Anyone got to think that forcing players to get low end gear, in order to be able to play low end content, which then rewards more low end gear, might not be the best idea?
Requiring good gear for end game content works, because people tend to want to get better and stronger.
You get better (gear) and are rewarded with higher effectiveness and additional content to play (with new rewards).
That does not really work with requiring people to actively get and equip "bad" gear, in order to be allowed to play low tier content, which then rewards more low tier gear.
Also, how would you restrict the access, if the content is located in the open world?
Invisible walls for those who have a high tier item equipped?
I think it would be a better idea to have different "tiers" of content simply reward different stuff (being different in more than power level).
If items with some special effects are exclusive rewards to certain areas, anyone who wants to use them (for any content), has to get them from these areas.
That can make low level areas attractive to advanced players.
However, this should not force people to equip low level gear, which would have a negative impact on gameplay experience and also create major problems regarding restriction of access.
Now to solve some problems with this:
Player/Enemy scaling (low tier enemies not becoming entirely obsolete to higher tier players):
>> players (items) and enemies have a power level, which works as a multiplier to their stats
>> enemies in an area have a spectrum of power levels (i.e. 1-9, 10-19, 20-29, ...)
>> if a player uses items, which have a "too high" power level for the area, the items will automatically be scaled down to match the enemies, for the duration of the player staying within the borders of that specific area
Item Scaling (low tier items being worth getting picked up):
>> items have a power level, determining their current strength (i.e. base stats multiplied by power level)
>> base stats determine the general strength (or potential) of an item
>> power level can be upgraded, using resources from the area of the respective power level (or the one above), effectively making every item available at max power level
>>> i.e. to get an item of power level 1-9 to power up by 10 (to 11-19), you would need resources from the area, which rewards gear with respective (or one tier higher) power level
Why?
>> due to different base stats, there would be items, that are simply different, or flat out better than others (independent of level)
>> most items would not become obsolete, since they can be kept and gradually upgraded while progressing through the game
>> a beloved weapon, that was picked up along the way, could stay relevant
>> "special" items from lower level areas would become relevant for every player tier
>> resources from areas of every level would stay relevant for every (especially higher) player tier, as long as there are low level items with good base stats
>> simply adding a new exclusive reward to an area of any level, can make that area more interesting for the player base
>> "base stats x power level" system allows easier understanding of the possible value of any item in late game
>> due to low tier gear staying relevant, and higher tier gear being added/researched, the spectrum of gear variety will grow (can not possibly shrink), as the player progresses
