History Main / RandomlyGeneratedLoot

* ''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Super Smash Bros. for Wii U / 3DS]]'' has equipment, which a fighter can equip three of, each of which increases one stat, and decreases another, and sometimes giving another advantage or penalty. Anyone can equip badges, but there are other types that only a few fighters (or just one) can use.

* The ''VideoGame/{{Diablo}}'' series is the TropeCodifier. It featured individual pieces of equipment with random variations in stats, but special effects were mostly fixed to specific item types.
* The ''VideoGame/{{Torchlight}}'' series uses a similar system to Diablo, with individual stat variations and SocketedEquipment.

* ''VideoGame/PathOfExile'' follows the ''Diablo'' model of basic templates with numerous prefixes and suffixes denoting special enchantments, plus multiple tiers of rarity/power.

* Magical weapons and armor in ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' 3rd Edition, when rolled for instead of picked by the GameMaster, are wholly randomly generated starting from weapon or armor type to the nature of the enchantments upon them. Well, random except anything magical always has at least a +1 bonus before any other properties. The strength of the item (minor, medium, or major) sets upper and lower bounds on the power level that can be rolled. It's generally easier to get an extra plus on something rather a special property.

This trope has the odd side effect of invoking VideoGameCaringPotential: the loot that emerges from the RandomNumberGod can have a lot of personality, and it's not unusual for players to get attached to their various pieces of gear. Of course, no matter how great your gun is ({{S|hockAndAwe}}parking [[VideoGame/DeadSpace3 Shootbanger]] of [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe +5 Fortitude]], [[HyperspaceArsenal +6 Grenade capacity]], +3 Socks), there's always something greater awaiting you in the next dungeon, and to exploit it you'll need to discard [[ICallItVera Vera]] or whatever without a second thought. Remember, If every piece of gear in the game is awesome, then every piece is simultaneously VendorTrash.

* ''VideoGame/ShadowWarrior2'' has randomized upgrade gems and medallions that alter weapon/player stats and add special effects to spells and weapons, the latter of which remain fixed and consistent throughout the game apart from directly (and permanently) upgrading their base stats with Masamune Orbs. In this way the game manages to avoid Borderlands' pitfall of having [[SoLastSeason level-restricted throwaway weapons]], instead focusing on letting the player customize their arsenal however they please and ensuring that the starting weapons aren't left behind later in the game.

This trope has the odd side effect of invoking VideoGameCaringPotential: the loot that emerges from the RandomNumberGod can have a lot of personality, and it's not unusual for players to get attached to their various pieces of gear. Of course, no matter how great your gun is ({{S|hockAndAwe}}parking [[VideoGame/DeadSpace3 Shootbanger]] of [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe +5 Fortitude]], [[HyperspaceArsenal +6 Grenade capacity]], [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking +3 Socks]]), there's always something greater awaiting you in the next dungeon, and to exploit it you'll need to discard [[ICallItVera Vera]] or whatever without a second thought. Remember, If every piece of gear in the game is awesome, then every piece is simultaneously VendorTrash.

The downside, of course, is that randomness is the enemy of skill development. To get good at something--a FightingGame, a Roguelike, TabletopGame/{{chess}}--you need to do it over and over, learning as you do about patterns and behaviors. Eventually, you reach a point where you can guess what's going to happen next, and what to do under those circumstances. RandomlyGeneratedLoot can slow down this process because one of the things you need to know about are your own character's capabilities--and when those are constantly changing because you're constantly swapping out new equipment, you can't establish a baseline and will have trouble learning to play or fight to the best of your abilities. (This is a big reason why games like ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'' have random elements, like {{Critical Hit}}s, turned off during high-level TournamentPlay.)

* ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'':
** Subverted throughout most of the series with non-unique enchanted items. For example, non-unique enchanted weapons follow the "X weapon of Y" naming format, IE [craftsmanship] weapon of [adjective corresponding to a power level] [enchantment effect] (or, for a specific example, Steel Sword of Greater [[AnIcePerson Frost]]). Depending on the specific game in question, these items can be [[RandomDrops dropped by NPC enemies]], found randomly in the world as loot, or found in the inventory of shops. In the games with strict LevelScaling, they will usually be scaled to the player's level.
** ''[[Videogame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'' averts it with loot outside of containers, which is hand placed and never changes. Savvy veteran players can find [[DiscOneNuke extremely high level loot well before it will start being randomly generated]] in containers. Containers are instead filled from "leveled lists" of items, giving players a better chance of finding good loot at higher levels, with the [[LuckStat Luck Attribute]] also playing a role in what appears.

This trope has the odd side effect of invoking VideoGameCaringPotential: the loot that emerges from the RandomNumberGod can have a lot of personality, and it's not unusual for players to get attached to their various pieces of gear. Of course, no matter how great your gun is ([[ShockAndAwe Sparking]] [[VideoGame/DeadSpace3 Shootbanger]] of [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe +5 Fortitude]], [[HyperspaceArsenal +6 Grenade capacity]], [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking +3 Socks]]), there's always something greater awaiting you in the next dungeon, and to exploit it you'll need to discard [[ICallItVera Vera]] or whatever without a second thought. Remember, If every piece of gear in the game is awesome, then every piece is simultaneously VendorTrash.

[[folder: Fighting ]]

[[folder: First Person Shooter ]]

[[folder: MMORPG ]]
* ''VideoGame/PerfectWorld'': When a player [[ItemCrafting crafts an item]] it uses a template with randomly generated stats.

[[folder: Role Playing Game ]]

[[folder: Roguelike ]]

* In ''[[VideoGame/RagnarokRoguelike Ragnarok]]'', the only consistent loot in the game is that the village shop will always have a grappling hook and a pick axe, and Odin's tower (located just before the FinalBattle) has one of every item in the game. While powerful items are more likely to spawn on harder levels, it's possible to find items such as the wand of wishing on the very first level.

[[folder: Strategy ]]

[[folder: Third Person Shooter ]]

[[folder: Tabletop Games]]

This trope covers equipment which is [[ProceduralGeneration generated using random numbers by the game engine]] rather than being hard-coded into the game. Obviously the algorithms used for this vary, but usually involve some combination of: