Kripparrian's thoughts on how to make Diablo 3 better. Most of it is about end game rewards, but there's a good portion on gear and why it more or less ruins everything. Similar to the IAS nurf, nurfing all gear and subsequently mob health is probably correct, but people will not be happy AT ALL if gear gets nurfed. Rock and a hard place.
Additionally, there was an interesting post a few weeks back that explains why Diablo 2 was more addicting than Diablo 3 is:
In the end, Blizzard is left with two groups of players:
- New players will not experience Diablo 2’s reward loop, and will not get hooked. They will enjoy the game, get to the end, and (for the most part) wonder what the big fuss was about, lose interest, and wander away.
- Old Diablo 2 players will be left frustrated, unsatisfied by the lack of in-game rewards they were craving, and become angry, depressed, and reduced to flinging poo on the Battle.net forums.
Out of necessity, Diablo 3’s reward system has to account for the Auction House. Because equipment is never destroyed, in-game rewards can never be too frequent or powerful or they will flood the Auction House, eventually trivializing game difficulty. There have been many solutions proposed (here is one particularly insightful discussion), but the reward system seems so intertwined with the Auction House that it’s difficult to see a radical change coming. Blizzard’s response over the next few patches will be very interesting to watch.
 Kripp's Tips For Diablo 3 and D2's addictiveness compared to D3's
Diablo 2; valleys with spikes of excitement/addiction. |  Kripp's Tips For Diablo 3 and D2's addictiveness compared to D3's
Diablo 3; fun to play, but without the item rewards to spur addiction. |
