armaan8014

That's pretty accurate. Games putting in features because they're popular rather than fit the game

@ravey: Thanks duder :)

@notnert427: Yes, I think this whole discussion may have branched into two different directions without me realizing it - 1. What makes a good open world (discussion about games like Hitman) and 2. Are bigger games moving their focus from delivering on (among other things outside this discussion) emotional impact (such as Mass effect) to delivering on just more quantity of content (like Dragon Age Inquisition)

I apologize for not being very clear. But I wasn't very sure what my beef was myself either, so that was bound to happen.

@zevvion:

As I said in the OP:

Now this is not to say that video games that focus on something other than emotional resonance are "bad" or shouldn't be played, (I play a huge amount of FIFA with my friends) but when considering single player experiences that focus on world, atmosphere, story, emotion or characters, something feels off when playing games of this generation (post 2012/ 13)

So no I'm not saying that, I'm only talking about a recent trend in single player story driven games. What you may call "open world fatigue" and discussing that the previous approach these types of games used to take seemed to work better than the approach that many games take now (everything placed in the open world for gameplay reasons, a predictable, formulaic feel, quest markers/ trackers, detective vision)

As pointed out by me saying something feels off, (and - "Even as I write this though, I feel what I'm saying is not entirely correct.So then why do I feel like something's off?") I don't have answers. I've just felt something and I'm trying to figure out what that may be through discussion.

It's not like I hate video games or I'm complaining. I love the medium and I'm pretty grateful for the progress we've made. But I also feel it's good to continuously judge and discuss what doesn't work in something you love, to avoid stagnation. In terms of design, the aspects I mentioned have become somewhat predictable.

@notnert427:The Ubisoft worlds really are incredible, and because of those I've played and loved all the entries in their games. Despite the extreme amounts of stuff to do in those worlds, I feel the atmosphere and detail side of their world doesn't suffer. I love climbing on to a rooftop to find a couple of men going about fixing something up there, listen to some good soundtrack, watch the sun set over the city etc. In Black Flag I'd love sailing over to little islands and just feel like I really am there. There's a real sense of place in their worlds. I then proceed to play the main story line while ignoring half the extra content. It's weird that that series hasn't made me feel overwhelmed or distracted me from the parts I do like. Maybe that's the important thing.

I didn't really enjoy Syndicate though, the world was still pretty good but otherwise the rest of it felt pointless. The story didn't grab me and I didn't like the music. Maybe it was the light hearted tone. I didn't like 3 like many others, but I still look back at that with nostalgia because of the story that they tried to tell, and its incredible soundtrack. I'm excited for the Egypt setting in Origins, but I'm a little worried about the size of the open world. Considering that they've been inspired by The Witcher 3 and have decided to go full blown RPG means more of the game spreading all over as compared to having smaller separated off areas as smaller open worlds. Somehow, contained and segregated open worlds feel more enjoyable to me than one big land mass. Not sure if I'll play both this and Horizon simultaneously.

GTA V as I discussed above, is of course an example of open worlds done well ("I think what GTA realizes is that an open world needs more than just activities to feel worth the space and time of traversing through that place. It's fun to drive your car from one mission to another in Los Santos.") It is also a last gen game though. RoTR I'm still playing through, but I really enjoy the tombs in that game. As of now it seems to be opening small open areas one by one, with a limited number of things to do. I'm not sure if it goes full open world later. Hitman doesn't really fit with the others that I was talking about, it's just a mission area where a number of methods can accomplish the same objective. It doesn't have a huge world with multiple missions.

You're right, there are other games that are completely based around sinking time, but I never really got into those. I should've mentioned that this was only talking about single player story driven games.

@mrfluke: Yeah I plan to give TW3 another shot. I played that on my old laptop and had very low fps, will be getting it for the PS4 soon. I also had my experience soured by an overly excited friend, but that's another story. Guess I'll know how I feel about that game when I try it again. I probably shouldn't have mentioned it in this topic as it doesn't quite fit what I was discussing.

(Edit: went ahead and removed that part as that one sentence wasn't really on the same topic, but was creating confusion instead. My unresolved feelings for TW3 are probably a topic for another post :P)

I'm watching the GB east Yakuza 0 playthrough, halfway through it and loving it. Can't wait to see the end. But I feel that it may still be sticking to its philosophy and style from its previous entries, which keeps it from feeling like the rest of the big open world games I mentioned?

@draugen: About Horizon Zero Dawn, you're right, I've heard good things about the story and I loved what I saw from the opening few hours, and I'm pretty sure there's more of that in the coming hours. The opening had an impact on me, and I like the characters and the presentation. The problem I have with that is the weight of the open world and its tasks that come along with that story that I want to see. It makes me reconsider whether I have the energy to play that at any given time or not.

TW3 is probably an example of open worlds done right, with stuff to do and meaningful, story driven side quests, which is why I mentioned the game. I wasn't saying that it is soulless, but only that it didn't quite grab me like TW1 did. Maybe TW3 is a different topic from what I was discussing here.

Vinny! He seems to be a very story, character, emotion and atmosphere focused guy, and everytime he describes a game or a love for a franchise I nod my head in complete agreement

It might be somewhat... "mainstream", but I really love the Horizon Zero Dawn soundtrack.

This one has a really whimsical style that reminds of the first Shrek film

There are other great tracks too, over 40! (4 hrs worth) That's great!

It's really shaken me. I woke up the next morning feeling slightly ill and not wanting to think about the episode. That's kinda crazy but... amazing?