Has anyone thought about how awesome it would be if maps only generated loot according to our loot filters? For instance, if I hide Scrolls of Wisdom, those wouldn’t even drop in the first place. I believe this could boost performance, especially on heavily juiced maps, and also help with regular endgame content. Hiding items in the filter doesn’t completely stop the client from processing them, as shown by unique drops that are filtered but still trigger drop beams and sounds. It seems like a dropdown menu in the map device for selecting the loot filter would be a great feature, similar to the existing settings. And while we’re at it, an in-game loot filter editor would work perfectly with this idea! However, I know such changes are unlikely to happen. What do you all think? Are there any issues I’m missing?
3 Answers
You’re correct about how loot filters work: they operate on the client-side while loot generation is handled on the server-side. If GGG were to let loot generation rely on filter settings from every player, it could open up security issues. Though, with a solidly built in-game filter editor, it might be less of a concern. A possible solution could be a mediation layer between the client and the server that checks filters before sending items to the client.
It’s true that items hidden by filters won’t be on the ground or visible anymore, but unique items still create sounds and beams even when filtered. This is particularly annoying in turbo juiced maps that can cause crashes if you press “alt”. The filter system could definitely use more refinement since sometimes it can still lag the game when there’s too much loot.
There’s already an option to not render items that fail your loot filter, which helps with performance. But I get your point about wanting the server to totally skip generating unwanted loot. That could mess with rarity and balance, though—imagine blocking everything except the best items! Although, yes, an in-game filter editor would be pretty cool. But honestly, I reckon it’d make more sense for GGG to collaborate with Neversink instead of trying to overhaul the filter system themselves due to their limited resources.
