While I think this is definitely true, I think it's also possible to fix, with a bit of creativity and no real systems changes.

It is very easy to fix.

More unique gear that is only from crafting like how we have the Aegis set. Make the crafting gear a little cheaper because it is expensive needing Schematics + Data Samples/Particle Traces (boring way to acquire) + Unreplicateable Materials (costs Dilithium to buy). That is just wrong wrong wrong costing requirements to craft stuff.

There are lots of ways to make it more involved and immersive. Its just not that kind of a game though. Everything is pretty much simple mode, they are appealing to Star Trek fan base which is older and has day jobs. Skill gain is quick, combat is point and click, no item loss on death, consumables can be replicated instead of bought from vendors, etc. No room for complex resource gathering systems, crafting skill trees, all that jazz, its not that kind of game.

Instead of using dilithium to craft how about adding unique item drops from bosses and adventure zones to replace the non replicatable things.

What I think would be better is make some new funner exploration missions that reward crafting materials in addition to some dilithium.

Yes, you could get the special crafting materials/schematic from completing exploration missions or trading with new species.

Crafting is so bad because just about everything in it is worthless. If you're going to pay stupid quantities of minerals for something, it had better be top of the line, or there's no use. Why bother buying stuff you're just going to flush down the terlet anyway? So much of it is bound, so the resale value is nil. It fails to alter the end result, other than that you wind up poorer for it.

If it was free junk you could assemble with other free junk, it would have a purpose. If it was GOOD stuff, it would have a purpose. But paying stupid quantities of minerals for vendortrash? Forget it. Just more worthless garbage like most of the junk in the D-Store, a button that no longer serves any useful purpose other than a trick for scamming newbies who don't realize how worthless that stuff is.

In a system were you can lvl to the top of crafting in 1-2 hours (I did it by crafting tons of hypos), what do you expect?

It sucks cause it's wrong and it would require not a total revamp, but starting from scratch.

The devs have tried three times now with crafting. The way it was at launch. Fail. The first revamp. Fail. The second revamp. Fail.

Apparently they can't fix it.