Off Topic Discussion Megathread

[Theodric]

I love it when I have room to just...go off and do my own thing. It helps keep subsequent playthroughs fresh, especially if there's branching options for quests/different ways to approach them. Such a model also lets the world be an actual world rather than something that just exists as window dressing.

I'd attribute how on rails FFXIV is to precisely why I've kind of come to no longer care much for the story. There's so little actual exploration outside of when a new expansion goes live. It's a shame so few MMO's manage to capture the same 'magic' that I felt when first trying WoW all those years ago and running around Teldrassil as a Night Elf. The sheer size of the game world impressed me, especially since I could explore higher level zones as a low level character if I felt brave or stupid enough to try. Modern MMO's seem intent on locking everything behind strict barriers.

As much as I dislike the combat in TESO, I do appreciate that it allows me to just...explore the world at will and go where I see fit. I think there's a healthy balance that can be struck between different styles but many games go too far in one direction rather than meeting halfway.

[RyuDragnier]

I love it when I have room to just...go off and do my own thing. It helps keep subsequent playthroughs fresh, especially if there's branching options for quests/different ways to approach them. Such a model also lets the world be an actual world rather than something that just exists as window dressing.

I'd attribute how on rails FFXIV is to precisely why I've kind of come to no longer care much for the story. There's so little actual exploration outside of when a new expansion goes live. It's a shame so few MMO's manage to capture the same 'magic' that I felt when first trying WoW all those years ago and running around Teldrassil as a Night Elf. The sheer size of the game world impressed me, especially since I could explore higher level zones as a low level character if I felt brave or stupid enough to try. Modern MMO's seem intent on locking everything behind strict barriers.

As much as I dislike the combat in TESO, I do appreciate that it allows me to just...explore the world at will and go where I see fit. I think there's a healthy balance that can be struck between different styles but many games go too far in one direction rather than meeting halfway.

I'm also a fan of ESO's zones, because they DO have a limit to what you can do in them. You can practically checklist or "quarantine" parts of the zone map after having gone through them. Makes it much easier to find what you have and haven't done. Pure open world with no zones is...ugh, so draining. I say this knowing full well the irony of how I can play and fully explore all of Oblivion multiple times, yet cannot do the same thing with Skyrim, BotW, or any other open world games like them.

[Raoabolic]

I'm also a fan of ESO's zones, because they DO have a limit to what you can do in them. You can practically checklist or "quarantine" parts of the zone map after having gone through them. Makes it much easier to find what you have and haven't done. Pure open world with no zones is...ugh, so draining. I say this knowing full well the irony of how I can play and fully explore all of Oblivion multiple times, yet cannot do the same thing with Skyrim, BotW, or any other open world games like them.

Sadly, that is why I can't enjoy any modern GTA style game. The devs want to hold your hand for an hour before letting you play around the world and even then, some parts will be blocked off by more tutorials. Not to mention that new Saints Row game was the worst things I have played in a very long time. XIV was a breath of fresh air compared to SR, and that breaks my heart as a SR fan. Say what you will about 4 but Saints row 4 was the Crackdown 2 we should have gotten.

[SturmChurro]

I'm also a fan of ESO's zones, because they DO have a limit to what you can do in them. You can practically checklist or "quarantine" parts of the zone map after having gone through them. Makes it much easier to find what you have and haven't done. Pure open world with no zones is...ugh, so draining. I say this knowing full well the irony of how I can play and fully explore all of Oblivion multiple times, yet cannot do the same thing with Skyrim, BotW, or any other open world games like them.

I like both forms of Open World content. Although, I think something more open is a bit more immersive, and I like it for open-ended exploration. Allowing for you to go in a completely different direction and having a different start than previous characters. There needs to be things to discover and do, however. This sort of world benefits best from good world building, and environmental storytelling, which is what makes something like Fallout 4's world itself fairly interesting to explore. It is nice in future playthroughs to discover something new, although I understand full well how it can be annoying if you are a completionist.