Hey guys, so I have been playing and making OW games recently. I have noticed that in some open world games, it feels like the world events have had less focus on them, than main missions.
What I mean is that it feels more time and resources are invested into the big campaign in comparison to the world.
This is not the case in all games (if you have any recommendations of great open worlds please let me know). I am meaning the OW content in terms of the missions and events present in the gaming world.
It makes sense, as companies and teams will believe that the player will spend most of their time in the campaign. Which leads to a design philosophy of ‘the world complimenting the missions’ which I personally believe is the wrong way round.
Most of the time the game is roughly (guesstimated) 80% of the game. This means that players are going to spend more time in the open world than the missions.
Mechanics
With this then I believe that we need to switch our design mind sets to ‘missions should complement the world’.
An example if there is a new mechanic unlocked in a certain mission in a certain district. Then that mechanic is taught within the mission showing a good portion of that mechanic. Then that district should be built to push that mechanic to its fullest potential and building upon what the mission showed the player.
The district should give the player options that they may not have seen within the mission. It should be a learning ground for players, a chemistry set which provides different options which if the player takes the time to experiment it will reward them with new and exciting techniques.
We use collectables and other hidden items in the world to keep players hooked, however it may be that we can use bonus mechanics or other initiatives that are unlocked in these side missions to make them have a more meaningful and deep impact.
With regards to mechanics, let see how we can use them across both areas to push them in cool and unique ways to get the best out of both areas. Give the player a chance to push their skills in new ways in the ow.
Narrative
In some of these games the OW events and side missions have some weak narrative attached to them. This may be due to time and as previously said that they want to spend more resources on the campaign for a richer experience.
I understand how this understand, we as devs are drawn to the glamour of these main mission but the attention should be split equally. We need to think not just how we can entertain the player with gameplay but how can we enriching the lore of the world with these events.
Maybe we can think how we show an internal power struggle within enemy factions? Things like these can make the event feel much more unique, even if the event plays very similar to another it can make it feel different.
Take Metal Gear Solid 5 as an example. Most of the ow events can be broken down into the same gameplay bricks.
Or
Now players may argue that these events get repetitive, however with them being in new locations and the PoW (prisoner of war) of having a different back story and unique stats which will help your mother base. This makes them feel slightly different each time and increases the longevity of the events and adds a new twist.
(A side note on why these events also feel different is the options that the gameplay supplies the player with, from its choice of stealth to combat, to its crazy mechanics.)
A game which makes each event feel unique is Witcher 3. I can say the event with the ‘blue swamp child’ and players will know what I am referring to. This because these side events have such a rich story and vibe that the feel just as memorable as the main missions.
CDPR had so much confidence in their ow events that they showed them first to the public at E3. Each of the ow feels unique because of the narrative investment as well as other elements. Such as dressing, enemy types and different environment themes.
One of the main reasons people play games (when I speak to players) is because of the story, and we as an industry can offer something no other medium can. That is a fully breathing and moving world so why not fill it with amazing stories and lives like we have in our own world.
Impact on Environment
(I am going to be using Uncharted 4 as my example) When we look at main missions which people love, they have a certain ‘wow’ factor to them. With the example, Naughty Dog use big over the top nail biting moments, such as explosions, things collapse under the player or even things falling on top of the player.
Part of what makes this cool and appealing to the player is the fact that they have had an impact on the world. Since the player visited this area, it will no longer be the same.
In most ow events we do not have enough of player impact. This can be down to technical reasons which I understand, yet we are industry filled with intelligent and creative people. I know that it will be done, look at Crack Down 3 the player will be able to level a city.
My main point on this section is to help build a connection between a player and the ow, allow them to make their mark. When the player looks back they want to know that they have made a difference on this world (Even if it is fallout 3 style blowing up Megaton).
Conclusion
This one is a short one guys as I am squeezed for time, but I just wanted to open this topic for discussion. I only briefly touched on what can be done as there is so much more to be done to help improve our open world content and so many good and bad examples to learn from.
When discussing with friends and colleagues we all believe the divide between main missions and ow missions will vanish soon. If you look at Watch Dogs 2 they say you can avoid the story missions all together.
So please share your thoughts and ideas, I would like to come back to this at a later point where I can go further in depth. But first more research needs to be carried out by myself.