You know what game has really strong unique item design?

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ScrotieMcB wrote:

I'm not trying to say deterministic itemization is an unusable design, I just feel it's best in games with deterministic - therefore finite - level design. And I guess in a "kill Malachai" sense, PoE actually could be looked at this way. So I guess unique items which are, say, Merciless viable aren't so bad. However, uniques designed for map viability are still antithetical to the kill-gear cycle.

I wanted to expand on this idea more.

I actually think unique items have a place in a "map-based" ARPG! But not at all the way there are now. Here's how I'd do unique items.
1. They don't drop. Ever. They're deterministic quest rewards, for completing quests in storyline content. Know how you can pick uniques from chests at the start of Descent Champions? Like that.
2. They're tuned for storyline content, meaning they're intended to be good up until the final boss then start to feel lacklustre in postgame content. I'm not sure the game should have three difficulties, but as long as it does, "viable until and including Merciless Malachai" would be fine.
3. You can always find a better affix-based item. And I don't mean arguably better, I mean strictly superior, with affix-based items able to get the exact same beneficial mods as well as greater benefits on top. There would be zero argument for BiS. However, when you get a unique, there'd be a reasonable chance you haven't found such a rare item yet.
4. They would have interesting, gamechanging affixes you could build around (and then eventually grow into a better rare when you find it).

I disagree, if uniques were random the loot hunt would become an aimless and endless carrot on a stick with no clear path during actual gameplay pushing the reward paradigm even further towards reliance on the economy. Additionally with GGG wanting to make money from supporter uniques it will never happen.

What they could do is introduce some modularity in some uniques or somehow in addition to all uniques or as a new item class, exotic items for example. In which there were slots in addition to the item's unique affixes that included some mechanic introducing a random build it yourself component, a more robust game/loot wide enchantment system for example - or at least endgame wide.

That would extend the both the idea of rare's feeling of progression into uniques without sacrificing their identity and give that sense of 'endless gearing mode' in an fun and meaningful way.