Looting -- The official thread for discussing the loot system. Updated 18th March, 2013.

D3 is a bit different since it has other reasons people don't want to group.

I'll be honest, I hate the timed loot and FFA. Private loot is the only way I'd enjoy grouping with people I don't know. Why? Because I'm one of those people who doesn't even look at loot till everything on screen is dead. Do to this, I'd rarely ever get anything decent from drops. I refuse to believe looting mid fight is a good thing. Leave cut throat looting to cut throat league alone and that's it. Obviously this is my own opinion so I'll just play with my own friends I can trust and no one else. This is really the only thing I dislike about the game and I won't let it stop me from playing it.

I've not played the game yet but I'm worried about this topic so here's my input:

How about
-instanced/timer loot in public games,and free for all in custom ones
or
-keep the timer loot but, the timer only ends when all mobs present in the area are dead(loot still drops and everyone still can see them but they only can be taken after the fights). That way people start running after the loot they want only when mobs are dealt with, teamplay can be preserved, and the cutthroat of fighting for gear would still be present
or
-as already suggested, enable an (Instanced / FFA loot)option the party leader can set

My choice would go for the second.

I feel the cut-throat point is a valid one, but ffa loot also discourages group play a lot. Group play very often devolves into frustration over loot alone, especially in end-game environments where every piece of gear can count. There are times when I care about loot and there are times when I don't. And when I care about loot, I won't group in a ffa game, plain and simple.

I would actually love to see ffa looting as an option. I feel as making it a grouping option leaves it up to the group to decide how to play. I believe there is very enjoyable group play styles available in both options and only serves to make the game more acceptable from both solo and MP/coop perspectives by having both options available.

It doesn't make sense to call it cut-throat when there is no risk outside of being "reported for stealing" for looting other peoples stuff and them not being able to retaliate at all. Now if you could kick them from party and kill them + loot their body then I agree it would be cut throat and I'd have no issue with full FFA looting system under that scenario.

At present I think the only thing that needs to change is an additional second or 2 (probably 2 or some calculation based on remaining mobs nearby) added to the loot timers.

I was wondering when this topic would pop back up to the first page…

In order to get a better perspective I leveled two characters to 25 and 40 exclusively in parties. I have no perspective on end-game grouping but 1-40 was very fun in spite of FFA. During co-op I had players let me know that a jewelers orb dropped off screen and I have had ranged players run up to grab one of my orbs while I was tanking for the group. I have also seen players call each other out when someone grabbed a unique that did not belong to them
.
The current timer (aka FFA) loot system creates frustration and increases the Co-op pace to a point that most players will pass by a fun and rewarding aspect of the game. Knowing that the final wipe is imminent I don’t really care about gear/orbs but after 1/23/13 it will be a different story. FFA does not completely kill Co-Op; FFA does limit the number of groups and the enjoyment of the members. The current loot system has many pros but could use some love prior to OB.

Please provide group loot options or tweak the current system to be more player friendly.

"

sharkh20 wrote:

I still think people don't group because they are anti social. D3 barely had any grouping even with instanced loot.

People didn't group in D3 because you were punished for doing so. It was simply poorly designed. Instanced loot was the only good part about it.

They group in D3 now, because its a better design, you just don't see much of it because the games population has dropped so much.

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At the end of the day, this is just another outdated way of thinking. GGG is stuck in the past on some things and this is one of them. There is simply no good reason in todays gaming world to not use instanced loot in a multiplayer ARPG.

Just giving my 2 cents, I would prefer some sort of instanced loot or at least a longer timer. The way it is designed now, discourages me from grouping with anyone outside of people I know personally.

I don't really get a 'rush' from having to grab my item in 2 seconds, instead it is more of a hassle trying to remember who got the drop if I am running with a group of friends. I personally would group much more and enjoy it more if they had an option for either a longer timer or instanced loot.

I think the best option, permitted GGG can spare the resources, would be to have an option in your party like in many MMOs; where the party leader can CHOOSE between instanced/timered loot and pure FFA. This would seem to please both parties much more than the current system. Once again I know there are tons of things GGG wants to add, but I think this would improve the partying experience of just about everyone if they could choose their preference.

I also would like to support a change to instanced loot. I would love to play this game with pick up groups, but because of the loot system I will only play solo or with people I know.

If doing actual instanced loot is not easily done, how about increasing the timer to something incredibly big (5 minutes) so that it seems like instanced loot?

I agree with a previous poster who said that the idea of ffa loot is an archaic idea for online gaming. I remember playing EQ with ffa loot. It created nothing but drama and conflict. Literally nothing good came from it. We should learn from those past mistakes and not make them again.

No to instanced loot or long timers.

Fine the way it is