Good list. I have played all of those except for PofBS. Definitely would put EVE #2 and Vanguard #3. Fallen Earth #4 followed by Darkfall and lastly EQII. I'll ahve to take others' word for PotBS to be a top 5 game, perhaps should be replaced with Istaria and/or Ryzom
EQ2 crafting looks great on the surface. But when you actually get into level 20+ crafting...it is a nightmare of "grind" proportions and the most boring crafting gameplay I have ever come across. Only one of those I really liked was Fallen Earth since it was more like like prepare and cook, instead of prepare and click and click and click. You could craft while still roaming about the land killing or exploring.
I agree with SWG being #1 but resent the fact that they state it being the best only in pre-NGE. SWGs crafting system is still the best, even in the NGE and todays version. It still has the same processes since day 1. Only the combat side got the major alteration with the NGE. All crafting professions are still in the game, but combined across 4 professions
Pity that the developers and the Game marketers destroyed the game. Yes you were right to say "I hesitate to bring this one up, as I know it’s still a wound (maybe a scar?) that people feel the pains of today."
lol everytime i bring up this game to my fellow gamers its like opening up a big can of worms. So many shattered players after the changes.
I have to agree that SWG is hands down the correct number one for this article. As a crafter in it myself I found that crafting in SWG never got old, not even after 4 years of doing it. I keep waiting for a new game to come along that handles crafting the same way SWG did, but, sadly, I don't think such a game will ever come. As for the rest on this list, I wouldn't necessarily list EQ2 on here, but I can understand why the OP did, and I have to agree with the others saying this list is very incomplete without Ryzom and Istaria which, while dated, have crafting systems that are at the very least comparable to some of those listed, if not better.
As previously mentioned SWG has the same crafting system today as it had almost 8 years ago. Some of the details are different, but the basic system is still the same. It's far and away the best crafting system I've ever seen.
I feel that an objection is in order. In the introduction you said this was a list of the best of the current crop. SWG is a current game, but pre-NGE SWG isn't (unless you count the emulated servers, which I don't because they're not official). But yeah, a pretty spot on list.
This article wasn't really worth the time taken to read it: missed out far too many games, given it's meant to be about crafting systems, not the games overall. As mentioned by another poster, neither Horizons/Istaria nor ATITD are there - this boggles me, as they blow EQ2's crafting away without even having to try. Definitely looks much more like a "crafting systems based only on games I've played and liked or currently remember, off the top of my head" list than anything else. Unimpressed, even if I do agree with the #1 spot.
The distinct and utter lack of research that seems to be evident, here, is abysmal. Step it up Bill; as a lead writer, we expect better of you.
I'm only familiar with SWG's crafting system -- and I agree it should be up there at #1. My question to those who have played the others, do you have to grind out unuseful widgets for the crafting? I ask because that ANNOYS the hell out me. Click and make 500 widets, sell to the vendor for a loss, get more mats and grind again until you can make something. That's a waste of time in my opinion. At least in SWG, I could "grind" out useful things that players would want to buy (early on it was weapon damage enhancements -- people would mail orders to me in game requesting direct sales).
The problem with NGE is that they (still?) removed durability for the items, so as a crafter you could not make a living.
Given, the system on it's own IS the best of all time, and they atleast did not change that (only that you can no longer choose the things you want)
Just sad that they destroyed a great game and made a wannabe WoW clone (not that I don't play WoW, but I stopped playing SWG when they destroyeed it with NGE)
Good list. No complaints here. I am a big fan of a robust crafting system. If there is nothing really to learn though i usually just skip it in a game unless it is a necessary evil like in DDO.
O yeah and worst crafting system ever.....DDO
Last point- I think perpetuum should be number 8 on this list.
Playing: PO, EVE Waiting for: WoD Favourite MMOs: VG, EVE, FE and DDO Any person who expresses rage and loathing for an MMO is preposterous. He or she is like a person who has put on full armor and attacked a hot fudge sundae.
Definitely missing: Ryzom, Horizons (now Istaria) and Tale in the Desert, all of them candidates for a top 5 spot.
yeah, not to mention small indie sandboxes like wurm of haven and hearth, also maybe puzzle pirates, tho i am not sure if to count that one as full fledged mmorpg
If YPP isn't a full fledged MMO, I don't know what is. Why would you think it isn't?
As far as the crafting system in YPP, It's good, definitely one of the better systems out there and one of my favorites for the 'ease' of it. I'd put it top 10 definitely, and is in my personal top 5, but for overall, I'm not sure it'd make top 5.
Say what you want about Raph Koster, but SWG was the pinnacle in community-building gameplay that didn't alienate anyone. I didn't craft much, but I kept a lot of crafters supplied with raw materials and never once felt like an outsider. If I needed something, I could sit in a cantina and browse craftsmen and inquire about commissioning whatever I needed.
The problem was that SOE kept trying to change the game by tacking more on instead of fixing what was broken. NGE killed it. Sony was wrong. Some of us liked being Uncle Owen.
"Soloists and those who prefer small groups should never have to feel like they''re the ones getting the proverbial table scraps, as it were." - Scott Hartsman, Senior Producer, Everquest II "People love groups. Its a fallacy that people want to play solo all the time." - Scott Hartsman, Executive Producer, Rift
I loved the crafting system in Ryzom. Products had statistics based on how you mixed and matched some variations of the resources. And you simply had increasing tiers of resources that improved the statistics too. I only played it briefly though (a beta, or so, I guess).
Like others, ATITD should be on this list too. It is actually quite like Minecraft. You start with nothing (well, ok, schools and universities) and build it all based on what you find and gather. It's a real niche game and I haven't really played it for years. But I will keep cherishing the past I had with it. The only reason (except that the writer didn't play it) that ATITD might not be on this list is that it's not a small part of the game, it's everywhere and all about it.
Did'nt play Fallen Earth a long time but i agree with the list, Fallen Earth has one of the best crafting in any mmo i ever played. It was actually fun to gather material cause it allow you to build really useful stuff.
Comments
Good list. I have played all of those except for PofBS. Definitely would put EVE #2 and Vanguard #3. Fallen Earth #4 followed by Darkfall and lastly EQII. I'll ahve to take others' word for PotBS to be a top 5 game, perhaps should be replaced with Istaria and/or Ryzom
Gaming since Avalon Hill was making board games.
Played SWG, EVE, Fallen Earth, LOTRO, Rift, Vanguard, WoW, SWTOR, TSW, Tera
Tried Aoc, Aion, EQII, RoM, Vindictus, Darkfail, DDO, GW, PotBS
You forgot Ultima Online
EQ2 crafting looks great on the surface. But when you actually get into level 20+ crafting...it is a nightmare of "grind" proportions and the most boring crafting gameplay I have ever come across. Only one of those I really liked was Fallen Earth since it was more like like prepare and cook, instead of prepare and click and click and click. You could craft while still roaming about the land killing or exploring.
I agree with SWG being #1 but resent the fact that they state it being the best only in pre-NGE. SWGs crafting system is still the best, even in the NGE and todays version. It still has the same processes since day 1. Only the combat side got the major alteration with the NGE. All crafting professions are still in the game, but combined across 4 professions
Star Trek Online - Best Free MMORPG of 2012
Without Ryzom this "list" is null and void.
Sorry.
SWG No#1 Yes!
Pity that the developers and the Game marketers destroyed the game. Yes you were right to say "I hesitate to bring this one up, as I know it’s still a wound (maybe a scar?) that people feel the pains of today."
lol everytime i bring up this game to my fellow gamers its like opening up a big can of worms. So many shattered players after the changes.
I have to agree that SWG is hands down the correct number one for this article. As a crafter in it myself I found that crafting in SWG never got old, not even after 4 years of doing it. I keep waiting for a new game to come along that handles crafting the same way SWG did, but, sadly, I don't think such a game will ever come. As for the rest on this list, I wouldn't necessarily list EQ2 on here, but I can understand why the OP did, and I have to agree with the others saying this list is very incomplete without Ryzom and Istaria which, while dated, have crafting systems that are at the very least comparable to some of those listed, if not better.
Retired: EVE, SWG, STO, EQ2, Ryzom, AO, LotRO, FFXI
Currently Awaiting: SWTOR, TSW, ArcheAge
Horizons (Istaria) is definitively missing, in my oppinion the best crafting system to date.
Of the above the one I've enjoyed the most is SWG.
Why SWG is not free to play STILL?
I haven't played much Istaria, but I agree that Ryzom should be on that list (but then it would be a top 8)
A witty saying proves nothing.
-Voltaire
As previously mentioned SWG has the same crafting system today as it had almost 8 years ago. Some of the details are different, but the basic system is still the same. It's far and away the best crafting system I've ever seen.
I feel that an objection is in order. In the introduction you said this was a list of the best of the current crop. SWG is a current game, but pre-NGE SWG isn't (unless you count the emulated servers, which I don't because they're not official). But yeah, a pretty spot on list.
Always read the small print.
You forgot about A Tale in the Desert. Therefore, your list is wrong.
This article wasn't really worth the time taken to read it: missed out far too many games, given it's meant to be about crafting systems, not the games overall. As mentioned by another poster, neither Horizons/Istaria nor ATITD are there - this boggles me, as they blow EQ2's crafting away without even having to try. Definitely looks much more like a "crafting systems based only on games I've played and liked or currently remember, off the top of my head" list than anything else. Unimpressed, even if I do agree with the #1 spot.
The distinct and utter lack of research that seems to be evident, here, is abysmal. Step it up Bill; as a lead writer, we expect better of you.
I love crafting in MMO's. My favorites are:
Ryzom -- by far the bvest. You can be killed just by harvesting, and there are no recipes.
Vanguard -- good mini-game and skill progression
PoTBS -- not impressed. No skill involved, no exploration and gathering.
Perpetuum -- like Eve, it is good.
------------
2024: 47 years on the Net.
I'm only familiar with SWG's crafting system -- and I agree it should be up there at #1. My question to those who have played the others, do you have to grind out unuseful widgets for the crafting? I ask because that ANNOYS the hell out me. Click and make 500 widets, sell to the vendor for a loss, get more mats and grind again until you can make something. That's a waste of time in my opinion. At least in SWG, I could "grind" out useful things that players would want to buy (early on it was weapon damage enhancements -- people would mail orders to me in game requesting direct sales).
A good follow-up read is a thread about your utopian crafting system: http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/273555
The problem with NGE is that they (still?) removed durability for the items, so as a crafter you could not make a living.
Given, the system on it's own IS the best of all time, and they atleast did not change that (only that you can no longer choose the things you want)
Just sad that they destroyed a great game and made a wannabe WoW clone
(not that I don't play WoW, but I stopped playing SWG when they destroyeed it with NGE)
Good list. No complaints here. I am a big fan of a robust crafting system. If there is nothing really to learn though i usually just skip it in a game unless it is a necessary evil like in DDO.
O yeah and worst crafting system ever.....DDO
Last point- I think perpetuum should be number 8 on this list.
Playing: PO, EVE
Waiting for: WoD
Favourite MMOs: VG, EVE, FE and DDO
Any person who expresses rage and loathing for an MMO is preposterous. He or she is like a person who has put on full armor and attacked a hot fudge sundae.
If YPP isn't a full fledged MMO, I don't know what is. Why would you think it isn't?
As far as the crafting system in YPP, It's good, definitely one of the better systems out there and one of my favorites for the 'ease' of it. I'd put it top 10 definitely, and is in my personal top 5, but for overall, I'm not sure it'd make top 5.
Haven't played PotBS, but all the others, in my opinion, are spot on. Great list.
President of The Marvelously Meowhead Fan Club
missing: ryzom and istaria
Post-NGE (2008-2009) SWG still has the best crafting in my opinion.
It's the only game where I've spend five hours in a row crafting.
Say what you want about Raph Koster, but SWG was the pinnacle in community-building gameplay that didn't alienate anyone. I didn't craft much, but I kept a lot of crafters supplied with raw materials and never once felt like an outsider. If I needed something, I could sit in a cantina and browse craftsmen and inquire about commissioning whatever I needed.
The problem was that SOE kept trying to change the game by tacking more on instead of fixing what was broken. NGE killed it. Sony was wrong. Some of us liked being Uncle Owen.
"Soloists and those who prefer small groups should never have to feel like they''re the ones getting the proverbial table scraps, as it were." - Scott Hartsman, Senior Producer, Everquest II
"People love groups. Its a fallacy that people want to play solo all the time." - Scott Hartsman, Executive Producer, Rift
I loved the crafting system in Ryzom. Products had statistics based on how you mixed and matched some variations of the resources. And you simply had increasing tiers of resources that improved the statistics too. I only played it briefly though (a beta, or so, I guess).
Like others, ATITD should be on this list too. It is actually quite like Minecraft. You start with nothing (well, ok, schools and universities) and build it all based on what you find and gather. It's a real niche game and I haven't really played it for years. But I will keep cherishing the past I had with it. The only reason (except that the writer didn't play it) that ATITD might not be on this list is that it's not a small part of the game, it's everywhere and all about it.
Did'nt play Fallen Earth a long time but i agree with the list, Fallen Earth has one of the best crafting in any mmo i ever played. It was actually fun to gather material cause it allow you to build really useful stuff.