Collectables & Loot—do they vary in value?

[Brian Boru]

In the games I play, 'stuff' always seems to be of the same value across the map and from any kind of opponent.

A random trooper I zap loots for 5 ammo & a used condom. A heavily guarded general in a big fortress loots for a grenade and some second-hand chewing gum.

A loot crate I trip over at home base gives me Seven Swans a Swimming, whereas one requiring ingenuity to reach in a remote place coughs up Six Geese a Laying.

I feel there should be some correlation between effort/ingenuity and reward. Frustrates me that there isn't, and devalues the shiny seeking for me.

How about you?

To be clear, these are not quest objectives, just run of the mill loot as you go events.

PS my experience of this is mostly/all shooters. Is it different in RPGs? Are there other genres which treat the player better?

 

[Pifanjr]

For Skyrim and Fallout: New Vegas, there's definitely some cool things to be found if you poke around. A lot of the time it will be some leveled loot, but sometimes you'll stumble upon a unique weapon or a skill boost book/bobble head.

 

[mainer]

Often, I think that "value" is in the eye of the beholder, or in this case, player. If a game has collectable items, I'm usually fanatical about collecting them, not for a Steam achievement, but just so I know I've gotten them all. Fallout 4 was great with collectables: bobbleheads, comic books, magazines and similar items; and it's always a plus (to me) if you can display those collectables at a home base. Dollar value? Not really, more of a personal fetish for me to get them all.

I'm more of an RPG player than a Shooter player, so the "value" of items may not always be monetary or based on how powerful a weapon or armor might be, especially if we consider collectable items.

"Drop rates", at least in my experience, usually seem to be level based. Certain items won't appear, either on bodies or in containers, until your character is a certain level. Sometimes it can feel like you're seeing a lot of the same things, but it can vary depending upon (I think) the leveled lists within a given game.

D2 Resurrected is a good example. Loot drives that game, at least for me, as you never really know what you'll get Even low level enemies can drop unexpected valuable gear/items.

 

[Mazer]

I think this just illustrates the poor working conditions for even veteran soldiers in the average evil army.

They need to unionise or something, bring the foot soldiers together with the flamethrower dudes and heavily armored grunts with annoying shields and burn their scary masks in protest. Just flat out refuse to walk their pre-determined patrol paths past convenient long grass and red barrels until their demands are met.