What's your favorite crafting/research system in games?

[kirdovada 0]

Hey folks,

I play quite a few games that involve crafting (from first person games like Green Hell/7 days to die, to more base management games like Oxygen Not included), and, I've noticed some games just "feel" better in terms of crafting (and the crafting progression/research trees). Some games feel quite unsatisfying when just clicking unlocks in a research tree, but I can't quite pinpoint what it is that makes one better over another.

Curious to hear what everyone's favorite crafting system is, or what you love or hate about crafting systems (or more specifically how crafting progression is done, e.g. research tree vs finding blueprints).

Do you prefer a branching research tree that unlocks crafting options, or you do prefer other ways?

[meadowopera 0]

Most of the games I can think of combine those two approaches, for example, I played Dying Light recently, and there you need to search for new crafting recipes within the world, but you also unlock new ones via the skill tree. I really love that system, since both paths are rewarding and worth spending time on. Of course, it has a lot to do with the core gameplay loop of that title. So, I guess my view is that a crafting system needs to add to the experience and not be an arbitrary nuisance or needless time sink...