MMXI said:
Surf Solar said:
What about the all fabled "give me different ways to do things in RPG" or "it shall be possible to totally avoid combat and still get cool stuff"? :/
That's largely irrelevant for crafting because all crafting does is attempt to replace something that's already in the game: merchants. What's the real difference between making items and buying items?
Making items is a skill-based activity. Buying isn't.
What if you can ask craftsmen for custom made items? What's the difference? You end up with two competing features. Can you buy better items than you can craft or can you craft better items than you can buy? What is there to gain from the creation of that dilemma? An extra skill on your character sheet for the sake of it?
Why learn magic when you can buy scrolls and bombs from merchants? You end up with two competing features....
Why steal something when you can buy it? What is there to gain? An extra skill on your character sheet for the sake of it?
One can argue that RPGs have always been about killing stuff. Thus, all you really need a single "killing stuff" skill measuring your aptitude and abilities. This would be boring, however, which is why good RPGs have fairly detailed character systems with a variety of skills.
As for buying vs looting vs crafting, much like everything else in RPGs, it's a question of design and balance. If you can buy everything you can find, then exploring and looting are pointless. If you can't buy anything decent, then it's not a store but a loot drop off point. So, every "item acquisition" element should have pros and cons, and no element should be "same as" or better than the other (one or two) by default.
Crafting is an alternative, and as such should always be a welcome addition. If done right, it wouldn't replace buying or exploring for items, but give the player more options and will reduce the need to provide the player with every possible item type.
Let's say you're putting together a game. At some point you decide that it's time to reward the player with a magical weapon. What do you do? Load the chest with +1 weapon of every type? It's silly. Add them to the traders' inventories? It's also silly. It's much better to give the player tools to break apart what he finds and make whatever he needs.