The old potion system is not very good.
- Completely GUI based, I want to play the game not look at menu screens.
- No freedom. Every recipe just has a single static recipe. How uninteresting.
- No creativity. You don't have any choices in how you want to make the potions.
- It wasn't made by me. And that sure is a dealbreaker.
This new system...
- Forces you to think critically about what to mix how or you'll end up with a potion that will harm you.
- Allows the creation of over 100000 different possible potion variations.
- Lets you create more unique potions better suitable for different situations.
- Is entirely used by interacting with a beautiful block entity, no menus required.
- And Adds some more fun effects.
- Also, I made it.
Spiritually, Crafty Concoctions is inspired by Breath of the Wild's approach to cooking & what I believe Jeb was aiming for when he was initially attempting to make a more interesting potion system before they settled on the current one. Check out his twitter timeline in 2011 for more interesting insight.
For all of the info, check out this video: