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Diablo 3 to offer global play

News
By GamesRadar Staff published 6 May 2012

Maim and loot in (almost) any region you desire

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Diablo 3's servers will be region free, allowing players to create alliances with no borders in what Blizzard has dubbed 'Global Play'.

While the Diablo 3 servers have been split up into three regions - Americas (also including Australia and New Zealand), Asia and Europe - players will not be region-locked into their zone.

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  • Screenshot from Diablo 2: Resurrected Reign of Warlock trailer, showing an older man holding a magical grimoire while standing in front of a menacing demon-like monster. Diablo 2 could get more new content, but Blizzard has to "nail that otherwise we kill the game in trying to progress it"

Regardless of the region a player resides in, players will be able to play with friends across territories. While Blizzard will allow players to experience 'global play', there are still restrictions on how the function will work. For starters it won't be 100% region free, as each region will require you to play as a separate character.

Likewise, to play in a region other than your own, you'll need to recreate friends lists, characters and items from scratch.

Unfortunately, the restrictions don't end there. When participating in auction house, normal gold auctions will apply regardless of what region you are in, however if you want to participate in real world money auctions, they must be accessed by characters in your home region.

Perhaps the term 'global play' may be used a tad loosely here, but at least you can team up with people from different parts of the world.

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By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

What are your thoughts on Diablo 3's region free servers? Is it worth recreating characters, friends lists and items, or is it just easier to stick with your home region? Let us know if you think Blizzard dropped the ball on 'Global Play' in the comment section below.

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GamesRadar+ was first founded in 1999, and since then has been dedicated to delivering video game-related news, reviews, previews, features, and more. Since late 2014, the website has been the online home of Total Film, SFX, Edge, and PLAY magazines, with comics site Newsarama joining the fold in 2020. Our aim as the global GamesRadar Staff team is to take you closer to the games, movies, TV shows, and comics that you love. We want to upgrade your downtime, and help you make the most of your time, money, and skills. We always aim to entertain, inform, and inspire through our mix of content - which includes news, reviews, features, tips, buying guides, and videos.

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