[How To is a recurring feature in which we demonstrate techniques designed to improve your game, and make your skill set more than a little bit awesome. This time out, we’ll help you prep for Diablo III.]
If you’re reading this, chance are you’ll remember May 15th as the day you (and/or many of your gaming friends) became victims of Diablo III’s addictive RPG action. It’s full of dungeon crawling goodness that even has some dedicated console gamers looking to fire up their Macs and PCs for gaming sessions. But make sure you’re properly prepped before you jump in by doing the following:
1. Make Sure You Have Decent Gaming Specs
Diablo III doesn’t have high-end system requirements, but your Mac or PC will need a half-way decent graphics card to offload some of the work from the CPU and properly render the game. Intel’s integrated GPUs just won’t cut it in most instances unless you have the HD Graphics 1000/2000/, 3000, or 4000 model–and that will only allow your computer to run Diablo III in “Low Performance” mode. Run this system check to see if you have a compatible set up.
2. Invest In a Mouse
Regardless of whether you have a desktop or laptop,you need to purchase a separate mouse that will see dedicated Diablo III action. Blizzard’s action-rpg demands a lot of clicking (for movement, attacking, managing inventory, etc), so your existing mouse or (desktops) or mouse buttons (laptop) is going to endure some heavy wear and tear. It need not be a premium mouse; a $10 one from Best Buy or Newegg will do the trick nicely.
3. Check Your Internet Connection
Diablo III lacks an offline mode. Zero. Zilch. None. As such, when you fire up the game–even for solo runs–your Mac or PC has to speak to Blizzard’s servers. You’ll need a strong wireless signal or, better yet, an Ethernet cable that will serve up ever greater speeds.
4. Study the Character Classes
Diablo III features five radically different character class–which do you choose? Blizzard provides many character slots, so you can experiment with different class and builds. However, if you want a general sense of each class, check out our Diablo III character class guide for overviews and tips.
Bonus! Prepare for a Lengthy Digital Download
If you’ve purchased Diablo III via digital download instead of boxed copy, prepare for a really long download; it took me just shy of four hours to get the game on my hard drive. Your mileage may vary, but plan a nap, workout, movie outing, or other activity as the game downloads.
Founder and Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey L. Wilson’s love of all things shiny/digital has led to jobs penning gadget- and video game-related nerd-copy for 1UP, E-Gear, Laptop, LifeStyler, Parenting, PC Magazine, Sync, Wise Bread, and WWE. Besides overseeing the editorial content at 2D-X.com, the Brooklyn College grad hosts New York City’s monthly Bits and Bytes video game media and public relations meetup. You can find him at a bar sampling foreign beers, or on Twitter doing twittery things.
