Inventory system preference.

First of all, in diablo the game doesn't stop when you access your inventory. Second, in diablo the inventory space is limited by size (yeah I know, fallout has that also, but I don't see the shitload of stuff I used to carry around in fallout fit in any backpack).

So the diablo inventory system is more realistic. I never thought I would say this, but the I like the diablo system better !

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"Don't worry men, they can't hit us here"
 
Well, it's really a bit of a toss-up...

Of course, Diablo's system has a bit more realism to it, but it's also much more cumbersome. The arrangement of items in your pack in the middle of a real-time battle adds to the confusion, and instills the concept of space conservation. Indeed, Diablo forces you to be much more conservative with your resources... but that's just it's brand of realism. With the rather simplistic playout of any hack-and-slash titles, the designers have to resort to either spectacular graphics, or on gimmicks and attention to realistic detail like this, to give them appeal.

Fallout is the exact opposite. Where Diablo has, comparitively between the two, a more realistic items system, Fallout focusses more on true-life gameplay. With the way Fallout games are designed to play out, having to worry about such micromanagement would be more burdensome than it would be gameplay-enhancing.

Ironic, considering that the Fallout world is supposed to be one of sparse resource, but in the end I both systems work best for their respective games. Honestly, who in Fallout would like to be limited to what they could carry? That's, what, a couple of holstered guns, two slung rifles, and a pack with ammo and a few other amenities? Conversely, would Diablo be as fun if you could freeze the game and take as much time as you needed for inventory? And, for that matter, if you could carry almost everything that ever dropped, would it really be the same game?

I guess the simple version of what I'm saying is, my preference really depends on the type of game I'm playing.

"Nil Desperandum"

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I believe that the Fallout system combined with a volume measurement to go with weight is the best option. It allows for greater realism than in Fallout while has less micromanagement than in Diablo.
 
I don't care at all about realism. Dealing with inventory management in almost any game for me just equals a big pain in the ass. In the Fallout games, I even thought the weight limit was pointless and too restricting until I got used to it. As an old, old, old school gamer (it's almost time for me to Renew! I'm 29, for crying out loud!), I hearken back to the days when your inventory was a list of everything you'd found through the whole game. I'm talking mostly about graphic adventure games here, I guess. Even text games would put a limit on your inventory. Why? Just so you had all the thrill of walking back through sixteen rooms to drop something and pick something else up? Who cares? Suspension of disbelief is kinda important, sure. But to me having to cope with 'inventory' actually reminds me *more* that I'm playing a game and not really there than the fact that I can carry 200 objects comfortably on my person without restriction. Going to the inventory screen jerks me out of the game, and is *less* immersive. Deus Ex and System Shock 2 (both GREAT games) seem to use a pretty similar system to Diablo (which I've never played). Dealing with the inventory in those games is just irritating.
Who's with me?

Zombra

P.S. I have to mention my favorite inventory joke of all time. I believe it occurred in Leisure Suit Larry 2 or 3. At one point you acquire a 'Gargantuan Gulp' at a convenience store: a soda from the tap the size of a curbside garbage can. The game actually shows Larry picking up this thing, almost bigger than he is, and cramming it gracefully into his pocket. He then walks off and gets on with his adventuring without batting an eye. I loved that.
 
Yeah the inventory system in Dues Ex really bugged me, good thing that you didn't have to fit ammo into your inventory as well. Very annoying though since if you were developing your heavier weapons skills a fair bit, you'd only be capable of carrying 3 at the absolute most(I think) and you wouldn't have many other guns besides those three meaning points spent on the other weapons skills are rendered useless. Combine that with certain mission specific items that take up alot of inventory I often found that I was having to make do with 3 main guns and whatever else I had to have with me(medkits, missions specific items etc).
 
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