Blizzard Blocked Player-to-Player Trade in Diablo 4; Blames Exploit [Update]
Blizzard had to temporarily block player-to-player trading as a result of a bug (or bugs) that enabled some characters to gain absurd wealth.
UPDATE: As reported by Adam Fletcher on X/Twitter, trading between players has been restored. This most likely means that the problems described below have been fixed.
Abysmal reception of Overwatch 2 isn't Blizzard's only problem. Developers of Diablo IV have blocked player-to-player trading until a serious exploit is dealt with. The information was conveyed in an announcement posted on the company's official website, as well as the game's subforum on Reddit.
The vulnerability discovered by the players is almost a classic example of a network game bug (which, in a way, can include the latest installment of the Diablo series). The glitch made it possible to duplicate gold and items.
Blizzard's entry does not provide any details, but for the past few days Internet users have been reporting absurd amounts of gold that some players were transferring.
- It came to the point where billions of gold pieces were allegedly being bought on external trading websites for no more than a few dollars, with some users putting up for sale a few copies of the best equipment in the game (via Reddit).
- It is also possible to find mentions that the problem was not one, but many methods of replicating virtual wealth in Diablo IV. Apparently, some of them still remember the days of beta.
Of course, players are not thrilled with either the presence of the exploit or the ban on trading. For many Internet users, this situation is further proof that the developers of Diablo IV have no respect for their fans. Their mood was somewhat improved after the release of patch 1.1.1 and the announcement of next update, but the recent presentation killed any praise for Blizzard the fans may have had at this point.
Nevertheless, in the current situation, the company has at least gained some recognition from the players. SinfulScribe, one of the community managers of Diablo 4, confirmed , that players unknowingly trading duplicated gold and items will not be punished. Probably a few (relatively) honest players will still get hit by collateral, but at least they will get to appeal to Blizzard.
