Logging into Diablo 3 or Starcraft 2 comes with an ancillary condition that no one should ever have to put up with: having people say “hi” to you with the game’s always-online social networking system when you’re trying to get a solo game going without being interrupted by friends you don’t especially feel like talking to.
Thanks to the lack of an “appear invisible” or “appear offline” mode in the system, logging on can be a bit of a hassle if you just want to get some alone time.
Blizzard has just announced that in the coming months, the studio is planning an update for all of its games with the Battle.net system installed to allow players in World of Warcraft, Starcraft 2 and Diablo 3 to select “Appear Offline” as one of their social status options (along with “Available”, “Busy”, and “Away”) for whenever you choose to be antisocial.
When you choose the option, you’ll appear offline to all of your Real ID friends, Battle Tag friends, and everyone whom you’ve ever played with if you’re present on their friends list.
For Diablo 3, the option is being added to patch 1.0.5, which is due out very soon. Starcraft 2 and World of Warcraft will get it with the release of Heart of the Swarm and Mists of Pandaria, respectively.
Via Battle.net.