Everyone keeps talking about itemization, which it is a very big deal. However, the other half, imo, is randomly generated zones.
Part of the replayability in Diablo and Diablo 2 was the randomly generated floors - after playing many many many many many times, a person could see certain patterns, however, it added one element Diablo 3 lacks; Diversity. It would be great if they added such element in the next major patch.
Did you get a chance to read my other posts? http://www.diablofan...review-a-dream/ and http://www.diablofan...-dream-fanmade/ ? I talk a little bit about random dungeons and some other things. I've actually got a post in the works for end game systems, which includes PvP, PvE, and a variation of the ladder system. The post won't be ready for a couple weeks though (standing up in a couple weddings/some tight work deadlines). I totally agree though, items are a huge part of a game like Diablo but we've only really seen one way to ever get these items. I'm going to explore some new ways that haven't really been tried in a Diablo game.
@MrMonsrosity
Great ideas.
What you think about add new stash or dressing room to collecting our sets item? Each tab is for another set.
And I think idea with beam of light when we drop legend item should be for blue and yellow item too. ofc we can on/off in options which items we decide to see on the ground.
I've always thought a place to create full sets would be awesome. It would make managing your stash so much easier as well. As for the blue and yellow beams I don't think they are really necessary. The name plates as they are right now are distracting enough so I couldn't imagine a screen full of those beams. I think reserving them for the top items (legendary/sets) is plenty enough. That's of course my opinion and many others might disagree.
I love the creativity, but I have to ask. Why does everyone, including Blizzard, always say the incentive to play the game is the LOOT? Yes, it is an integral component of the game and needs to be rewarding and fulfilling, but a similarly important portion of the game (and games we used to play) comes from character progression and individuality.
Allow me to explain, breifly, what I'm talking about. For example, Diablo 3 was developed to have a new revolutionary take on ARPG's, the character leveled up, his or her stats are allocated for you, and the skills require no permanent investment. Let's assume this model has no flaws for just a moment. What happens when you play the game with all five characters, and max their levels out? One person might say they have the freedom to change their build at any moment. Is this really the case?
More often than not, the reason you can play a build is because of the way the items are designed. With such a large emphasis on items or "loot," the character or "toon" you create is arbitrary. In a classic ARPG setup, you are committed to investing time into a character, knowing that you have to have confidence in fulfilling the build you created. Yes, accidents happen, skills may get misplaced, or you may develop new interests as you play the game. But that is exactly what helps keep the endgame alive, just like the items, the characters need to cycle out as well.
By having a system where the items are so heavily incentivized it really creates an environment where the only thing you're left reinvesting, isn't your time, its your money. The vast majority of the "top" players according to sites like Diabloprogress.com aren't just lucky fanatics, they're people with fat wallets. If you were to estimate some of the values of these peoples character's gear, you would be astounded. Clearly, on an enthusiast site, I dont need to express the fact that it completely worth it for some people to invest this money in this manner. However, I feel that as it stands right now, more people are pigeonholed into spending money to try and stay afloat because the way that the itemization sits right now (largely because of how important gear is) there are so many drops that unless you have near perfect gear (the elite 1% roll) what you're currently wearing will be obselete and devalued in almost no time flat. It is a repetive gear-replacing game.
Don't get me wrong, theres nothign wrong with being satisfied with a character and getting it to max level. But thats just one way to play the game, and to limit the scope of interest by only allowing players to play that way, is damaging the game. There needs to be incentives in place to keep the characters or toons relevant, or create incentives to make new characters or toons. What I'm NOT saying is that the skill system is broken. Rather, items need to be adjusted, stats need to be adjusted, or some new method of incentive needs to be added for the toon's themselves to have some sort of INTRINSIC value.
OP has made some fantastic suggestions. If I were to keep it simple, I'd suggest that some of the most important stats are static on the items, and that like the OP suggested, drop rates are changed. Although there is some variance because of the drop-rates of ilvl 61-63 (them not all being equal drop rates) there is some variation on what legendaries you find. They need a little more structure, in my opinion. Furthermore, like I suggested before, The characters themselves need some sort of inherent value. Once you max all characters, you have almost no reason to go and play the game. PvP as it stands, atleast in my opinion, is atrocious. It literally is a free-brawl, with no structure. That's not fun to me, because its very one dimensional.
I'm a strong advocate of ladders, and a legitimate PvP system and I stand behind that. They offer value to characters, and force you to recycle characters. I feel that there needs to be some level of player investment for any actual attachment to occur. The fact that in Diablo 2, if you actually reached level 99, your character was as good as it could be as far as your displaceable stats are concerned. You diligently invested every point and skill and in the end you are rewarded with that little extra. Your drop rates are inherently better, similar but not exactly like the paragon MF incentive. Your skills will inherently do more. And you've had to stick to a choice and execute it to the end. And in all reality, in the end of Diablo 2's production, you really get 3 chances to re-select all those points. That's extremely generous in my opinion.
curious to everyones thoughts,
Swag
-edit, clarity and grammar
I think you'll be really happy with the expansion. I think they're working on doing exactly what you're asking but with in regards of giving Paragon Levels some interesting stat distribution points or traits to customize your characters.
I've got a pretty neat idea for a future post I'm working on specifically for PvP and ladders which I think will be right down your alley. A ladder but not in the traditional sense.
At the risk of being 'that guy,' all I really saw in the original post was 'let's use game theory to exponentially increase the desire to farm for many, many more hours.'
The suggestions only serve to string along even more countless micro-rewards for spamming LMB-1-2-3-4-5-6.
Of course I don't have an answer for the problem, I just don't think 'INCREASE ALL THE THINGS!' is it.
Farming is always going to be part of Diablo, it's never going away. What we're trying to create is a game where people are excited to farm and something where they can have fun gathering their items. Yeah there could be new things to eventually do after you've gathered your items (PvP, new dungeons, etc) but the search (farming) for better items will always be part of the game.
I have created this account solely to comment on this post.
An awesome ideas and in my book, OP should be hired by Blizzard right off the bat. What an OP suggested here is pretty much what is missing from the game for me and I bet that it's the same with majority of other players.
Hopefully Blizz will get this ideas seriously and will try to get them in the game at some point.
+1 for OP for putting this up and making it crystal clear for the readers.
Thanks and welcome to Diablofans. There's many good posts that the members here have been posting for a long time, you should stick around it's a pretty good community.
I believe you're all right, I'm optimistic about the ordeal, thats for sure. More or less what I'm saying is, I can't be the only person who's sole incentive to play the game is not the loot. I choose names for my toon's and their builds because I have a theme, or idea I've committed to, and I like the idea that every character is its own "person" or thing, and that the way the itemization was set up, personally, defeated some of my interests. The point I was trying to get across is that the loot isn't everybody's concern. From my other ARPG experience, specifically D2 (because its the most relevant to here) I would still stay loot wasn't my main incentive to play the game. I have always felt that Blizzard applied some sleight of hand to say that loot was "everybody's favorite thing" because they benefit directly from it (in the current game state, with the AH and what not) now don't get me wrong, I'm not tin-foil hatting here, I'm just firmly believe that itemization was both too highly incentivized and required for gameplay. Historically, there is more balance between inherent character design and capability that is complemented by the gear they wear, and not SOLELY the gear they wear.
So when the time comes that changes are being made and ideas are being withdrawn from the figurative hat, these are the idea's that I just want to be spoken out to the community and development team. There is a multi-angle approach to this. This game has SO much potential, and most of us that seem like we hate on the game are actually so passionate that we JUST want to see it succeed and fulfill all its potential glory.
I love the creativity, but I have to ask. Why does everyone, including Blizzard, always say the incentive to play the game is the LOOT? Yes, it is an integral component of the game and needs to be rewarding and fulfilling, but a similarly important portion of the game (and games we used to play) comes from character progression and individuality.
Allow me to explain, breifly, what I'm talking about. For example, Diablo 3 was developed to have a new revolutionary take on ARPG's, the character leveled up, his or her stats are allocated for you, and the skills require no permanent investment. Let's assume this model has no flaws for just a moment. What happens when you play the game with all five characters, and max their levels out? One person might say they have the freedom to change their build at any moment. Is this really the case?
More often than not, the reason you can play a build is because of the way the items are designed. With such a large emphasis on items or "loot," the character or "toon" you create is arbitrary. In a classic ARPG setup, you are committed to investing time into a character, knowing that you have to have confidence in fulfilling the build you created. Yes, accidents happen, skills may get misplaced, or you may develop new interests as you play the game. But that is exactly what helps keep the endgame alive, just like the items, the characters need to cycle out as well.
By having a system where the items are so heavily incentivized it really creates an environment where the only thing you're left reinvesting, isn't your time, its your money. The vast majority of the "top" players according to sites like Diabloprogress.com aren't just lucky fanatics, they're people with fat wallets. If you were to estimate some of the values of these peoples character's gear, you would be astounded. Clearly, on an enthusiast site, I dont need to express the fact that it completely worth it for some people to invest this money in this manner. However, I feel that as it stands right now, more people are pigeonholed into spending money to try and stay afloat because the way that the itemization sits right now (largely because of how important gear is) there are so many drops that unless you have near perfect gear (the elite 1% roll) what you're currently wearing will be obselete and devalued in almost no time flat. It is a repetive gear-replacing game.
Don't get me wrong, theres nothign wrong with being satisfied with a character and getting it to max level. But thats just one way to play the game, and to limit the scope of interest by only allowing players to play that way, is damaging the game. There needs to be incentives in place to keep the characters or toons relevant, or create incentives to make new characters or toons. What I'm NOT saying is that the skill system is broken. Rather, items need to be adjusted, stats need to be adjusted, or some new method of incentive needs to be added for the toon's themselves to have some sort of INTRINSIC value.
OP has made some fantastic suggestions. If I were to keep it simple, I'd suggest that some of the most important stats are static on the items, and that like the OP suggested, drop rates are changed. Although there is some variance because of the drop-rates of ilvl 61-63 (them not all being equal drop rates) there is some variation on what legendaries you find. They need a little more structure, in my opinion. Furthermore, like I suggested before, The characters themselves need some sort of inherent value. Once you max all characters, you have almost no reason to go and play the game. PvP as it stands, atleast in my opinion, is atrocious. It literally is a free-brawl, with no structure. That's not fun to me, because its very one dimensional.
I'm a strong advocate of ladders, and a legitimate PvP system and I stand behind that. They offer value to characters, and force you to recycle characters. I feel that there needs to be some level of player investment for any actual attachment to occur. The fact that in Diablo 2, if you actually reached level 99, your character was as good as it could be as far as your displaceable stats are concerned. You diligently invested every point and skill and in the end you are rewarded with that little extra. Your drop rates are inherently better, similar but not exactly like the paragon MF incentive. Your skills will inherently do more. And you've had to stick to a choice and execute it to the end. And in all reality, in the end of Diablo 2's production, you really get 3 chances to re-select all those points. That's extremely generous in my opinion.
curious to everyones thoughts,
Swag
-edit, clarity and grammar
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I believe you're all right, I'm optimistic about the ordeal, thats for sure. More or less what I'm saying is, I can't be the only person who's sole incentive to play the game is not the loot. I choose names for my toon's and their builds because I have a theme, or idea I've committed to, and I like the idea that every character is its own "person" or thing, and that the way the itemization was set up, personally, defeated some of my interests. The point I was trying to get across is that the loot isn't everybody's concern. From my other ARPG experience, specifically D2 (because its the most relevant to here) I would still stay loot wasn't my main incentive to play the game. I have always felt that Blizzard applied some sleight of hand to say that loot was "everybody's favorite thing" because they benefit directly from it (in the current game state, with the AH and what not) now don't get me wrong, I'm not tin-foil hatting here, I'm just firmly believe that itemization was both too highly incentivized and required for gameplay. Historically, there is more balance between inherent character design and capability that is complemented by the gear they wear, and not SOLELY the gear they wear.
So when the time comes that changes are being made and ideas are being withdrawn from the figurative hat, these are the idea's that I just want to be spoken out to the community and development team. There is a multi-angle approach to this. This game has SO much potential, and most of us that seem like we hate on the game are actually so passionate that we JUST want to see it succeed and fulfill all its potential glory.
Allow me to explain, breifly, what I'm talking about. For example, Diablo 3 was developed to have a new revolutionary take on ARPG's, the character leveled up, his or her stats are allocated for you, and the skills require no permanent investment. Let's assume this model has no flaws for just a moment. What happens when you play the game with all five characters, and max their levels out? One person might say they have the freedom to change their build at any moment. Is this really the case?
More often than not, the reason you can play a build is because of the way the items are designed. With such a large emphasis on items or "loot," the character or "toon" you create is arbitrary. In a classic ARPG setup, you are committed to investing time into a character, knowing that you have to have confidence in fulfilling the build you created. Yes, accidents happen, skills may get misplaced, or you may develop new interests as you play the game. But that is exactly what helps keep the endgame alive, just like the items, the characters need to cycle out as well.
By having a system where the items are so heavily incentivized it really creates an environment where the only thing you're left reinvesting, isn't your time, its your money. The vast majority of the "top" players according to sites like Diabloprogress.com aren't just lucky fanatics, they're people with fat wallets. If you were to estimate some of the values of these peoples character's gear, you would be astounded. Clearly, on an enthusiast site, I dont need to express the fact that it completely worth it for some people to invest this money in this manner. However, I feel that as it stands right now, more people are pigeonholed into spending money to try and stay afloat because the way that the itemization sits right now (largely because of how important gear is) there are so many drops that unless you have near perfect gear (the elite 1% roll) what you're currently wearing will be obselete and devalued in almost no time flat. It is a repetive gear-replacing game.
Don't get me wrong, theres nothign wrong with being satisfied with a character and getting it to max level. But thats just one way to play the game, and to limit the scope of interest by only allowing players to play that way, is damaging the game. There needs to be incentives in place to keep the characters or toons relevant, or create incentives to make new characters or toons. What I'm NOT saying is that the skill system is broken. Rather, items need to be adjusted, stats need to be adjusted, or some new method of incentive needs to be added for the toon's themselves to have some sort of INTRINSIC value.
OP has made some fantastic suggestions. If I were to keep it simple, I'd suggest that some of the most important stats are static on the items, and that like the OP suggested, drop rates are changed. Although there is some variance because of the drop-rates of ilvl 61-63 (them not all being equal drop rates) there is some variation on what legendaries you find. They need a little more structure, in my opinion. Furthermore, like I suggested before, The characters themselves need some sort of inherent value. Once you max all characters, you have almost no reason to go and play the game. PvP as it stands, atleast in my opinion, is atrocious. It literally is a free-brawl, with no structure. That's not fun to me, because its very one dimensional.
I'm a strong advocate of ladders, and a legitimate PvP system and I stand behind that. They offer value to characters, and force you to recycle characters. I feel that there needs to be some level of player investment for any actual attachment to occur. The fact that in Diablo 2, if you actually reached level 99, your character was as good as it could be as far as your displaceable stats are concerned. You diligently invested every point and skill and in the end you are rewarded with that little extra. Your drop rates are inherently better, similar but not exactly like the paragon MF incentive. Your skills will inherently do more. And you've had to stick to a choice and execute it to the end. And in all reality, in the end of Diablo 2's production, you really get 3 chances to re-select all those points. That's extremely generous in my opinion.
curious to everyones thoughts,
Swag
-edit, clarity and grammar