I have read through most of reviews, both positive and negative, of Diablo 3. I must clarify one thing: you do not need to spend real money in order to finish the game (including Inferno level).
After 400 hours into this game, I did not spend a single extra penny. In fact, I added more than US$100 into my Blizzard account for future game purchases by selling items in RMAH.
Many people are complaining they cannot get the items they want, but that's how Auction House comes in handy. You got some items you do not want; you sell them at Auction House in exchange for buying something you want from there.
People are complaining the items they want are expensive, but your items can be sold at that price level, too. Blizzard cannot just give you great items; you have to hunt for them.
My character is capable of beating the Inferno level now, but I choose not too. I chose to farm items. Yes, its a repetitive process, but it has always been a major part of Diablo series.
As 1.0.3, all monsters at Inferno level have the possibility of dropping iLv61~63 items (just at different drop rates). One iLv62 rare (yellow) ring with good attributes can be sold for 20 millions or more of gold (or US$40+ in RMAH) if you hit the jackpot (e.g. IAS + Cri. DMG + Cri. % + Life on Hit). A good iLv63 weapon are even more expensive, I have seen weapons that are being sold for more than 100 million. I did not have such luck, but I did manage to get a couple rings that were sold for 5 million each and some for US$20 each in RMAH. With those money, I greatly improved my gears to a level that I can now make about 5 millions in a few hours by selling items. Even un-identified iLv62 rings can be sold for 1 million on the public trading channel. I get those rings everyday (at least one per day). The more those Chinese gold farmers/bots jack up the market, the better price you items will be sold.
I have to say the current Diablo 3 game system is flawed, but it would not be fair to say something like this game sucks because Blizzard forced gamers to spend money in RMAH in order to finish the game. If you do not want to spend time farming, then Diablo series is not for you in the first place. RMAH provides a short cut for people who have little time but are willing to pay the price. For most players, just listen for the drop sound that will change your gears/game entirely. Again, you do not need to spend more money if you do not want to.
Now, Blizzard is publicly announcing that they are thinking about changing the Magic Find (MF) mechanism so fast MF gear switching during combat will not be feasible. Again, this is why I mentioned in the previous review that Blizzard always tries to control the players so they play the way Blizzard wanted. While fast MF gear switching might seem unfair for melee classes, Blizzard could have introduced something that encourages players not to switch their gear during combat (e.g. if you don't switch your gears, there is a possibility that a goblin will pop out after the combat). Why does Blizzard always try to limit the players' playing style while there are more important things to do, like stopping those bots, or at least make them disappear from the public channel. Yes, there are bots, but at least don't let them remind me through public channels that it is totally stupid to farm because 1 million gold can be bought for less than US$2. What about legendary upgrades? How about make multi-player experience more enjoyable (right now, no one wants to play multi-player games)? How about some positive changes for the gaming experience? Encourage us instead of limiting/nerfing.
Blizzard, C'mon. You can do better than this.
PS. the above review is based on Patch 1.0.3b
