Diablo IV players experienced a frustrating weekend when a series of Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks rendered Blizzard’s new action RPG (or, as critics would like to say, action RNG) unplayable for several hours. The incident has prompted fans to call for an offline mode in Diablo IV to be introduced, allowing them to continue playing even when online servers are compromised.
Diablo IV requires players to maintain a constant internet connection to play the game. This always-online structure is due to the shared open-world design of the game, which allows players to interact with others in towns and fields, including spamming emotes. However, this requirement also makes the game vulnerable to DDoS attacks, where cybercriminals flood servers with fake requests, causing them to slow down or crash completely.
During Saturday night into the early hours of Sunday, the Battle.net service, which hosts Diablo IV, experienced severe disruptions due to an apparent DDoS attack. Players encountered high latency and frequent disconnections, making the game virtually unplayable. As a result, many fans have called for an offline mode to be implemented in Diablo IV, allowing them to continue playing without requiring an internet connection.
The demand for an offline mode is not new, with Diablo IV fans having previously expressed their desire to play the game without needing to be connected to the internet. This latest incident has only brought more out of the woodwork, as they argue that an offline mode would provide a more reliable gaming experience and protect them from future DDoS attacks.
DDoS attacks are a common issue in the gaming industry, with other titles, such Arc System Works’ Guilty Gear Strive, also falling victim to similar cybercrimes. These attacks can have all sorts of motivations, including political, hacktivist, terrorist, and business competition. But as for Blizzard’s action RPG Diablo IV, the attackers’ motives remain unclear.
Blizzard acknowledged the DDoS attack on June 25 and worked to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. By the end of the day, the company announced that the attacks had ended and advised players to troubleshoot their connections if they continued to experience problems.
Despite the relatively quick fix from Blizzard, the incident has left an obvious impact on the Diablo IV community. Fans are now more determined than ever to see an offline mode introduced, allowing them to enjoy the game without the risk of server disruptions. Whether Blizzard Entertainment will heed these calls remains to be seen, but one thing that’s clear is that the demand for a more reliable gaming experience is stronger than ever.
Additional reading:
- https://kotaku.com/diablo-4-ddos-attack-server-status-what-is-blizzard-rpg-1850574778
- https://www.fortinet.com/resources/cyberglossary/ddos-attack
- https://sucuri.net/guides/what-is-a-ddos-attack/
- https://www.ign.com/articles/diablo-4-fans-once-again-call-for-offline-mode-after-ddos-attack-renders-game-unplayable-for-hours
- https://www.gizmochina.com/2023/06/26/blizzard-ddos-attack-diablo-4-down
- https://www.cloudwards.net/what-is-ddos-in-gaming/
- https://www.howtogame.net/guides/is-diablo-4-always-online/
- https://afkgaming.com/gaming/diablo-4/diablo-4-ddos-attack-explained
- https://thenerdstash.com/is-diablo-4-always-online-now-answered/
- https://www.thegamer.com/diablo-4-players-want-offline-mode-always-online/
- https://www.bitdefender.com/blog/hotforsecurity/hackers-use-vulnerability-to-make-guilty-gear-strive-game-unplayable-before-major-tournament/
- https://businessdegrees.uab.edu/blog/ddos-attacks-what-they-are-and-what-they-can-do/
- https://www.cloudwards.net/what-is-ddos-in-gaming
- https://hothardware.com/news/diablo-4-ddos-attack-raises-calls-for-offline-single-player
- https://support.xbox.com/en-GB/help/hardware-network/connect-network/dos-attacks-faq
- https://www.vg247.com/diablo-4-ddos-blizzard-weekend-battle-net-sunday
[#Bnet] We are currently experiencing a DDoS attack, which may result in high latency and disconnections for some players. We are actively working to mitigate this issue.
— Blizzard CS – The Americas (@BlizzardCS) June 25, 2023