What happened to Open World games?

[Maurice Caine]

One of the things I really miss about gaming was when Open World games didn't look like checklists and were actually unique from each other. From games such as Driver: Parallel Lines and Scarface: The World is Yours to Just Cause, we had a lot of variety and unique ways devs would tackle this new idea pioneered by Rockstar in Grand Theft Auto.

...but what happened to that type of open-world? Nobody makes them anymore. Why is that? I'd think with today's technology you could do a lot of wacky stuff that those PS2 games didn't even dream of doing.

 

[Shig O'nella]

Too many gamers are (obsessive) minmaxers.
Can't do that in an open world game and it offends their autism something fierce.

 

[MrTroll]

Open world games always looked like checklists, going back to GTA3 and its vast and meticulous list of requirements for 100%.

 

[Table Country]

The thing is, we do have the kind of technology to make open world games better than they used to be, while BOTW and MGSV are both checklisty in their own way, I'd say they come close to being the ideal open world game. I know Elden Ring is something of a dead horse at this point, but it's probably the most recent example of a "proper" open world game.
The issue usually comes in that the big open world maps are big and open for the sole reason of being big and open, and the devs aren't in the headspace of making big open world games.

 

[iceteayo]

Too many gamers are (obsessive) minmaxers.
Can't do that in an open world game and it offends their autism something fierce.

is that an open world issue or a modern day gamer issue? I keep seeing this complaint everywhere in any genre and not just video gaming either.

 

[Red Hood]

They developed into a formula is what happened.

Most lack an interesting enough premise, the only one I really remember liking much is Sleeping Dogs.

 

[Maurice Caine]

Open world games always looked like checklists, going back to GTA3 and its vast and meticulous list of requirements for 100%.

GTA3 didn't straight up tell you what to do/not do.

 

[Prophetic Spirit]

Elder Scrolls hasn't a 100% list so is more fun to play.

 

[Lemmingwise]

Don't worry. They're working on the ultimate open world game.

Have fun in the metaverse.

In the meantime if you want a fun open world-ish game, give subnautica a go. Just avoid the sequel like the plague and go into the game with as little guides as possible.

 

[Samson Pumpkin Jr.]

I agree, Open World games are becoming increasingly rare. It's a shame because they offer so much more freedom and opportunity for exploration than linear games. I hope that developers will begin to see the value in open world design and start making more of them again in the future.

 

[MrTroll]

GTA3 didn't straight up tell you what to do/not do.

That doesn't mean that it's not ultimately an itemized list of mindless, rote tasks to accomplish for the sake of completion, it just means you need to do them with minimal or no guidance. In many ways, GTA3 would have been massively improved if it did tell you exactly what to do or not do.

The real problem with contemporary open-world games is not that they are simplistic scavenger hunts (and occasional grindfests when incorporating "RPG" elements), but that they're extremely bloated in order to present the illusion of having a great wealth of content. A 20-hour collectathon is one thing, but a 200-hour one is about the same amount of content, just repeated 10 times over.

 

[Ser Prize]

Open world became a buzzword that hipsters started hating on.

 

[SSj_Ness (Yiffed)]

Open world games always looked like checklists, going back to GTA3 and its vast and meticulous list of requirements for 100%.

Exactly. They were just conceptually interesting and technologically fascinating because they were new at the time. Now they're just samey time sinks, it's time to return to linearity.

 

[wtfNeedSignUp]

A lot of gaming elements became overly generic as studios found what the average brain-dead normie player wants and just repeated it ad-infinitum. Sandbox is the worse one since it's basically a huge checklist rather than organic exploration.

 

[The Last Stand]

Ubisoft games happened. Assassin's Creed practically normalized this brand of open world games. Random collectibles in the hundreds for artificial length.

 

[Scarlett Johansson]

It depends i think.

GTA, Spider Man, Xenoblade, Watch Dogs 2 and Legion, Sleeping Dogs, BOTW,

their open worlds are all good imo. They may get boring after a while but they're living breathing cities. (Special points to Legion for capturing that shitty UK vibe)

But there are some games that try to be open world and just....fail. Andromeda, Mafia 3, etc.

 

[Erika Furudo]

They became popular and devs had no idea why, so we ended up with empty open world games where it just extends play time by having you go from A to B with nothing interesting happening. The best example is Mirrors Edge Catalyst,

Open world stuff only works when the world has interesting things to find and a sense of exploration, combined with allowing you more flexibility in how you play the game to increase replay value.

 

[Montalbane]

Simply put they don't know why open world is fun.

Stalker is still the best out there due to A-life.
Going out of zaton and encountering a mutant swarm or enemy patrol makes the game interesting.
The amtosphere and tone also help.
Meanwhile you got the newest assassin creed feeling like a worksheet for what the suits think open world is more than anything else.

 

[nichtmeinName]

Piranha Bytes best known for the Gothic Game Series has good Open Worlds.
There are no Quest Markers so you actually have to explore the World and find Points of Interest.
The World is handcrafted so those Points of Interest look nice and contain strong unleveld Gear which plays nice with the next Point.
The World doesnt level with you so you can encounter the strongest Enemies on Lvl 1 which gives a sense of Danger and Progression when you are finally able to beat them with more ease or at all later on in the Game.

 

[Power Glove]

Ubisoft games happened. Assassin's Creed practically normalized this brand of open world games. Random collectibles in the hundreds for artificial length.

I would add Far Cry games to that list too, they plastered the world with busywork and are somehow now an unofficial blueprint for open world games. Which is why people from Ubisoft were seething at Elden Ring's open world design because it didn't follow their neat blueprint they spent years imprinting on the games industry.

I have nothing against Ubisoft games mind you, on the contrary, I am still having a blast with AC: Valhalla, but gaming to me is something I do to relax after work. Those games are perfect for that, but that it's refreshing when the formula gets shaken up from time to time, at least.