:Chat-channel-large.jpg
File:Chat-options1.jpg
File:Chat-options2.jpg
File:Chat-options3.jpg
File:Chat-options4.jpg
</gallery>
 
==Better Communication than Diablo 2==
The During the game's development, the D3 Team has often spoken about expressed their their desire for better match making matchmaking and game-finding options than were present in Diablo II. The [[Friends List ]] and various quest-grouping game creation options take steps towards that goal, though the systems remain under development during the [[beta]] test.
* See the [[Multiplayer]] article for more details about game creation and player interaction via Battle.net