Diablo III: Reaper of Souls now ready for pre-order!! (UPDATED!)

Happy New Year everyone!! And to start off 2014 right, our good friends at Asiasoft Philippines (Blizzard's exclusive distribution partner for Diablo III in the Philippines) just shared with us the awesome news that starting today, you can now start pre-ordering digitally the much awaited expansion for the PC and Mac version of Diablo III in the Philippines!! :D

Official boxart for the Standard Edition of
Diablo III: Reaper of Souls expansion

For those who isn't aware of Diablo III: Reaper of Souls expansion, here's a quick teaser trailer:


As shown in the teaser trailer, the upcoming expansion pack will feature:

• Act V: A dark and terrifying chapter sending players on a final confrontation with the Angel of Death; Malthael, itself!!
• The Crusader: A brand new class, that is highly reminiscent of the holy Paladin from Diablo II, that brings the might of the heavens upon those who seek its destruction.
• Increased Level cap from 60 to 70!! Also there will be new spells and abilities for all classes to unlock giving returning players more options in dealing punishment towards the denizens of hell.
• Adventure Mode: A new game mode that give players the freedom to go anywhere and slay anything. Perfect for leveling up or grinding in a particular quest/spot. :D
• Bounties: Randomized objectives that reward players in new ways for exploring the world of Sanctuary. Think sidequests... Diablo-style. :D
• Nephalem Rifts: Fully randomized dungeons offering endless replayability and heaps of amazing loot. Perfect for loot-runs and finding that ever so elusive legendary items you're looking for. :D
• The Mystic: A powerful new NPC that appears who will provide heroes with the ability to customize the look of their loot among others. Best suited for those fashion-savvy adventurers of Santuary. :D
• Loot 2.0: Yes its finally coming folks!! The much talked-about Loot 2.0 arrives with the expansion pack and with it the removal of the Real Money Auction Houses (RMAH) for much satisfying loot-runs in Sanctuary!!

And all of this amazing content comes with the Diablo III: Reaper of Souls Standard Edition, which players can pre-order at a SRP of Php1,800!! Not too bad if I may say so, and its quite close to our estimates (we predicted it to be roughly around Php1,400) on our post regarding the price of the expansion pack once it hits our shores locally!! I'm pleasantly surprised with this news and good job to our local distributor Asiasoft Philippines in keeping the price relatively affordable. :D

And to make the announcement even more awesome, we also have confirmation that Diablo III: Reaper of Souls Collector's Edition will also be arriving here in the Philippines!! 

Official boxart for the Collector's Edition of
Diablo III: Reaper of Souls expansion

The Diablo III: Reaper of Souls Collector's Edition comes with the following bonuses for the hardcore Diablo III player:

• A full complement Diablo III helms, and weapons that are primed for transmogrification.
• A Ghost Wolf minion players can summon to keep them company on their journey.
• Three additional character slots to accommodate new heroes.
• A World of Warcraft in-game companion pet, the Treasure Goblin, ready to compete in Pet Battles.
• A set of StarCraft II Crusader-themed Battle.net portraits and Malthael-themed decals.
• A full-color hardcover artbook.
• A behind-the-scenes Blu-ray/DVD two-disc set.
• A limited edition Diablo III: Reaper of Souls mouse pad.

UPDATE: It was previously announced that the Collector's Edition will be available for Php3,500 locally. However according to the official distributor of Diablo III here in the Philippines; tax, freight charges and other unforeseen expenses caused the price to bump up significantly, and the revised Philippine SRP will now be Php4,500.

We also now have the Philippine launch date. Diablo III: Reaper of Souls will be available nationwide on March 25th, 2014.

As for the console versions of the expansion pack, as well as what game stores will the expansion pack be available, kindly keep posted on our blog for more updates in the future!! :)

So what are you waiting for? Pre-order the expansion pack today!! :D

Diablo III: Book of Cain hands-on!!

Just recently, I got fortunate enough to secure a copy of this wonderful book:

It's the Blizzard-licensed book, Diablo III: Book of Cain!! :D

This wonderfully made book is a must-have for Diablo fans, as this tries to emulate/recapture the look and feel of that tome Deckard Cain carries in-game. Complete with rich lore and history of the entire Diablo trilogy, it gives players an inside look of the world of Sanctuary.

Here's some shots of the book itself:

Front w/ cover label

Back w/ cover label

Front w/o cover label

Back w/o cover label

The book cover itself looks and feels great. It's got a nice matte finish with a slight embossment on the details of the book which feels great. The book itself sports amazing artwork (as expected of Blizzard) to accompany the book's rich lore of the world of Sanctuary. It even has scribbles and notes from Deckard Cain, putting down important notes about certain events, people, places. It tries its best to closely resemble that of the tome that Decark Cain was carrying, as presented in the game. Even the page edges are small "tears" to make it look like an "ancient" book. It's those little attention to detail that makes this book more amazing to behold in person. :D

Just looking at the book coverpage, it reminds me of
those old manuscripts in museums.

It even contains a letter addressed to Deckard Cain's nephew; Leah.
The letter is abit bittersweet and made me a little teary-eyed.
(if you know what will happen to Cain in Diablo III)

The book also details how the world of Sanctuary
was created, with accompanying artwork.

The Archangel of Justice; Tyrael, looking majestic, as his illustration
accompanies his description in this page.

The book also includes description of the many
places in Sanctuary where our heroes hail from;
just like this entry about Ensteig... home to the Demon Hunters.

Aside from the said lore and illustrations, the book also has a special surprise at the back:

It's the map of Sanctuary itself!! To be honest, as a fan of the series, this is the first time I've ever seen the world of Sanctuary detailed as a map, and its simply glorious to behold. Seeing where Lut Gholein is located, or even Tristram is just amazing for a Diablo-fan like myself!! :D

The book is priced locally at Php 1,395 (roughly $31) and is available in Fully Booked. So if you're a fan of the series, this book is definitely an excellent addition to your book collection, as it fully compliments the game and gives fans additional information and lore that fully fleshes out the world of Sanctuary. :) Hopefully I get my hands on it's supplemental book as well; The Book of Tyrael. :D

Diablo III: Reaper of Souls to cost Php 1,400?

Blizzard just recently released a survey to owners of Diablo III, which revealed some interesting information about the upcoming expansion pack.

According to this news article, the upcoming expansion pack of Diablo III will be coming in 2 flavors, just like the original version:

• Standard Edition - includes the Reaper of Souls expansion only. To be priced at $29.99 (around Php1,400) 
• Collector's Edition - includes the Reaper of Souls expansion, exclusive in-game content and other bonus items. To be priced at $49.99 (around Php2,200)

Interestingly the survey also asked participants of the survey to rate the features of the expansion pack in order of importance, as shown in the following screenshot:

Since most of us can't participate in the said survey I've made a little poll of my own, and ask everyone what you think is the most important feature of the upcoming expansion pack.

What is the most important feature of Diablo III: Reaper of Souls are you most interested in?
	Raise maximum character level cap to 70
	Loot Runs
	New Crusader playable character class
	Gear transmogrification
	New Act V
	New Paragon level and point system
	Nephalem Trials
	New Loot 2.0 system
pollcode.com free polls

What do you guys think? Sound off your comments below! :)

Diablo III Collector's Edition

Gerry Alanguilan clued me in to the existence of the Diablo III Collector's Edition. I'm inclined to get it if only for the art book, "The Art of Diablo III".

I wonder if it's going to be available in the Philippines or do I have to order it online? Anybody know?