Players hoping to get their gank on in Diablo 3 will not be able to do so this year. Blizzard's Jay Wilson has just announced that the company is unable to release the long-awaited Player vs Player mode before the end of 2012.
The developer was not even able to provide a concrete update about the status of the PvP mode, stating only that they won't be able to disclose any information about it until the end of the month. "Note: that is not a promise," he said. "That's all I'll say about that."
"This is why we don’t like to give dates. When you put quality before deadlines sometimes you’re estimates are wrong."
The elusive PvP mode, which was originally planned for release as a part of the retail version of Diablo 3, has yet to even enter closed beta. It's doubtful whether the mode will even be ready by early next year, and it's unknown what Blizzard's priorities are with the game, whose population has been flagging in recent months due to the slow release of updates.
Jay Wilson was unable to provide any details as to why it's taken so long for them to implement the mode. In a tweet he made earlier this month, Wilson stated simply that "complications had arisen", which forced a delay in its release.
The highly anticipated PvP mode would do much to invite the return of players who've since stopped playing, and reinvigorate the game's community. Blizzard would do well not to sit on the mode for too long, regardless of how much polish they intend to give it. We'll just have to hope that it comes out in a better state than Diablo 3 was upon its release.
