We deserve better than the boring carry capacity systems 90% of RPGs give us, but games like Death Stranding 2 and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 show the way forward

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Much like many RPG players who were surrounded by The Elder Scrolls and Fallout games during their upbringing, I have a strong craving for loot. If you attach a large number to any item, rest assured that I’ll fill an unreasonable amount of them into my backpack before trudging back to the nearest settlement to offload them.

One time, I made a rather regrettable decision in the game Kingdom Come: Deliverance. (Please forgive any inconvenience this might cause.) Instead of focusing on strategy, I systematically cleared an entire battlefield, painstakingly transporting my haul to the nearest town at a snail’s pace. Once there, I used all my Groschen to purchase the most extravagant armor set and Herod’s Sword.

Although I haven’t regretted obtaining the most overpowered sword in the game – it frequently ended up killing opponents in friendly sparring matches with a single strike, leaving me to apologetically say “Not again” as guards approached – it has caused me to ponder on how RPG loot and carrying capacity have affected my thinking. Time and again, I’ve transported massive amounts of treasure back to settlements to accumulate more wealth, but is hoarding so much really worthwhile?

I firmly disagree, and I might even argue that load capacity is often lackluster in most role-playing games. To clarify, my recent experience with Death Stranding 2 has solidified this opinion for me. The burden of being overloaded is tiresome; it essentially translates to a message saying “You’ve had enough” and directs you towards the nearest populated area so you can offload your goods at various merchants.

As a gamer, I appreciate the periodic return to settlements in games as it keeps me engaged with NPCs, their tales, and new quests. In survival crafting games, it encourages me to create a backpack or build storage for my base. However, it can feel tedious to represent what I’m carrying. What Death Stranding 2 does exceptionally well is giving me the freedom to carry items as I see fit. I can strap packages to my arms, legs, stack a precarious tower on my back, or even deploy a charming little floating cart that I tow along on a leash.

Even the most seemingly mundane elements can be turned into a satisfying part of the simulation.

In tailoring the items you transport, it adds a personal touch to your loot and carrying capacity, making it more of an aesthetic choice as you decide where to secure your chosen items. This customization also mirrors your playstyle, allowing you to prioritize what you need quickly at hand.

However, you’re right that Death Stranding 2, with its focus on carry capacity, might not require such a complex RPG system for simply transporting items. Yet, there seems to be room for compromise. For example, consider the armor system in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 – it offers a balance between customization and functionality, providing a potential model for Death Stranding 2’s loot system.

In Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, the intricate rules governing the selection and placement of gear, coupled with its social implications and cleanliness factor, underscores that even ordinary aspects can contribute significantly to the immersive simulation experience in an RPG. I find myself relishing the ritual of taking a bath and meticulously donning my clothes and armor, layer by layer, as if preparing for a real-world adventure and embarking on quests.

This system could serve as a solid foundation for a more engaging way to manage equipment and items in games, similar to my experience in Red Dead Redemption 2 and Red Dead Online. I enjoyed customizing my cowboy character by choosing between single or double holsters, selecting the ideal long arm, and changing outfits depending on the weather. The balance between practical carrying capacity and rewards in Red Dead is commendable, as you can attach skins and carcasses to your horse’s back or invest in a wagon for additional storage.

Among the gear and carrying capacity systems I enjoy, there’s an intriguing one that manifests as a Tabletop Role-Playing Game (TTRPG) known as Blades in the Dark. In this game, you assume the role of a criminal embarking on heists within a city reminiscent of Dishonored, named Doskvol. Before each mission, you get to select your loadout, which can be “Light”, “Normal”, or “Heavy”. This choice impacts both the amount you can carry and your level of stealth, bearing some resemblance to the system used in Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2.

Here’s an interesting twist; you can reveal items only when you decide to use them. For instance, if someone attacks me and I need a weapon, I declare that I have a blade and cross off one item from my load. While this might not be practical in video games, it demonstrates that carrying capacity can add excitement and importance to the gameplay experience, rather than just being plain numbers on a list.

Just having a backpack like Sam’s would be a total game-changer for most RPGs.

As a hardcore gamer, can you envision the sheer awesomeness of an RPG that mirrors Death Stranding 2’s depth in inventory management? Picture yourself as a mage, brimming with magical trinkets and potion components, carefully stashed away in numerous pouches you’ve painstakingly organized. Or perhaps you embody the fearsome barbarian, laden with an arsenal of weapons, transforming into a mobile armory with every strap and holster. Even as a sly rogue, you could hide an array of weapons, gadgets, and pilfered goods beneath your seemingly unassuming exterior. The mere prospect of a backpack akin to Sam’s would revolutionize most RPGs, offering the freedom to arrange your gear and attach items at will.

It seems that many games have opted for the path of least resistance, using numbers to represent gear and loot (carry capacity). However, this approach may not fully grasp the significance of these items because by turning them into tangible objects, we ascribe a higher value to them. Imagine, in an RPG like Sea of Thieves, you could physically carry a treasure chest on your back. Or, similar to Diablo 4, adorn yourself with stolen riches as if they were flashy skins. What if the items that cosmetics and skins typically attach to, were instead literally attached to you?

Incorporating loot and equipment into tangible, on-person items enhances the competitive aspect of carry capacity, which I believe many games could greatly benefit from. This concept is effectively employed by extraction shooters, where the “Kill your darlings” mentality towards gear and loot limits what you can carry and gives you limited time to choose. Which do you find more appealing: a bulky list of 300lbs worth of assorted items, or a pouch brimming with gold coins that spills as you fight your way out of a dungeon?

It seems you understand that your request for increased carry capacity in most games might be excessive. Carry capacity itself isn’t problematic, nor is the numerical system harsh—in fact, it’s familiar to us all. Nevertheless, I share your belief that there could be a more immersive interpretation of carry capacity within games, one that fosters a thoughtful and valued interaction with loot and equipment, instead of the conventional RPG style where players systematically empty dungeons.

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2025-08-04 17:33