Elden Ring really shook up the landscape of our industry. Especially for Open-World games. There was a kerfuffle a couple of weeks back where Ubisoft developers (of course, our chief topic of discussion 😂) had the gal to criticize Fromsoftware's design decisions. 🤣
Well, let's talk about it. Let's step back from the constant gaming title discussion and focus on something more... real. (you think I know what that sentence meant? heh) 😋 What I'm trying to say is: time for another column. 🙌 and I'm not talking about pillars here, people!
This time around we're gonna be tackling Open-World games, and the ever-evolving design problems this genre has had over the past several years.
"Games with open or free-roaming worlds typically lack level structures like walls and locked doors or the invisible walls in more open areas that prevent the player from venturing beyond them; only at the bounds of an open-world game will players be limited by geographic features like vast oceans or impassable mountains."
The Open-World genre is a relatively new genre. Even though it doesn't feel like it. This last decade we've gotten so many Open_world games that the concept has become tiring to say the least. 😫
I remember at one point when Open-World games were the bees knees, mennn. Everyone and their Mother wanted new Open-Worlds. And more, and bigger, and even more. Until...they became stale and formulaic. 😭 Devs found something that worked and went ham on it. As this corporate-driven industry is wont to do.
That corporate mindset might be good for quarterly profits, but it's sure $#!% at creating fun games. In fact, it's the opposite. I swear suits are experts at creating boring stuff they can sell to the uninitiated. 😁
The front-runner for this despicable behavior? Ubisoft.
Assassin's Creed is great but it has become a shell of its former identity. At this point, the name only sticks because the franchise sells copies - not because you play like an assassin. And the typical Ubisoft mechanics associated with the genre (watchtowers, bandit camps, pointless map markers) have become a meme rather than some endearing factor.
But before we talk about the bad, let's talk about what made Open-World games so intriguing to be with. Why were people so drawn to them❓
"While games have used open-world designs since the 1980s, the implementation in Grand Theft Auto III (2001) set a standard for the concept which has been used since"
When they were a novelty, these games were jaw-dropping. "You have an entire world you can walk around?" Yeah, dawg. Check it 😎.
i remember when oblivion came out and blew everyone's collective minds. And you would get like one each couple of years, not a couple each year 🤢. And because of the technical limitations, they weren't bloated with anything and everything the devs could come up with.
In other words: abundance is never good.
The prospect is that players have freedom of choice in tackling and revealing the world. It's empowering. You feel like you are a part of it all like you really are the Dragonborn sent on an epic quest to save the world. (until you encounter a mud crab and flee in terror)
The sense of discovery is what really drives these games. It's what makes us connect with them on a deeper level. GTA was great at giving you a sandbox to explore, while TES games established themselves as the RPG go-to. There would be hundreds of these titles over the years, and I bet every player on the planet has tried at least one once. 🙂
In other words: when they work, they work.
"While the openness of the game world is an important facet to games featuring open worlds, the main draw of open-world games is about providing the player with autonomy – not so much the freedom to do anything they want in the game (which is nearly impossible with current computing technology), but the ability to choose how to approach the game and its challenges in the order and manner as the player desires while still constrained by gameplay rules."
False choice always gets me. Not just me. Most of the gaming community has expressed dislike for the false branching paths.
I'd say bad Open-World games (boring ones, at least) fall into this trap. When the map is segmented in such a way that you are basically playing a linear game with a bit of a wider path. And for the record, there's nothing wrong with that, is just bad in the sense of Open-World design.
The other being (and this is CDPR's fault) an overabundance of map markers. To the point where your illusion of choice is overwhelmed. You have so much to do that you end up doing nothing. FOMO kicking you in the gut. 😰 I say it's CDPR's fault because they popularized this method with the Witcher 3 - where they did it so well it became the GOTD - so then of course, other studios tried emulating it. To little success. 😅
Ubisoft especially has taken this method to heart. Their games are so formulaic that the fun of exploring just isn't there. You essentially get a constant peek behind the curtain. If you've played one Ubisoft open-world game, you've played them all. And that's such a shame since these games are hundreds of hours long, with quest lines that span hundreds of voice-actors. For all that work to be forgettable? Or even worse - mediocre? That's just... oof 😬
And when you rely on non-content to fill your world, the game obviously becomes boring. Because a vital part (the discovery aspect) is missing. But wait! When you open your map you get a thousand markers thrown at you - that's just the illusion of tangible activity. 🤓 Since every bandit camp you clear will give you the exact same feeling as every bandit camp before/after. Kinda defeats the purpose ya know.
And this is in no way the fault of the developers. These games are produced on an assembly line. Game Directors have little choice in introducing a new mechanic or improving on existing ones when the deadline is for the autumn quarter. Always.
"The mechanics of open-world games are often overlapped with ideas of sandbox games, but these are considered different terms. Whereas open-world refers to the lack of limits for the player's exploration of the game's world, sandbox games are based on the ability to give the player tools for creative freedom within the game to approach objectives,"
The above quote sums it up for me. ☝️
Games like Breath of the Wild and Elden Ring get this concept to a T. You feel like there are no restrictions in your journey. You can go anywhere and do anything. It's a fulfillment of the initial promise. And it seems gamers agree as well since these games both sold like gangbusters. 🤑
I would also like to say that Cyberpunk 2077 has an amazing "classic" open-world as well. And it's been only getting better with each patch. The game has a lot of shortcomings, however, its world is not one of them. 😇
I would say if CDPR keeps improving on Cyberpunk's formula that it might become that sweet spot between classic open-world games, and the new and exciting additions like ER and BotW. For me, that would be a perfect open-world game. You have the freedom to go anywhere, but you also have guidelines and signposts.
As good as Elden Ring is, it is a bit too obtuse. A few more helpers would be welcomed IMHO. (please don't burn me alive...)
But that's just a hunch. Game development is a fluid thing. And a lot of mechanics are interconnected. Developing games is hard, developing Open-World games? Pheeeww 😱 So I understand Ubisoft's approach because at least the games end up getting made. 😁
The thing about these games is the design challenges are vast. Creating a truly free experience is near-impossible. And while we have made a breakthrough in recent years, I feel like we are on the precipice of greatness - not there yet, but super close.
Hope you guys enjoyed it. 🙏
This is a fun genre and this was a fun write-up. I find it fascinating how something so popular can become so polarizing. Just goes to show you can run any trend/fab/trope into the ground real quick.
Still though, I hope for more sandbox games and fore less Ubisoft copy/pastes. Yes? Thank youuu~ 😘
Shout-out to the boys over at 🍕PIZZA🍕 gang, 🤙 gang. 🤙
👊 Follow me on my HIVE blog 👊
Have a great weekend! 🙌
Return from How Open is too Open? to Јоцко's Web3 Blog
