Summary
Open-world games have been around for a long time now, and for good reason. They ostensibly embody the ultimate promise of video games: being able to do just about anything. Although the genre may seem highly evolved and at the peak of its power, there are some incredible open-world mechanics that have been left by the wayside that deserve a return.
Whether they were dropped in favor of more audience-appeasing features, a flash of creative brilliance, risky, or just extremely expensive to replicate, these mechanics have found themselves trapped in old open-world games that are at least a decade or so old.
A Minimalist, Focused Experience - Shadow Of The Colossus
A Wide Open World With A Single, Clear Objective
It can often feel as though open-world game content includes everything but the kitchen sink, and that’s probably because game developers are trying tokeep players busy in the open worldfor as long as possible. Minigames, sidequests bounties, towers, collectibles, and the ubiquitous open-world crafting mechanic all work to distract the protagonist from their very important mission of saving the world. However, the masterfully minimalistic design ofShadow of the Colossusproves that open-world games can be the perfect platform for a streamlined, focused adventure, provided they can find the right gameplay hook.
While there are collectibles, they are hidden, and the game makes no effort to track them as other open-world games would (usually obsessively). Making a game purely about seeking out and fighting boss monsters was, admittedly, a stroke of genius. Perhaps with the right inspiration and enough confidence, another studio may someday step away from the “high-player retention” design design goal and create another game as clear-cut and focused. EvenPraey for the Gods,Shadow of the Colossus’indie spiritual successor, buckled and added crafting mechanics.
It’s hard to believe thatMetal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Painis over a decade old, given how advanced its designs and graphics are, even today. Something that really worked well about thisopen-world stealth gameis the game’s often-unsung enemy-tactic reactivity. If players found an overpowered way to resolve their problems, enemies would adapt, forcing the player to change tactics. For example, relying on headshots all the time meant that word would spread and soldiers would more frequently be walking around with helmets.
Executing missions during the night would mean seeing more guards with night vision goggles. With all the combat or gameplay variety built into open-world games, it would be interesting to see more of this, where enemies force the player to try out a playstyle they would otherwise ignore because the enemy has sussed out their moves. However, such a mechanic requires endless testing to get right. Given the development time for most open-world games (witha few notable exceptions), most gamers probably wouldn’t mind waiting for a mechanic as rich as this.
A vastly underappreciated skill in the real world is the ability to gauge another person during a discussion, negotiation, or initial meeting.LA Noirmade this one of its central mechanics. Rockstar leveraged cutting-edge mocap and facial capture technology forLA Noir’s interview segments (32 cameras were used to map actors' performances onto 3D models), in which Detective Phelps must suss out lies from true accounts as he interrogates witnesses and suspects.
While the game’s development was expensive and difficult and the interview mechanics ultimately received a mixed reaction from players, it is a fascinating feature that deserves a second chance. Some studios have usedincredible facial capture technologyto great effect (i.e.,Hellblade: Senua’s SacrificeandMetal Gear Solid 5), but none have used it for interrogational gameplay. After more than a decade of technological advancement, perhaps it is time for another AAA studio with the courage and resources to make another attempt.
Not every open-world game needs to include non-playable characters. Sometimes, the joy of an empty landscape is just the antidote for burnout or ennui. While Sartre might argue that “Hell is other people,” humans have an undeniable fascination with other humans that does not end in virtual worlds.Shenmuewowed the world with its unprecedented detail, much of which involved the secret backstories, private schedules, and interactable personalities of its NPCs. Many open-world games, such asThe Witcher 3, featurecrowds of people with realistic animations: Carpenters cut wood, cleaners sweep, and so on, but these are surface tricks.
Open-world games fail to grasp whatShenmueoffered gamers back in 1999: a chance to get to know people on a meaningful level. Interactions with NPCs in modern open-world games tend to be shallow, and the level of depth between characters is wildly uneven. With advances in LLMs like ChatGPT and Deepseek, characters with intricate, hand-written backstories could appear in open-world games as large asRed Dead Redemption 2orCyberpunk 2077in the future, at least if AI companies can get them to stop hallucinating so hard.
Scripting rivalries in video games is one thing, but the clever designers behindMiddle-earth: Shadow of MordorandShadow of Warfigured out how to cultivate them dynamically. Depending on how the Talion defeats a named Orc enemy (or is himself defeated), their nickname or status may change. For example, they will be promoted for defeating Talion.
When met again out in the world, these familiar faces will remind the player about their last encounter, upping the stakes in the rematch. Imagining, for example, an open-world superhero game with Nemesis System villains that dynamically appear and evolve over the game is tantalizing. Sadly, Warner Brothers' decision topatent the Nemesis System mechanicis another example of how capitalism prevents innovation as much as it creates it, and no other studio will be able to borrow the idea until 2036.
