Okay, Bioware has the absolute worst loot system of any RPG maker

[micrometers]

Simple reason: Bioware explicitly labels various items as "junk".

Like, they have no use, not even as a quest item or a craftable. They're just "junk."

Meaning that Bioware is telling you that they're annoying you purposely by cluttering your inventory (I autoloot) with junk. Even worse, if you want to clear your inventory of "junk" you have to click a screen saying that you want to destroy the item.

And all items are soulbound for no good reason. Soulbound items take a lot of the trading fun out of item looting.

But yeah, labeling items that you pick up as junk is a really bad system. They're telling you that they're spamming you.

 

[OVerLoRDI]

Yep. The Witcher 2 also had "junk" items. No idea why game makers add these things.

 

[KaOTiK]

I'm guessing you are talking about TOR? If so, WoW (and pretty much all MMO's now) does essentially the same thing. They just do it differently, instead of making a label saying junk, they give it a color so you know it is totally worthless. In WoW's case it is grey (been a few years since I played may be wrong).

 

[StinkyPinky]

I'm guessing you are talking about TOR? If so, WoW (and pretty much all MMO's now) does essentially the same thing. They just do it differently, instead of making a label saying junk, they give it a color so you know it is totally worthless. In WoW's case it is grey (been a few years since I played may be wrong).

So why are they even in the game? Why bother adding them in?

 

[Craig234]

I remember in Diablo also there are all kinds of 'white items' that are useless except for a very tiny bit of gold, not worth picking up - and really yellow items also.

One reason they might do it is a sort of optical illusion that makes you value the better drops more.

It's analagous to how dungeons are filled with 'trash mobs' taking 30 or 60 minutes to clear getting to a 'boss'. If you just had the boss, it'd be a short run.

 

[KaOTiK]

So why are they even in the game? Why bother adding them in?

Way to make more $$$ in game. While a lot of that junk isn't worth a lot, there are some things that are worth quite a bit. Plus, if everything had a use then it would take longer to get rid of stuff instead of simply vendoring it to get money right away and also fill up your bank quicker.

 

[Kristijonas]

Or... this is an RPG game, which means that your character doesn't only find coins and weapons/potions on his way, but also useless stuff can he can SELL.

 

[micrometers]

Or... this is an RPG game, which means that your character doesn't only find coins and weapons/potions on his way, but also useless stuff can he can SELL.

in real life, you don't get to sell every piece of junk you find to a town "vender"

 

[KaOTiK]

I do, I ride my Pegasus down to the town and sell my junk to Bugman the dwarven barkeep after killing 15 boars and 10 spiderlings that the Wessyenn brothers ask me to kill to help clear up their farm.

 

[waggy]

same with Diablo 3. they are called legandaries.

 

[micrometers]

same with Diablo 3. they are called legandaries.

ah, but in Diablo 3 at least "junk items" can still be equipped and used as weapons.

And disposing of them is easy. No "confirmation" needed.

in SWTOR they're telling you that it's junk and useless, while limiting your inventory so you periodically have to clear it out, and then if you want to get rid of it, you need to go through a confirmation window.

That's like 20 unnecessary clicks.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Turn it around. Ever play a game that gives you absolutely no idea of the value of something when you pick it up? I have and that really sucks.

 

[Craig234]

Ya, I hate an inventory full of things I'm not sure whether they're junk.

 

[Red Hawk]

Dragon Age II did this. An annoying step down from Dragon Age: Origins.

 

[micrometers]

Dragon Age II did this. An annoying step down from Dragon Age: Origins.

Nothing Dragon Age 2 did was a step down from origins. It was an all-around better game.

 

[Nintendesert]

I appreciate them adding filters to get rid of the junk items, but not sure why add them. If they had any sort of value... ok. But just seems like useless filler.

 

[KaOTiK]

Nothing Dragon Age 2 did was a step down from origins. It was an all-around better game.

 

[Fardringle]

Based on previous posts that karmypolitics has made about Dragon Age 2, I'd say it's a bit of both.

 

[Gordon Freemen]

I don't blame Bioware I blame EA Orgins. That's my story and i am stickin to it

 

[DaveSimmons]

99% of CRPGs have loot like this. Welcome to CRPGs.

> And all items are soulbound for no good reason. Soulbound items take a lot of the trading fun out of item looting.

Only quest rewards and some boss drops in flashpoints are bound to your character, every other loot drop is bind on equip. Are you accidentally equipping every piece of loot that drops?

It's not by quality level, I've gotten a fair number of orange and purple drops from killing bad things, none were bound.

 

[greenhawk]

So why are they even in the game? Why bother adding them in?

to add to realisium. The more you find, the better item you might find.

 

[greenhawk]

Turn it around. Ever play a game that gives you absolutely no idea of the value of something when you pick it up? I have and that really sucks.

or games that misslead you the first time you play. The recent oblivian game. all items have a "value" tag, but what you do not know until you get into the game a bit, is that the sell price is far far less.

sort of one area I liked Dungeon Seige 2. Picking up the crap was worth the time (espically with a donkey as it was just a key press and he did all the work) as you got a spell to change it all into gold.

 

[greenhawk]

Nothing Dragon Age 2 did was a step down from origins. It was an all-around better game.

/looks for the "/ad" tag.

 

[Gordon Freemen]

/looks for the "/ad" tag.

Maybe he actually did like it in his own opinion.

 

[Bateluer]

Nothing Dragon Age 2 did was a step down from origins. It was an all-around better game.

Excluding characters, setting, story, plot, dialog, character interaction, ending, visuals, art direction, and game stability. DA2 was the biggest piece of a crap to be released this decade.
If DA3 is like DA2, then we can consider the DA franchise dead as a One Hit Wonder.


But, back to the topic at hand. Those junk items are vendor trash, you either don't loot them at all or sell them. Consider, in my pockets I carry a toothbrush, toothpaste, a pen, eye drops, my wallet, my car keys, and my cell phone. If you were to mug me, the only things of value you'd want would be the cash in the wallet and the cell phone. Maybe the car keys if you knew where the car was parked. Everything else, worthless to you.