Thomas Mahler, games director Ori and the Blind Forest And Ori and the Will of the Wisps, spoke about the accumulation of open world games. He points out their common problem, with experiences that often co-found quantity and quality.
In recent years, many new video games have been designed around a strong concept: the open world, supposed to offer total freedom and a substantial lifespan – two arguments that make people dream and sell. However, only rare examples of these games (The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Elden Ring…) really left their mark. Worse, a form of weariness has taken hold of the players, faced with environments that are ever larger, certainly, but also ever more generic and uninteresting.
Thomas Mahler, games director Ori and the Blind Forest And Ori and the Will of the Wisps, believes he knows why open-world games have become frustrating over time. In a long topic published on Twitter on March 8, 2024, he explained that the concern comes from the choice to favor quantity over quality. An approach that its studio, Moon Game Studios, wants to avoid with the next game titled No Rest for the Wicked (and whose first returns are rave).
What’s wrong with open world games? Too much is the enemy of good
Thomas Mahler, who knows well what he is talking about, particularly points to procedurally generated open worlds. The tool used actually makes it possible to create a game “quickly”, but not necessarily a good game. He argues: “ Today’s procedural generation technology is not advanced enough to create good level design [architecture du niveau]. Many developers use it because it’s easy to create a large piece of land and then add a few valleys and hills. It’s inexpensive and easy. » He sees a future where artificial intelligence will be powerful enough to correctly fill environments, which is not the case today.
He pursues : ” The problem with this approach is that you get areas of emptiness. » To overcome this bias, developers would need to meticulously fill out these “ vacuum zones », which is possible in certain places, but not on the whole of a huge map (unless you have a large and talented workforce). This is why Moon Game Studios wanted to build the open world of No Rest for the Wicked by hand. It takes time, but it ensures that the settings are worth the detour, with secrets that truly reward exploration and observation.
“ The goal of our level design team is to ban those moments where, to get from point A to point B, you only have to hold the stick for two minutes. It’s not fun at all, and it turns your game into a walking simulator “, he explains. He even allows himself a small, barely concealed tackle Starfield : “ We don’t need 10,000 planets “.
Thomas Mahler obviously takes a big risk by making such remarks before the launch of No Rest for the Wicked (April 18 in early access on PC), which will be judged more harshly on the quality of its environments. Still, it’s hard to disagree with him: a big open world sells in a trailer, but it’s never as disappointing as when it just piles on generic elements to fill a void (latest example: Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, whose open areas are disappointing in terms of exploration). A vast desert dotted with a few oases remains a desert, while a small lush forest offers much more obvious richness.
Subscribe to Numerama on Google News so you don’t miss any news!