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Favorite open world traversal this gen
- Thread starter ChouGoku
- Start date
pretty done
Member
Arkham Knight has the best gliding BY FAR, BotW ain't even close
Infamous Second Son is probably the best overall, neon powers are so dope and the TV power traversal was also really fun.
Infamous Second Son is probably the best overall, neon powers are so dope and the TV power traversal was also really fun.
Strangelove77
Member
Second Son.
Also Arkham Knight once you upgrade everything. Feels so fucking good.
Also Arkham Knight once you upgrade everything. Feels so fucking good.
Leona Lewis
Banned
NieR Automata and Infamous SS are the only open world games that don't make simply navigating around the map a total chore.
Mountainmohawk
Member
Just Cause 3
SmokedMeat
Gamer™
Lots of good mentions in this thread. Infamous SS was pretty badass once you unlocked some of the cooler powers.
yep for everything SS does wrong, traversal is done so well. Even smoke power traversal is really fun.
Can't even fake, BoTW had options for days...
Even waterfalls have several ways of being traversed lol
lvl99 Pixel
Member
Witcher 3 was beautiful and actually lets you look around while you're navigating
that music too, esp skellige
BOTW had more freedom than the other games but it wasnt really much to look at while you're scaling bland looking cliffs. Would have been neat if Link actually grabbed onto ledges kind of like Shadow of Mordor but he kinda just glides up complex castle architecture like its not there.
that music too, esp skellige
BOTW had more freedom than the other games but it wasnt really much to look at while you're scaling bland looking cliffs. Would have been neat if Link actually grabbed onto ledges kind of like Shadow of Mordor but he kinda just glides up complex castle architecture like its not there.
Tripolygon
Banned
Except the posts I quoted are literally saying BoTW does traversal and gliding better than any game, so I'm just listing games that unequivocally does them better. As for Grow Home, i prefer that mechanic to stamina based climbing.
Second Son's traversal options are definitely the highlight of the game (The less said about those boss fights the better). Id say Neon and Video are the most fun means of exploring DUP controlled Seattle.
And I'm still going over it in my brain, but I'd argue that BotW is the best game (that I've played anyways) that straddles the line of player agency and wonderfully implemented gameplay structures that makes the traversal rewarding and involving. Really good stuff.
And I'm still going over it in my brain, but I'd argue that BotW is the best game (that I've played anyways) that straddles the line of player agency and wonderfully implemented gameplay structures that makes the traversal rewarding and involving. Really good stuff.
SatoAilDarko
Member
Xenoblade Chronicles X
The multiple types of Skells with different vehicle modes and flight pack:
The on foot movement where you can fun super fast and tame huge bounding leaps to cover distance as well as scale mountains:
Allowed me to go to explore a lot of the map way before I was supposed to.
I have never felt better traversing an environment on foot or in a vehicle then I did in Xenoblade Chronicles X.
The multiple types of Skells with different vehicle modes and flight pack:
The on foot movement where you can fun super fast and tame huge bounding leaps to cover distance as well as scale mountains:
Allowed me to go to explore a lot of the map way before I was supposed to.
I have never felt better traversing an environment on foot or in a vehicle then I did in Xenoblade Chronicles X.
NinjamicWZ
Banned
It'll be awhile before I get a Switch, but I gotta cosign the Infamous Second Son, neon power answers in here. Would have forgotten about that one. Gravity Rush feels great and like nothing else too.
NieR Automata is pretty great, especially once you get your movement speed chips all the way up. Jumping on a moose or boar and having instant speed + turning response time, made me smh at the weirdness of getting on, prodding, turning and dismounting the little robo dinos in Horizon awhile back (I do need to get back and finally give that game serious time though).
I hate to say it, but worst has to be every moment that you're not on a chocobo in FFXV. Chocobo is so good, though.
NieR Automata is pretty great, especially once you get your movement speed chips all the way up. Jumping on a moose or boar and having instant speed + turning response time, made me smh at the weirdness of getting on, prodding, turning and dismounting the little robo dinos in Horizon awhile back (I do need to get back and finally give that game serious time though).
I hate to say it, but worst has to be every moment that you're not on a chocobo in FFXV. Chocobo is so good, though.
molnizzle
Member
The gliding is what I missed the most playing Horizon. Thought I was being crafty a few times escaping from some robo-dinos... nope. Just jumping to my death. lol
Tripolygon
Banned
Ok this is really freaking cool.
Spyder_Monkey
Banned
Does Gravity Rush count? Eh fuck it I'm saying Gravity Rush.
Hell yea it counts
Spring-Loaded
Member
Batman: Arkham Knight adapts various methods of traversal used in Batman media to video games. Rocksteady did a great job building a solid mechanical framework for the gameplay in the Arkham series (something no one got close to doing before). It's the closest a game has come to giving a player a comprehensive set of Batman abilities; it functionally feels like controlling (dare I say, being) Batman, in a physical sense. I've always felt each game fell short in some way, but considering how each game broke new ground in considerable ways, I could easily forgive the shortcomings.
That development of abilities culminates with Arkham Knight that lets you do just about every physical Batman maneuver to some degree. That includes all the traversal options, and how they play into how you approach an enemy watchtower or patrol. You can glide, use the zipline gadget to create a tightrope in midair, then perch above an enemy encampment. You can use the grapnel gun on a ledge where an enemy is standing, zip up to them, grab them on the way up and slam them into the ground using the momentum, then dash underneath nearby floor grates. You can drive toward a group of patrolling militia members, launch out of the Batmobile before they notice, glide to a nearby billboard/lightpole/catwalk/etc. and watch as they keep firing at the Batmobile thinking you're still inside before dropping down and taking them out one-by-one slilently, or just gliding into and dive-bombing into them.
Such a fantastic foundation, and I hope what Rocksteady accomplished can be used in the future, or at least inspires future devs.
Gravity Rush 2 does super powered traversal in a way I'd be wanting to see for a long while. Shifting the direction of Kat's personal gravity makes sense, yet it's also somewhat unwieldy—using it to fly around feels less like it was meant for flying, and more like a particular ability that you have to be creative and resource to make it work for traversal, like Spider-Man's webshooters. I compare it to inFamous 2's overall abilities) where the character has electricity powers, but they can shoot lightning bolts like a gun, can throw electricity grenades, has static hover ability, etc.—everything feels it accommodates the player at every turn, rather than requiring some ingenuity on the player's part to do something cool (every game does this of course, but iF2 really felt like it to me).
GR and GR2 really nailed that feel for me. The sense of falling is captured well too, but in a calm, tranquil way. Gravity Slide is such a cool concept for traversal and I love doing it up walls and on ceilings. The alternate gravity styles make Kat heavier to make the sliding even quicker/powerful, or makes Kat light and lets her jumps send her tumbling through the air, also allowing for a forward dash/glide that just feels great to do. Really good sense of momentum and moving through a space that's captured in those games.
haven't played Zelda, but I'm pretty sure I would really appreciate the way climbing is used. that freedom sounds great, and it also makes getting around feel significant and meaningful.
That development of abilities culminates with Arkham Knight that lets you do just about every physical Batman maneuver to some degree. That includes all the traversal options, and how they play into how you approach an enemy watchtower or patrol. You can glide, use the zipline gadget to create a tightrope in midair, then perch above an enemy encampment. You can use the grapnel gun on a ledge where an enemy is standing, zip up to them, grab them on the way up and slam them into the ground using the momentum, then dash underneath nearby floor grates. You can drive toward a group of patrolling militia members, launch out of the Batmobile before they notice, glide to a nearby billboard/lightpole/catwalk/etc. and watch as they keep firing at the Batmobile thinking you're still inside before dropping down and taking them out one-by-one slilently, or just gliding into and dive-bombing into them.
Such a fantastic foundation, and I hope what Rocksteady accomplished can be used in the future, or at least inspires future devs.
Gravity Rush 2 does super powered traversal in a way I'd be wanting to see for a long while. Shifting the direction of Kat's personal gravity makes sense, yet it's also somewhat unwieldy—using it to fly around feels less like it was meant for flying, and more like a particular ability that you have to be creative and resource to make it work for traversal, like Spider-Man's webshooters. I compare it to inFamous 2's overall abilities) where the character has electricity powers, but they can shoot lightning bolts like a gun, can throw electricity grenades, has static hover ability, etc.—everything feels it accommodates the player at every turn, rather than requiring some ingenuity on the player's part to do something cool (every game does this of course, but iF2 really felt like it to me).
GR and GR2 really nailed that feel for me. The sense of falling is captured well too, but in a calm, tranquil way. Gravity Slide is such a cool concept for traversal and I love doing it up walls and on ceilings. The alternate gravity styles make Kat heavier to make the sliding even quicker/powerful, or makes Kat light and lets her jumps send her tumbling through the air, also allowing for a forward dash/glide that just feels great to do. Really good sense of momentum and moving through a space that's captured in those games.
haven't played Zelda, but I'm pretty sure I would really appreciate the way climbing is used. that freedom sounds great, and it also makes getting around feel significant and meaningful.
ScientificPizza
Banned
Breath of the Wild really is the stand out. It just feels like you can go anywhere, but more importantly the world design feels like it expects you to be there, regardless of where you are
Bobo Dakes
Member
Breath of the Wild and Infamous easily.
Check the speedrun video : )
Yea this is one thing it has over a lot of other games. You'd go to the most random of places and yet there's something there waiting for you. It's not my outright favorite traversal this gen, but it's the one game I played that fully gave its traversal options purpose, that's for sure.
Yoshimitsu126
Member
Cannons in Super Mario 64 plus sky cap.
JK but I hope something like that returns in Odyssey.
Xeno X unlimited run plus jump momentum was fun too. Skell vehicle driving and then jumping without flying too. But flying kind of broke the game and made the world too small afterwards.
Paragliding and snowboarding in Zelda is always great as well.
JK but I hope something like that returns in Odyssey.
Xeno X unlimited run plus jump momentum was fun too. Skell vehicle driving and then jumping without flying too. But flying kind of broke the game and made the world too small afterwards.
Paragliding and snowboarding in Zelda is always great as well.
NinjamicWZ
Banned
I'm with ya. I could ride around with D-Horse in free roam for days, and the side saddle mechanic is crazy, especially if you call him in to use it in a tight spot in the middle of a base, to stroll out undetected. That's my favorite way to deploy, with regular D-Horse, minimal gear, markers turned off, variable HUD.
Plus, just moving and controlling Snake in general. The intuitive, more methodical traversal through bases is just switching gears imo. All that fine movement unfolds in the open world and applies just as much in open space side ops. Almost any similar TPS game just feels "wrong" to me now, and takes me awhile to re-acclimate.
Repeatedly diving to combine speed and stealth is my jam too. That's like Alucard's backslide tbh.
Only thing I'll knock it for is the times it won't let you walk up a weird arrangement of slanted rocks, right when you're moving in for a smooth, perfectly timed KO.
ProgenitorCastle
Banned
Gravity Rush 2. It's pretty fun to shift gravity to fall in any direction desired, essentially enabling you to fly. I love using the gravity shifting mechanic to walk upside down underneath floating islands and collecting the hidden gems underneath...so addictive to me that I'd get carried away doing that before continuing the story missions
Any game that has a mega jump/glide feature is always appreciated. Had a lot of fun traversing Saints Row IV, Arkham Knight, and the Infamous games.
I think my favorite is Sunset Overdrive. You have a big jump from extra bouncy surfaces in the game, but they also let you traverse by grinding rails, electric lines, and so forth. The game really opens up when the air dash unlocks, because you can effortlessly jump, glide, and grind to quickly get where you want in style.
I think my favorite is Sunset Overdrive. You have a big jump from extra bouncy surfaces in the game, but they also let you traverse by grinding rails, electric lines, and so forth. The game really opens up when the air dash unlocks, because you can effortlessly jump, glide, and grind to quickly get where you want in style.
Xenoblade X . I loved how high you could jump on foot even before you got your skells, exploring the game was wonderful both on foot and flying.. + AUTO RUN is the best thing about this game
Breath of the wild comes 2nd, while i kinda didn't like it at first too slow + rain lol, later on it just felt very natural and satisfying to reach new heights.
Breath of the wild comes 2nd, while i kinda didn't like it at first too slow + rain lol, later on it just felt very natural and satisfying to reach new heights.
ShutterMunster
Junior Member
I'm actually stunned by the lack of Infamous SS mentions.
Unlimited neon is just fucking ridiculous. Shooting up through a ground level vent and exploding out the rooftop vent. I mean you get pixelated angel wings that practically let you soar around Seattle. Traversal in that game is fucking nuts.
It's cool that you can climb anything in BOTW but it's not inherently fun to me.
Unlimited neon is just fucking ridiculous. Shooting up through a ground level vent and exploding out the rooftop vent. I mean you get pixelated angel wings that practically let you soar around Seattle. Traversal in that game is fucking nuts.
It's cool that you can climb anything in BOTW but it's not inherently fun to me.
Sword Of Doom
Member
When I saw this thread I immediately thought of BoTW but the more I think about it, I think I mostly ran in the game And even then I'm constantly worried about my stamina meter. I think BoTW is the most explorable open world game but I'm not sure it has the best traversal
Like the Person below me posted, I'm not sure either why people love the climbing in BoTW. For me it's cool that you can climb anything, but I never enjoyed actually climbing. It was a means to an end
Like the Person below me posted, I'm not sure either why people love the climbing in BoTW. For me it's cool that you can climb anything, but I never enjoyed actually climbing. It was a means to an end
CaptainAmeijin
Member
I'm not sure I understand why climbing is so beloved in Breath of the Wild. Sure, I like the idea of being able to explore anywhere, but hiking up mountains felt like a game of stamina management and finding the right triangle to rest on. There are plenty of things the game does right but I think the visuals and textures start to suffer when you're looking at the same few mountain polygons for half an hour. Boy did I love gliding, though.
I'll probably give the win to Arkham Knight, though I think Second Son is a great runner-up. Zipping around Gotham was an absolute blast, and it really nailed the gliding mechanics that I liked in Breath of the Wild. Haven't gotten around to Gravity Rush 2 yet but the original was awesome to traverse.
Xenoblade X's traversal is pretty overrated. The Skells have great designs but they really lost steam after the first hour or so playing around with them. Mechanically, they're pretty much the same as flying in any other game.
I'll probably give the win to Arkham Knight, though I think Second Son is a great runner-up. Zipping around Gotham was an absolute blast, and it really nailed the gliding mechanics that I liked in Breath of the Wild. Haven't gotten around to Gravity Rush 2 yet but the original was awesome to traverse.
Xenoblade X's traversal is pretty overrated. The Skells have great designs but they really lost steam after the first hour or so playing around with them. Mechanically, they're pretty much the same as flying in any other game.
Sword Of Doom
Member
The neon power is cool. Turning into smoke and going up a pipe doesn't get enough love though.
BlondeTuna
Member
BotW is my number one this gen for traversal: Climb anything, paraglide, shield surf, and
, each one an individual joy or combine all four for some great moments.
I would probably put Infamous: SS as the number 2 for fun traversal.
vertical boost
I would probably put Infamous: SS as the number 2 for fun traversal.
Exploratory
Banned
Arkham Knight man. Be the Batman indeed. Nothing beats just constantly chaining together glides and grappling.