Marvel14
Banned
As a mass consumer hobby it probably is.
Things like sports/fitness clubs are not mass consumer hobbies as you need enough recurring income to afford it and plenty of lower income people cant afford to participate.
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I hope there is a backlash to the open world trend soon.
- Thread starter NightmareFarm
- Start date
Things like sports/fitness clubs are not mass consumer hobbies as you need enough recurring income to afford it and plenty of lower income people cant afford to participate.
GigaBowser
The bear of bad news
Kumomeme
Member
backlash?
it already happened years before if there is one
i get the concern of too many open world game out there, but its not like the genre is damaging the industry. sure, it feels repetitive, and it is easier to deliver bad open world game than other genre but currently there lot of great open world released. most of big open world game also sold in great number too.
it wont go anywhere, rather than wish the genre itself get a backlash, better we wish more developers develop proper open world game instead. quality over quantity, less bloated HUD, ditched ubisoft structure and other stuff.
it already happened years before if there is one
i get the concern of too many open world game out there, but its not like the genre is damaging the industry. sure, it feels repetitive, and it is easier to deliver bad open world game than other genre but currently there lot of great open world released. most of big open world game also sold in great number too.
it wont go anywhere, rather than wish the genre itself get a backlash, better we wish more developers develop proper open world game instead. quality over quantity, less bloated HUD, ditched ubisoft structure and other stuff.
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JimmyRustler
Gold Member
Nothing is indicating that there will be a backlash anytime soon. Most people (gamers) just seem to be fine with it to sink hundreds of hours into some mindless and repetitive trash instead of having some quality, tight 10-20 hour experiences.
All we can hope for is that every now and then some dev/publisher will go berserk and release an old school linear game again. Like Capcom did with RE4 this year and EA with Dead Space.
Old times will not be coming back, ever. The market doesn’t allow these kind of games any more. It’s way too easy to wait a bit for a sale and the development cannot be financed with 1 million sales any more. The dream is dead.
All we can hope for is that every now and then some dev/publisher will go berserk and release an old school linear game again. Like Capcom did with RE4 this year and EA with Dead Space.
Old times will not be coming back, ever. The market doesn’t allow these kind of games any more. It’s way too easy to wait a bit for a sale and the development cannot be financed with 1 million sales any more. The dream is dead.
NightmareFarm
Member
I wish I could but i'm on PS
cireza
Banned
Series S and Game Pass
Guilty_AI
Member
Player choice and pacing are in direct opposition to each other. In fact, you mentioned Elden Ring, something people often complained about was weapon, boss and reward placement, which would often feel disconnected from your skill level. Not to mention despite being called an open world, ER still retains a lot of the more directed level design from metroidvanias, the world is not all that open.
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Bernardougf
Gold Member
Yeah... have to agree.. people like to say that console gaming is freaking expensive .. typing probably from their 1.200 dollar Iphone that they will exchange for a new and more expensive one next year
Guilty_AI
Member
Dude, i live in a third world country and PCs and mobiles are absolutely extremely common throughout all sects of the population. I see people begging on a traffic light, wearing traps, that then go on to play with a smartphone during "breaks". Thats just how commonplace computers have become.
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Nicktendo86
Member
Agree with OP on the Arkham games example. Asylum is by far my favourite of the series as the smaller, more claustrophobic environments just feel more interesting. It lends itself better to the gameplay of trapping goons and picking them off one by one, not to say I don’t enjoy elements of the open world though.
Guilty_AI
Member
Thing is there are different degrees of investment when it comes to gaming, which is why some might confuse it with an expensive hobby.
Not everyone would have the disposable income to become a racing sim enthusiast, buying racing wheels and PCs capable of playing driving sims with good quality. Naturally.
Playing games like DOTA 2 or CS, that are free (or "free"), and run on any potatoe? An absolutely, 100% accessible option for the vast majority of people.
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Mr.Phoenix
Member
Nothing wrong with open-world games.
The problem is the type of open word games we have.
Developers need to start treating the open word as a gameplay mechanic... and not just as filler.
A simple example, You get a quest, be it a main quest or side quest, the current formula is pretty much, quest given > magic marker appears on your map > you just point your stick in the direction of said waypoint and watch your distance tracker reduce. Everything between you and that waypoint just instantly becomes a nuisance. One that you are sometimes in a mood to indulge, and sometimes not.
All devs have to do to remedy this, is simple. Quest is given > quest giver gives you directions, something along the lines of, `go south till you reach the Nile river, then head west towards the Old Kings bridge, the ruins is south of the bridge. There is rumored to be a hidden entrance to a cave in the ruins.`, or some give directions and draw you some sort of landmark to look out for.
That little change completely changes the experience. Now a simple fetch quest takes on a whole new meaning. Because no one tells you that there is a 200ft cliff west of the river that you have to climb down, or about the monsters at the base of the cliff, or that west of the river puts you through some dark scary forest...etc. You just explore.
Or how things like items are managed. If the only place you can buy/repair weapons and armor, outside whatever you find during your travels (which will usually be in a lower state than your own equipment) are in towns, then it makes preparing to leave a town on a quest a the more important.
The issue with open-world games today is that there is so much hand-holding that the core experience becomes a mindes boring chore. Eg. If you need to find some golden feathers, if they did it as I suggested, then you would only need to be asked to find 3 instead of just going to 30 markers on your map. Because each one of those 3 has you actually paying the game more than just pointing up on a stick.
The problem is the type of open word games we have.
Developers need to start treating the open word as a gameplay mechanic... and not just as filler.
A simple example, You get a quest, be it a main quest or side quest, the current formula is pretty much, quest given > magic marker appears on your map > you just point your stick in the direction of said waypoint and watch your distance tracker reduce. Everything between you and that waypoint just instantly becomes a nuisance. One that you are sometimes in a mood to indulge, and sometimes not.
All devs have to do to remedy this, is simple. Quest is given > quest giver gives you directions, something along the lines of, `go south till you reach the Nile river, then head west towards the Old Kings bridge, the ruins is south of the bridge. There is rumored to be a hidden entrance to a cave in the ruins.`, or some give directions and draw you some sort of landmark to look out for.
That little change completely changes the experience. Now a simple fetch quest takes on a whole new meaning. Because no one tells you that there is a 200ft cliff west of the river that you have to climb down, or about the monsters at the base of the cliff, or that west of the river puts you through some dark scary forest...etc. You just explore.
Or how things like items are managed. If the only place you can buy/repair weapons and armor, outside whatever you find during your travels (which will usually be in a lower state than your own equipment) are in towns, then it makes preparing to leave a town on a quest a the more important.
The issue with open-world games today is that there is so much hand-holding that the core experience becomes a mindes boring chore. Eg. If you need to find some golden feathers, if they did it as I suggested, then you would only need to be asked to find 3 instead of just going to 30 markers on your map. Because each one of those 3 has you actually paying the game more than just pointing up on a stick.
StealthGoblin
Banned
I definitely think there is room for more experimental bigger budget games that aren’t open world and it would be nice if the 1st parties made some.
Hell, I’d quite like some different genre takes on established IP. A Horizon strategy game (machine strike but made like FF tactics) would be cool for example.
Hell, I’d quite like some different genre takes on established IP. A Horizon strategy game (machine strike but made like FF tactics) would be cool for example.
There is no trend, video games always have been as open as the technology allowed them. This is just the natural evolution of video gaming brought by years of technological improvement. Take the games of the eighties like zelda or ultima, they were already announcing what we have today. You are a retrograde: want to go back to corridor fps, want to go back to turn-based RPG, 2D > 3D, ... the amish of video gaming.
This is some serious projection.
Strider Highwind
Banned
I've been back to playing mp games and enjoying a lot of indie stuff cause I get open world fatigue too.
Wildebeest
Member
More linear sad dad games are clearly needed, so people can get their daily fix of sad dads.
Edgelord79
Gold Member
I couldn’t disagree more. I don’t have as much free time as I used to. I now prefer a linear element that gets me from A to B in about 10 hours.
kuncol02
Banned
That trend started two decades ago and I don't think it will go away. Especially that it allows to fill game with ton of cheaply made content that can increase game length few times. At this point almost every genre is attacked with that cancer. From racing games to RPGs.
kuncol02
Banned
But sad dad games are also more and more open world and padded.
hyperbertha
Member
What a retarded take.
kraspkibble
Permabanned.
I enjoy open world games but not every game needs to be one. I enjoyed Elden Ring but I think it'd be much better if they stuck with the semi open/linear design as I felt that the open world was done purely for the sake of it and the map was wasted. If they insist on Elden Ring 2 being open world then they need to improve the quality of it with more things to do instead of copying and pasting the same old catacombs/bosses/towers/evergaols/shacks/ruins.
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Naked Lunch
Member
I havent played an open world game that I liked yet. Not one.
Absolutely hate a million quests and a gazillion miles to traverse. I hit a point in those games - usually very early - where I just dont care anymore.
Who has time for that - over and over - game after game?
Part of the reason I barely play modern games anymore.
Absolutely hate a million quests and a gazillion miles to traverse. I hit a point in those games - usually very early - where I just dont care anymore.
Who has time for that - over and over - game after game?
Part of the reason I barely play modern games anymore.
lughnasadh123
Member
Personally I'm glad we have the variety of linear and open world games we have even if I prefer the latter. As always, execution of those games makes or breaks them.
If we're going to start complaining about the oversaturation of trends, then by all means let's start with card battle games and rogue likes/lites.
If we're going to start complaining about the oversaturation of trends, then by all means let's start with card battle games and rogue likes/lites.
Guilty_AI
Member
I honestly think "true" open worlds are more adequate for sandbox type of games. Racing games for example fit right in, since they tend to be mostly about driving around and having fun with the mechanics.
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Ev1L AuRoN
Member
Used to think this way, but I realized most open world games are in fact quite linear if you ignore the sidequests and time wasters developers put in games in other to lengthen their games.
kuncol02
Banned
Open world and nonlinear game are two separate things. Not really connected. For example Rockstar games are one of most linear and player limiting games with mission design straight from early PS2 and fail triggers on every instance of player deviating from planed mission solution. I'm pretty sure that you can't finish any pursuit mission in GTA without driving long enough for NPC to crash in pre-programmed place. There is even mission in GTA5 with objective to kill some guy that you can fail by killing him to early. Deus Ex and Alpha Protocol are not linear but aren't open world.
Men_in_Boxes
Snake Oil Salesman
All that can and will be improved upon in future open world games. It is telling though that you bring up a minor issue to compare it to linears invisible wall problem, which is truly despicable from a design perspective. Human beings do not like to be funnelled like sheep.
As I mentioned earlier, open world can do linear...linear can never do open world. That's a truly magnificent competitive advantage.
Guilty_AI
Member
It can be improved... by making the travel through the map more streamlined. As i said before, you can simulate linear game with an open world by turning it into an "open world", basically interconnected levels. A metroidvania style map.
They don't like it, they love it. You can even hear the screams "Herd me daddy!"
TheBROgamer
Banned
This is correct.
Games of Today
Member
They need to become more hand crafted like Far Cry 2. That game is the best example of open world. The only collectables (diamonds) are also the in-game currency. It's not a chore to find them and exciting when you get every single one.
YeulEmeralda
Member
Escapement is checklists and icons on a map.
feynoob
Banned
That is for you.
hyperbertha
Member
Open world is mostly filler trash. They discourage exploration, not reward it. A linear game like Zelda oot with its fake open world is far superior.
YeulEmeralda
Member
Wait what player choice does open world bring beyond "what quest marker will I choose first"?
YeulEmeralda
Member
I liked Cyberpunk but I had to install a fast travel mod.
Having to drive everywhere gets boring.
Guilty_AI
Member
There is.... fast travel in the game...?
BOO THIS MAN!