
Blizzard announced today that Diablo III is launching a starter edition, the restrictions of which will be familiar to those who participated in the pre-release beta. Announced earlier today, new players will be able to play up through Act 1, to the Skeleton King, absolutely free. There are several restrictions in place to keep the service from being abused by gold farmers: Level is capped at 13, starter accounts will be unable to access either auction house, and match making will only be available with other starter edition users.
Any progress made during the starter edition will be carried over if you do decide to purchase the full game. The starter edition serves to branch out the already available guest pass.
(Source: Battle.net)