This post is not strictly Diablo III related, but it is pertinent to the future of the Battle.net platform and touches on some of the passionate requests of many fans. In a recent developer update for Starcraft 2, the team announced some of the features that will be introduced to the Battle.net platform that includes the long-desired clan/group support. The quote is as follows:

We continue to read your passionate requests for clan support. We can confirm that we are building a clan/group system that will be released with Heart of the Swarm. We also intend to have our first version of unranked play so you will have the ability to match-make against like-skilled players without having to affect your ladder ranking while you practice off-race or experiment with a new build order.

This news is fairly promising for the Diablo 3 community, as it is a feature that promotes community involvement and allows people to band together for mutual support. While PvP in Diablo III has generally been a large source for those who support clan support, there is much to be said about supporting groups of players that work together in PvE. In fact, the majority of clans in Diablo II were farm-centric. For many, the ability to associate or identify with the various different clans (like the IncGamers Clan, for instance), would be a welcome addition to Battle.net, and would be a step towards creating a cohesive environment that would help battle the “ghost town effect” Azzure wrote about months ago.

Conspiracy theorist might claim that Blizzard is deliberately withholding such support to prevent item sharing within its community. However, with Battle.net receiving this feature in Starcraft 2, it would not be a far cry to see this self-same feature implemented in a future Diablo III patch – or else in an expansion. Jay has already mentioned that they’ve recognized the fact that they could do better with their social tools, and perhaps this functionality is exactly what he has been alluding to.

How does the Diablo community feel about this? Why might Blizzard be holding off on community support? Is this a welcome addition to the battle.net platform? Perhaps B.Net will finally be deserving of its “2.0” identifier soon.