How can loot drops be made more satisfying?

Blud · November 2014

As was raised in another thread: http://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/discussion/139972/do-you-feel-the-itemization-is-satisfying#latest

I don't want ESO to ever be a gear grinder. I don't want to farm tokens or dungeons to get epic phat lootz. I think we can do things more interestingly and creatively than that.

Here are some quick ideas:

Maybe drop some exceptionally rare recipes or motifs sometimes?
Or randomly drop a very large amount of gold?
Or maybe a key to some sort of hidden vault somewhere that opens a special quest line (also very rare), that may result in a nice piece of gear, or jewelry!

It doesn't have to be every time, because it shouldn't turn into a farming thing. But if it's very rare, or epic, that would be cool and provide more incentive and satisfaction.

EDIT: How about a really rare drop -- you find something like a lamp with a djinn in it after a very difficult fight. The lamp itself is a rare drop. Then you have to subdue the djinn. If you do it, you might gain access to a rare item, or a special wish which offers you some choices for a special new ability or skill. Or maybe you can get the ability to summon the djinn for combat or something.

Any other ideas?

nerevarine1138 · November 2014

Well, I like the idea of rare drops like that, but any time you create a system that offers unique drops from specific areas/events, you're going to get people farming them. It's just the nature of the beast.

Blud · November 2014

I know. But maybe some of the things could be legendary. Like there would only be a specific number allowed in the world.

Just having a chance to get something cool boosts the fun of loot. Like random sack of 10,000 gold or 40,000 gold could be fun. Maybe a 2% chance on certain bosses (like bandits, where it would make sense, but not beasts). But the djinni in the lamp, maybe that could be .001%, so it wouldn't make much sense to farm for it when you could be doing other stuff that's more productive.

But yeah, I hear what your saying.

AlexDougherty · November 2014

A possible solution is to have an extremely rare piece of gear or recipe or motif drop only once for a character, this would greatly reduce farming. ALthough I'm sure someone would complain if that ever happened.

Maverick827 · November 2014

Blud wrote: »

I don't want to farm tokens or dungeons to get epic phat lootz.

The problem is that dropping "epic phat lootz" is the only proven method of making dungeon farming feel worthwhile.

If it's not making my character more powerful, then I don't really care about it. I'll chase a title here and a mount there, but that's not sustainable. I'm not going to like every title or mount reward for each new challenge, because those things are subjective. I'll always like higher stats.

I think people need to get over this new-age concept where loot shouldn't matter. We won't get another successful MMO if people keep ignoring the things that make MMOs successful. It's why the genere is dying. It's not even reinventing the wheel at this point, it's just inventing the square wheel and calling it innovation.

Zorrashi · November 2014

I really liked the idea revolving around the gaining of a new ability. Really like it. It is an ideal alternative in comparison to searching for gear. But just for the sake of variety I think there should be at least 3 to 5 potential options, perhaps even with potential morphs down the line. Ideally the choice would be permanent and not prone to constant change. But if they are that intent on changing the ability, I suppose making them do the delve/dungeon/questline again would be ok.

As for things like motif/recipe/armor drops, I agree with @AlexDougherty‌ that perhaps it would be best to make it only drop once per character. Though maybe the coin drops could essentially be endless--albeit, with a lower drop rate each time it is gained.

Other ideas can include:

-Passives: ones that are always active on your char and do not require a skill point

-Flash Accessory: Purely cosmetic. Probably hardly desirable. It is a bit much, but if there was something out there that always made it look like I was in a personal storm of ice that swirled around my person, I might actually go through the trouble of getting it. Or if it involved the ability to make a thunderstorm above my head. Kind of like what some of the trophies do, only on a bit larger scale. Has no battle uses.

-Level with you weapons/armor: I cannot tell you how awesome it would be if I had a weapon that leveled with me, it would probably be reduced to green or white status every time only to be tempered to a higher status later, but it would be nice.

yiasemi · November 2014

I go to my partner and discuss my great purple or golden achievement. After she has looked at me with that look for a while, laughed because she trusts me despite my apparent temporary lack of sanity, and I respond with the kind of witty repartee that won her to my side in the first place, I receive my reward. Perhaps more transient than a life well led, and more physical than some data adjustment to my character, but hey, beggars cannot be choosers.

Zorrashi · November 2014

Maverick827 wrote: »

Blud wrote: »

I don't want to farm tokens or dungeons to get epic phat lootz.

The problem is that dropping "epic phat lootz" is the only proven method of making dungeon farming feel worthwhile.

If it's not making my character more powerful, then I don't really care about it. I'll chase a title here and a mount there, but that's not sustainable. I'm not going to like every title or mount reward for each new challenge, because those things are subjective. I'll always like higher stats.

I think people need to get over this new-age concept where loot shouldn't matter. We won't get another successful MMO if people keep ignoring the things that make MMOs successful. It's why the genere is dying. It's not even reinventing the wheel at this point, it's just inventing the square wheel and calling it innovation.

No offence to you, but are you so sure that it is not so much "the only proven method" so much as it is "the only used method (so far)"? To be sure, I have certainly never heard of any MMO giving anything but epic lewt but in its stead giving alternatives. But then, I have never recalled it being tried before either.

Besides which, there have already been suggestions that do make your character more powerful that is not based on gear. It is ok to try new things (otherwise things would go stagnant), even if it doesn't work. Live and learn. With MMOs, if it does fail, then they can always try and revamp the system later.