Can I access Diablo III pre-load without being force to purchase it directly from Battle.Net?

Question

I found our local retailer with better price for digital copy of Diablo III.

He will start distributing them on 00:01 5/15/2012 - I would like to have the game pre-installed and just activate it later. Is it possible for me to pre-download the game client from Battle.net if I have not purchased it digitally there?

Asked by Hurda

Answer

In Theory

The most secure and legal way to download Diablo III is through Blizzard Downloader. Pre-ordering a digital copy of Diablo III through Battle.Net allows you to pre-load game files before the release date.

What bonuses do I get for pre-ordering Diablo III?

The benefit for players who pre-order Diablo III is that they will have the ability to download and pre-install Diablo III before the game launches. Players who have the game pre-installed will be able to jump straight into the game the moment Diablo III hits the shelves! Note: While these pre-sale copies of Diablo III may be downloaded and installed prior to the game’s release, the game itself will not be playable until Diablo III’s official launch date.

More info at Diablo III Presale Information.

If you will receive your key at 00:01 5/15/2012, you can register to your Battle.Net accout a second later and start downloading the client. Considering the number of copies the game will sold at Day 1 and that Blizzard downloader optionally uses P2P technology, your download should be hopefully fast.

In Practice

It seems that Blizzard has already "unofficially" released Diablo 3 downloaders. They allow you to pre-load the full setup (around 7 GB) on your PC without asking any credentials. Of course without a valid key these files are completely unusable, they will only work when Blizzard decides to make the game playable on servers through Battle.Net login authentication.

Blizzard Downloaders

Here are the downloaders so far available:

For Windows

• DIABLO III Retail (enUS – America)
• DIABLO III Retail (EU – English)
• DIABLO III Retail (EU – Italian)
• DIABLO III Retail (EU – French)
• DIABLO III Retail (EU – German)
• DIABLO III Retail (EU – Polish)
• DIABLO III Retail (EU – Spanish)
• DIABLO III Retail (Latin America – Portuguese)
• DIABLO III Retail (Latin America – Spanish)
• DIABLO III Retail (Korean)
• DIABLO III Retail (Taiwan)

For Mac

• DIABLO III Retail Mac version (enUS – America)
• DIABLO III Retail Mac version (EU – English)
• DIABLO III Retail Mac version (EU – German)
• DIABLO III Retail Mac version (EU – French)

Links above have been listed by Diablo IncGamers. Moderators on Blizzard official forum do not have any problems with them and they are already helping people have trouble with downloader so I consider "them safe to use".

Why?

IMHO it was not the initial Blizzard plan but probably they have thought to allow pre-loading as many people as possible to allow play them as soon as they unlock the gates for hell (it has also the advantage to reduce the probabilities to saturate and collapse Blizzard network infrastructure).

Answered by Drake

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