Hey Blizzard,

I get it. You removed LAN to protect against piracy and keep control over the game. Fine. But hear me out.

What if you still required an internet connection and Battle.net login when launching the game? Verify the license, do your thing - but once that's done, let us play with friends on a local network without staying connected to your servers.

This is literally how Steam handles it. You log in, it verifies you own the game, and then you can go offline. Nobody is asking you to give up control completely.

The argument that LAN is a security risk honestly doesn't hold up. Playing on a private network with people I know and trust is arguably safer than being online at all. The original D2 had TCP/IP and people loved it. Sitting in the same room as your friends or partner and playing together is a big part of what made this game special.

D2R has made huge steps forward with Reign of the Warlock - loot filters, stackable runes, the Chronicle system. You're clearly listening to the community again. This is one more thing that would mean a lot to a lot of us.

Please consider it.

[ShamusRay]

PS. Feel free to pester blizzard as well at Diablo 2 support and Diablo 2 forums. If enough people make a noise, the probability for change is higher. DS.