Why bother hunting monsters and demons D2R Items when you could just purchase the same good or better equipment? But the team wasn't certain whether shutting the game down was even a possibility. It was a matter of practicality, since their player statistics showed that a substantial number of players making use of the feature, and they didn't wish to upset their players. The feature was also legal because it was prominently advertised in the packaging.

Blizzard ultimately decided that both the real money and gold Auction Houses needed to go and it would not be enough to leave just an Auction House-shaped hole in the game design. The team began to plan a larger-scale update. It would include suggestions by Josh Mosqueira, who initially joined to oversee the console version and later was promoted to game director in 2013.

The Auction House's end would be paired with major overhauls to many of the game's key systems, as well as the release of console games and the game's the first (and only) massive expansion Reaper of Souls. One of the most talked about features was the loot system as well as the loot system that Blizzard introduced as "Loot 2.0"--a huge change intended to make loot drop more satisfying. It was to signal a whole new era of Diablo.

"We firmly believe that by shutting down real-money and auction houses really will make sure that killing monsters is the most satisfying satisfaction, the most satisfying method of acquiring the items you want," said Josh Mosqueira in a video announcing the changes.

The Auction House was shut down on March 18. 2014. Despite having caused some controversy when it was first launched, Blizzard didn't add an offline mode--and still never has D2R Ladder Items. Within a week of closing the Auction House closure, Reaper of Souls changed everything.