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[The perfect Dark]

I don't get the complaints.
I'm currently replaying Dead Space 3 (hated it the first time one year ago) and I don't know why...but love it. Maybe because It's not as linear as the second one.
Anyway backtracking is great, especially in horror games. You never now if something changes when you visit "old places" for a second time. Backtracking doesn't mean the Devs are lazy....it's the atmosphere.
Remember Silent Hill 1-3? Resident Evil 1-3?
Why is this feature such a point of criticism?

 

[injurai]

I love it when you have an inkling your supposed to double back, or you are straight up directed through various cues. Dead Space does it really well, Bioshock 1 sort of does this too though it's more your open to explore these semi-fragmented paths heading off of a hub. Probably not what your talking about, but I have always love how the God of War games will have your path cross back over previous areas of a level. Typically the first time through there are zero clues in the environment that suggest you will be revisiting it. But sure enough you see it from a distance, or transverse straight back through the area. But it always plays different, which is really cool.

Hard Rain from Left 4 Dead 2!

How could I forget, probably my favorite example.

 

[old manatee]

Hard Rain from Left 4 Dead 2!

 

[Sgblues]

I don't mind backtracking in games either, I do love seeing changes to areas I've been through before, be it new enemies, layout changes, item placement, stuff like that.

 

[Gentleman Jack]

"Snake, you need a sniper rifle."

 

[Nimajneb]

Back tracking is a sign of good level design. If you're never going backward, you must be walking in a straight line. Maybe people don't like it because you actually have to think about where you're going. Games where you just walk forward and/or follow objective markers the entire time seem to be what's popular these days.

 

[Aesius]

Backtracking in Metroid-style games is awesome.

Nothing more satisfying than finally getting to reach a previously inaccessible area.

 

[encephalon]

There is no such thing as Metroidvania without backtracking. It makes locations more interesting. The locations in classic RE games are as iconic as the characters themselves, simply because of the way they are designed.

Backtracking in Metroid-style games is awesome.

Nothing more satisfying than finally getting to reach a previously inaccessible area.

Not to mention sense of mystery that locked door creates to begin with.

 

[legacyzero]

Back tracking can be done very wrong (IE: DMC4) but mostly, it can be great, if it's not too excessive.

 

[dancingphlower]

I liked how it was done in the old Devil May Cry games (which inherited it from Resident Evil!). DmC is prettier, but the actual level design is weak.

 

[rabhw]

Back tracking is a sign of good level design. If you're never going backward, you must be walking in a straight line. Maybe people don't like it because you actually have to think about where you're going. Games where you just walk forward and/or follow objective markers the entire time seem to be what's popular these days.

While I know what you mean, there are plenty of games these days that combine the worst of both.

Long, linear corridors for 2 hours, complete objective, cinematic, turn around and go back through the exact same area. Often poorly disguised by them doing a lame gimmick like the power now being out, or post-explosion with some shitty debris scattered.

Edit: can't forget that there's always magically new enemies that have now appeared in the areas you just cleared out moments earlier. Gotta pad that game length!

 

[Tagyhag]

I only really liked it in Hard Rain and RE4, everywhere else it just feels tedious.

 

[CheisGuy]

I don't mind backtracing except for in Daikatana. Remember, this is the first ten minutes of the game.

 

[statham]

I hate all backtracking.

 

[Oidisco]

When backtracking is done well, it can be a really great aspect of the game. Metroid Prime and Super Metroid immediately come to mind of backtracking done right.

 

[Cudder]

You point to SH1-3 for backtracking and not 4? Lol. That game was literally just the first half folded over onto the second half.

 

[Nimajneb]

While I know what you mean, there are plenty of games these days that combine the worst of both.

Long, linear corridors for 2 hours, complete objective, cinematic, turn around and go back through the exact same area. Often poorly disguised by them doing a lame gimmick like the power now being out, or post-explosion with some shitty debris scattered.

Forcing the player to redo the same section to again to pad out the game length is certainly the bad kind of backtracking. If the game is completely linear, I'm not sure it should be called back tracking, they're just using the same level again.

 

[ASIS]

When backtracking is done well, it can be a really great aspect of the game. Metroid Prime and Super Metroid immediately come to mind of backtracking done right.

And Pikmin 3, don't forget Pikmin 3

Anyway, yeah I love revisiting old locations with new abilities/things to do with them. Even if they could somehow implement these new elements in entirely new levels it just doesn't feel as rewarding for me personally.

 

[jokebreath]

I agree 100%, I love backtracking as well, it cements the setting for a game and provides a sense of "world." Not sure how else to describe it. In a Call of Duty game, you start at Point A, then move to Point B, then C, etc. until you end at Point R or whatever. As soon as the game ends, the world dissolves. When you're going through the game, you move quickly along the path the game sets for you, but you don't notice any of the scenery and everything feels disjointed from everything else.

In a game like Dark Souls, for example, where you're constantly backtracking, you really get a feel for the world. As you go over the same environments again and again, you notice little details you never did before, and you map out the spatial relationship between the different locations in your head. To me, this is much more enjoyable than being shuffled from one scene to the next to never return again, even when it's well done like an Uncharted.

 

[Valkerionseven]

I like backtracking in set enclosed environments, IE the mansion, police station ect. ect. It makes the devs take more time on the feel of the world ect imo. Only time I felt back tracking was a cop out was DMC4, as much as I liked the game, was pretty uninteresting how they did it.

 

[Nickle]

Backtracking is one of the things that ruined the replay ability of Skyward Sword. When you are forced to go through the same linear path over and over, you memorize its layout, running any future exploration.

Metroid Prime and Super Metroid both perfected the art of backtracking.

 

[Laranja]

You point to SH1-3 for backtracking and not 4? Lol. That game was literally just the first half folded over onto the second half.

As much as I like Silent Hill 4, it really isn't an example of backtracking done right.

 

[MaximoffZero]

My favorite times are when you revisit an old area that's been heavily altered since your previous visit (i.e., destroyed, on fire, submerged under water). It gives you a great sense that you are actually in a living, changing world and things that happen in the game have very tangible effects.

 

[ItIsOkBro]

My favourite type of backtracking is going back to old areas with new abilities, allowing you to access more.

 

[Soul_Pie]

Backtracking is a difficult thing to get right, though, which is probably why it's so rarely attempted these days because it takes really good, thoughtful level design to achieve properly. I was recently playing through metroid prime and just thinking about the amount of forward planning the game must have required, the delicate balance they had to strike between pushing the player forward while encouraging them to explore previous areas, the way shortcuts open up and new pathways appear, the way they have to litter the areas with clues as to which upgrades to use... (rain falling on invisible platforms was ingenious). The process must be absolutely meticulous. Nothing feels accidental or thoughtless.

I also like backtracking because in a general sense as it encourages players to become more perceptive of their surroundings, you also typically spend longer exploring the environment which in turn tends to give you a greater appreciation for the detail. You also tend to become familiar with the layout/design of the levels and the way they connect which in turn gives you an appreciation of the thought that goes into them. I also like the pacing of many backtrack heavy games, they allow the player a chance to take in the world properly and gives the player a sense of place.

 

[djshauny]

"Snake, you need a sniper rifle."

Haha I remember the first time that happend lol

 

[BinaryPork2737]

Some backtracking is pretty terrible. For example, I just recently finished playing Tales of Phantasia.

So midway through the game you reach a point where there is a very annoying section of backtracking. You have to spend a night at an inn in a city we'll call City A. There's a cutscene and then you have to go to Harbor A. A ship will take you to Harbor B on a different continent. You then travel to City B and the forest just beyond it. There's another cutscene and you have to go back to City A but you can't use Harbor B since the trip you took was one way only. So you have to go back through City B, through a mountain pass, walk past City C, walk through City D because you can't walk around it, and reach City E. City E hosts Harbor C which will take you back to Harbor A and thus City A. Somewhere in City A will be a nameless NPC that will tell you to go find a thing in a different forest. So now you have to go to Harbor D on the same continent as City A. This harbor will take you to Harbor E on yet another continent. You walk past City F to another continent accessed by a series of bridges. On the way to your destination you also bypass City G. Past City G is a maze that you are forced to take for the second time to reach the second forest, the only new area during this segment, to find the important thing. So you finish up finding the thing and a cutscene plays during which you're teleported to the first forest.

Visual of the Routes to Follow by Color Coding: Black, Burgundy, Orange, Green, Blue, Purple.

Do you see how fucking complicated that is!?! That's bullshit! This is why backtracking in some games, especially when combined with Fetch Quests, can reach frustrating levels of stupidity, especially when when there's a ton of steps that could be cut out from this convoluted process to streamline it. None of the areas are interesting. None of the areas are changed from when you lasted visited each area. You're mainly fighting lower level enemies between each location that are so incredibly easy to beat that each fight might as well have been skippable.

 

[Papercuts]

This was unintended backtracking but I remember when I first played RE4, I missed the thermal scope and was basically getting destroyed by the Iron Maiden. I looked it up and realized I missed it in the freezer...so I had to go back down the hallways with regenerators. It was in the middle of the night and the fucking wheezing noise they do that echo through the hallway was terrifying.

God dammit I love RE4. There's a more proper example in this game after the lake fight and Leon passes out. Wake up in the rainy night and at one point merge back up to the original Village section, get Ashley, and keep going, but it's mixed up due to the big environmental tone shift.

 

[CuznLarry]

I love backtracking

I wish I could hate you to death..

Backtracking is one of the last sloppy nuances of gameplay that has got to go.

 

[woxel1]

I hate games where you just push on and never have to go back so yeah I guess I like backtracking.

 

[Rell]

I like it in general. Especially in games like the first Resident Evil, where the game isn't a linear series of areas but instead an open space to explore.

DMC4 did it pretty well also, I think. The enemies are different, so it's not actually the same thing twice. But what it does do is establish the area we traverse as more than meaningless backdrops, it gives a bit more of a sense of connectivity and continuity to the setting.

 

[CrackPebbles]

I don't really care..ill defend dmc4 to death but I can see why its backtracking is considered a flaw. Regardless that was the high point of the first playthrough for me, just because going from Nero to Dante was STAGGERING! I was in awe.

 

[koopas]

My favorite times are when you revisit an old area that's been heavily altered since your previous visit (i.e., destroyed, on fire, submerged under water). It gives you a great sense that you are actually in a living, changing world and things that happen in the game have very tangible effects.

Hitting up Flame Stagg's stage after beating Chill Penguin's stage was pretty kick ass when I noticed the changes.

 

[RoeBear]

The first Dead Space had good back tracking. 3 barely has any, and the stuff it had lacked atmosphere.

 

[anaron]

RE1 backtracking is legendary. The Hunters' arrival made everything a new kind of terrifying

 

[Seik]

There the good and bad kind of backtracking.

RE did it wonderfully.

Zelda Skyward Sword did it awfully most of the times, sometimes it was worth it but some other times it just felt like too much.

 

[LiK]

Play the Souls games, plenty of backtracking for you.

 

[Oidisco]

And Pikmin 3, don't forget Pikmin 3

Anyway, yeah I love revisiting old locations with new abilities/things to do with them. Even if they could somehow implement these new elements in entirely new levels it just doesn't feel as rewarding for me personally.

Pikmin 3 didn't really feel like there was too much backtracking going on. Atleast not mandatory backtracking. But yea, it handles it fairly well.

And I know many will disagree with me, but I really liked the backtracking in Skyward Sword.

 

[Jazzy Network]

Zelda: OoT. More like forward tracking amirite?

 

[Arelaz]

I really dislike when you get through a long, exhausting dungeon in an RPG only to have to walk all the way back out of it with no shortcut to the entrance in order to continue the story.

 

[matt360]

I love it when you have an inkling your supposed to double back, or you are straight up directed through various cues. Dead Space does it really well, Bioshock 1 sort of does this too though it's more your open to explore these semi-fragmented paths heading off of a hub. Probably not what your talking about, but I have always love how the God of War games will have your path cross back over previous areas of a level. Typically the first time through there are zero clues in the environment that suggest you will be revisiting it. But sure enough you see it from a distance, or transverse straight back through the area. But it always plays different, which is really cool.



How could I forget, probably my favorite example.

I dunno about the God of War thing. In God of War 3, it was blatant that you would

Spoiler

be returning to Hades to do something with those Judge statues with the giant glowing crystals growing out of their heads.

I didn't really mind it though.

But in Metroid games or Castlevania games it's fine because you can usually do something new in those areas. Same with Arkham Asylum. But I don't like backtracking as a means to pad a game's length.

 

[mhi]

early REs were masters at this, with the crown going to CV.

 

[meltingparappa]

The first Fatal Frame game had you tromping around the back yard of the mansion.

You revisit the area a few times, and learn that there are scary ghosts around the trees and near the far end of the yard.

Maybe the fifth or so time, you head down the little steps to transition to the yard and all of a sudden a ghost comes crawling out from underneath the house at the speed of light.

Games that successfully play with that false sense of security are really clever.

 

[How About No]

early REs were masters at this, with the crown going to CV.

RE1-3 did it very well, but I CV it could be very annoying.

In CV, they widened the explorable considerably early on, with a lot of puzzle pieces found to go elsewhere. Unfortunately with some things, you might miss a piece and have to backtrack to a previous area TWICE...

 

[nkarafo]

I agree OP. My favorite games feature backtracking (from Metroid games to Dark Souls). I just cant believe that backtracking is a word that scares so many gamers, its almost a taboo word in gaming that means something bad by default...

 

[vocab]

DK64 the thread. Seriously, the backtracking in that game is a fucking chore.

 

[TheRedSnifit]

It really is great:

Getting dropped into a maze and having to figure out what's going on by yourself is one of the things I miss about old games.

 

[injurai]

I dunno about the God of War thing. In God of War 3, it was blatant that you would

Spoiler

be returning to Hades to do something with those Judge statues with the giant glowing crystals growing out of their heads.

I didn't really mind it though.

But in Metroid games or Castlevania games it's fine because you can usually do something new in those areas. Same with Arkham Asylum. But I don't like backtracking as a means to pad a game's length.

It's less of you backtracking, and the one way level design working itself back around established areas. I've never seen a game do it as well as that series did. You see it less in 3, though each instance is a bit more grand and epic. But 1 was extremely tight in this regard, and 2 a fair amount as well.

 

[sn00zer]

I dont mind minor backtracking....I think it can work really well narratively if the environment has changed in some way....DMC castle for example become horribly sinister once you go back through

 

[Neiteio]

Going back through the village at night in RE4 was amazing.