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{{other uses}}
{{other uses}}
An '''open world''' is a type of [[video game]] [[level design]] where a player can roam freely through a [[virtual world]] There is given considerable freedom in choosing how or when to approach objectives and changes, that player makes affects the whole game.<ref name=gradar/> The term '''free roam''' is also used, as is '''sandbox''' and '''free-roaming'''.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.kotaku.com.au/2008/07/pandemic_working_on_new_open_world_sandbox_ip/ | title = Pandemic Working On New 'Open World / Sandbox' IP | author = Logan Booker | publisher = Kotaku | date = 2008-07-14 | accessdate = 2008-07-25 }}</ref><ref name=cvg_history2>{{cite web | title = The complete history of open-world games (part 2) | publisher = [[Computer and Video Games]] | date = May 25, 2008 | url = http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=189599 | accessdate = 2008-07-25}}</ref> "Open world" and "free-roaming" suggest the absence of artificial barriers,<ref name="gsutra_20games">{{cite web | last = Harris | first = John | title = Game Design Essentials: 20 Open World Games | publisher = [[Gamasutra]] | date = September 26, 2007 | url = http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/1902/game_design_essentials_20_open_.php | accessdate = 2008-07-25}}</ref> in contrast to the [[invisible wall]]s and [[loading screen]]s that are common in linear level designs. To call one game world open is not enough to remove invisible walls and loading screens. The different game features shall be related to each other. If the player changes one of theme, that change shall affect the others.
An '''open world''' is a type of [[video game]] [[level design]] where a player can roam freely through a [[virtual world]] and is given considerable freedom in choosing how or when to approach objectives.<ref name=gradar/> The term '''free roam''' is also used, as is '''sandbox''' and '''free-roaming'''.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.kotaku.com.au/2008/07/pandemic_working_on_new_open_world_sandbox_ip/ | title = Pandemic Working On New 'Open World / Sandbox' IP | author = Logan Booker | publisher = Kotaku | date = 2008-07-14 | accessdate = 2008-07-25 }}</ref><ref name=cvg_history2>{{cite web | title = The complete history of open-world games (part 2) | publisher = [[Computer and Video Games]] | date = May 25, 2008 | url = http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=189599 | accessdate = 2008-07-25}}</ref> "Open world" and "free-roaming" suggest the absence of artificial barriers,<ref name="gsutra_20games">{{cite web | last = Harris | first = John | title = Game Design Essentials: 20 Open World Games | publisher = [[Gamasutra]] | date = September 26, 2007 | url = http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/1902/game_design_essentials_20_open_.php | accessdate = 2008-07-25}}</ref> in contrast to the [[invisible wall]]s and [[loading screen]]s that are common in linear level designs. Generally open world games still enforce many restrictions in the game environment, either because of absolute technical limitations or in-game limitations (such as locked areas) imposed by a game's [[Linearity (video games)|linearity]].

==Gameplay and design==
==Gameplay and design==
An open world is a [[level design|level]] or game designed as a [[nonlinear gameplay|nonlinear]], open areas with many ways to reach an objective.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.wired.com/2008/01/assassins-creed-2/ | title = Assassin's Creed And The Future Of Sandbox Games | publisher = Wired | author = Chris Kohler | date = 2008-01-04 | accessdate = 2008-07-26 }}</ref> Some games are designed with both traditional and open world levels.<ref>{{cite web | last = Harris | first = John | title = Game Design Essentials: 20 Open World Games - Air Fortress | publisher = [[Gamasutra]] | date = September 26, 2007 | url = http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/1902/game_design_essentials_20_open_.php | accessdate = 2008-08-02}}</ref> An open world facilitates greater exploration than a series of smaller levels,<ref name=gsutra_20games/> or a level with more linear challenges.<ref name="assassinfails">{{cite web | url = http://blog.wired.com/games/2007/11/review-why-assa.html | title = Review: Why Assassin's Creed Fails | author = Chris Kohler | publisher = Wired | date = 2007-11-23 }}</ref> Reviewers have judged the quality of an open world based on whether there are interesting ways for the player to interact with the broader level when they ignore their main objective.<ref name="assassinfails"/> Some games actually use real settings to model an open world, such as [[New York City]].<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.joystiq.com/2007/08/10/sierra-unveils-prototype-not-the-first-sandbox-adventure/ | title = Sierra unveils Prototype, not the first sandbox adventure | author = James Ransom-Wiley | publisher = Joystiq | date = 2007-08-10 | accessdate=2008-07-26 }}</ref>
An open world is a [[level design|level]] or game designed as a [[nonlinear gameplay|nonlinear]], open areas with many ways to reach an objective.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.wired.com/2008/01/assassins-creed-2/ | title = Assassin's Creed And The Future Of Sandbox Games | publisher = Wired | author = Chris Kohler | date = 2008-01-04 | accessdate = 2008-07-26 }}</ref> Some games are designed with both traditional and open world levels.<ref>{{cite web | last = Harris | first = John | title = Game Design Essentials: 20 Open World Games - Air Fortress | publisher = [[Gamasutra]] | date = September 26, 2007 | url = http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/1902/game_design_essentials_20_open_.php | accessdate = 2008-08-02}}</ref> An open world facilitates greater exploration than a series of smaller levels,<ref name=gsutra_20games/> or a level with more linear challenges.<ref name="assassinfails">{{cite web | url = http://blog.wired.com/games/2007/11/review-why-assa.html | title = Review: Why Assassin's Creed Fails | author = Chris Kohler | publisher = Wired | date = 2007-11-23 }}</ref> Reviewers have judged the quality of an open world based on whether there are interesting ways for the player to interact with the broader level when they ignore their main objective.<ref name="assassinfails"/> Some games actually use real settings to model an open world, such as [[New York City]].<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.joystiq.com/2007/08/10/sierra-unveils-prototype-not-the-first-sandbox-adventure/ | title = Sierra unveils Prototype, not the first sandbox adventure | author = James Ransom-Wiley | publisher = Joystiq | date = 2007-08-10 | accessdate=2008-07-26 }}</ref>
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Games with open worlds typically give players infinite [[1-up|lives]] or [[continue (video gaming)|continue]]s, although games like ''[[Blaster Master]]'' force the player to start from the beginning should they die too many times.<ref name=gsutra_20games/> There is also a risk that players may get lost as they explore an open world; thus designers sometimes try to break the open world into manageable sections.<ref>{{cite book | title = Game Design Complete | author = Patrick O'Luanaigh | publisher = Paraglyph Press | year = 2006 | pages = 203, 218 }}</ref>
Games with open worlds typically give players infinite [[1-up|lives]] or [[continue (video gaming)|continue]]s, although games like ''[[Blaster Master]]'' force the player to start from the beginning should they die too many times.<ref name=gsutra_20games/> There is also a risk that players may get lost as they explore an open world; thus designers sometimes try to break the open world into manageable sections.<ref>{{cite book | title = Game Design Complete | author = Patrick O'Luanaigh | publisher = Paraglyph Press | year = 2006 | pages = 203, 218 }}</ref>


For a game to be considered "Open world" it must contain one or more of these key features: Exploration, side quests and/or open areas. Examples are: Minecraft and Legend of Zelda.
There is a significant difference between open world single player game, and multiplayer game. The single player game with open world gives freedom for exploration, and the choice of the quest lines. For example games like Gothic 2, The Witcher 3, Risen and The Skyrim.

The multiplayer games with open world give freedom to relations among the players, who can compete and cooperate by their own choice. For example Lineage 2 and Minecraft.


===Procedural generation and emergence===
===Procedural generation and emergence===

Revision as of 16:23, 21 March 2015

An open world is a type of video game level design where a player can roam freely through a virtual world and is given considerable freedom in choosing how or when to approach objectives.[1] The term free roam is also used, as is sandbox and free-roaming.[2][3] "Open world" and "free-roaming" suggest the absence of artificial barriers,[4] in contrast to the invisible walls and loading screens that are common in linear level designs. Generally open world games still enforce many restrictions in the game environment, either because of absolute technical limitations or in-game limitations (such as locked areas) imposed by a game's linearity.

Gameplay and design

An open world is a level or game designed as a nonlinear, open areas with many ways to reach an objective.[5] Some games are designed with both traditional and open world levels.[6] An open world facilitates greater exploration than a series of smaller levels,[4] or a level with more linear challenges.[7] Reviewers have judged the quality of an open world based on whether there are interesting ways for the player to interact with the broader level when they ignore their main objective.[7] Some games actually use real settings to model an open world, such as New York City.[8]

A major design challenge is to balance the freedom of an open world with the structure of a dramatic storyline.[9] Since players may perform actions that the game designer did not expect,[10] the game's writers must find creative ways to impose a storyline on the player without interfering with their freedom.[11] As such, games with open worlds will sometimes break the game's story into a series of missions, or have a much simpler storyline altogether.[12] Other games instead offer side-missions to the player that do not disrupt the main storyline.[13] Most open world games make the character a blank slate that players can project their own thoughts onto, although several games such as Landstalker: The Treasures of King Nole offer more character development and dialogue.[4] Writing in 2005, David Braben described the narrative structure of current videogames as "little different to the stories of those Harold Lloyd films of the 1920s", and considered genuinely open-ended stories to be the "Holy Grail we are looking for in fifth generation gaming".[14]

Games with open worlds typically give players infinite lives or continues, although games like Blaster Master force the player to start from the beginning should they die too many times.[4] There is also a risk that players may get lost as they explore an open world; thus designers sometimes try to break the open world into manageable sections.[15]

For a game to be considered "Open world" it must contain one or more of these key features: Exploration, side quests and/or open areas. Examples are: Minecraft and Legend of Zelda.

Procedural generation and emergence

Procedural generation refers to content generated algorithmically rather than manually, and is often used to generate game levels and other content. While procedural generation does not guarantee that a game or sequence of levels are nonlinear, it is an important factor in reducing game development time, and opens up avenues making it possible to generate larger and more or less unique seamless game worlds on the fly and using fewer resources. This kind of procedural generation is also called "worldbuilding", in which general rules are used to construct a believable world.

Most 4X and roguelike games make use of procedural generation to some extent to generate game levels. SpeedTree is an example of a developer-oriented tool used in the development of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and aimed at speeding up the level design process. Procedural generation also made it possible for the developers of Elite, David Braben and Ian Bell, to fit the entire game—including thousands of planets, dozens of trade commodities, multiple ship types and a plausible economic system—into less than 22 kilobytes of memory.[16]

"You need great simulational technology. (...) [Simulated worlds] have more power than scripted worlds because they allow people to play around in that world. (...) [Good world simulations] allow people to discover things ... to push the boundaries of worlds."

—Peter Molyneux in an interview with GameSpy[17]

Emergence refers to complex situations in a video game that emerge (either expectedly or unexpectedly) from the interaction of relatively simple game mechanics.[18] According to Peter Molyneux, emergent gameplay appears wherever a game has a good simulation system that allows players to play in the world and have it respond realistically to their actions. It is what made SimCity and The Sims compelling to players. Similarly, being able to freely interact with the city's inhabitants in Grand Theft Auto added an extra dimension to the series.[17][dead link]

In recent years game designers have attempted to encourage emergent play by providing players with tools to expand games through their own actions. Examples include in-game web browsers in EVE Online and The Matrix Online; XML integration tools and programming languages in Second Life; shifting exchange rates in Entropia Universe; and the complex object-and-grammar system used to solve puzzles in Scribblenauts. Other examples of emergence include interactions between physics and artificial intelligence. One challenge that remains to be solved, however, is how to tell a compelling story using only emergent technology.[17]

In an op-ed piece for BBC News, David Braben, co-creator of Elite, called truly open-ended game design "The Holy Grail" of modern video gaming, citing games like Elite and the Grand Theft Auto series as early steps in that direction.[14] Peter Molyneux has also stated that he believes emergence (or emergent gameplay) is where video game development is headed in the future. He has attempted to implement open-world gameplay to a great extent in some of his games, particularly Black & White and Fable.[17]

History

Turbo Esprit (1986)

"I think [The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall is] one of those games that people can 'project' themselves on. It does so many things and allows [for] so many play styles that people can easily imagine what type of person they'd like to be in game."

Todd Howard[19]

Ultima I: The First Age of Darkness, developed by Richard Garriot at Origin Systems, and released in 1981, is perhaps the first true open-world computer game. The third game in the same series, Ultima III: Exodus, further expanded on the open-world concepts of the original, and introduced other modes of transportation, such as horses and boats, which could be considered early examples of sandbox game-play.

The space simulator Elite is often credited with pioneering the open world game concept in 1984.[1][20][21][22] There were several early games that offered players the ability to explore an open world while driving a variety of ground vehicles. New York City (1984), Miami Vice and later APB (1987) expanded this format, while Turbo Esprit (1986) provided a rear-view 3D free-roaming city environment, and has been cited as a major influence on Grand Theft Auto.[23] Hunter (1991) has been described as the first sandbox game to feature full 3D, third-person graphics.[24]

Released in Japan in 1986, the first Legend of Zelda is considered an early example of open world. With nonlinear gameplay, it set the foundations for later action-adventure games like Metroid and role-playing video games like Final Fantasy, while influencing most modern games in general.[25][26] Wasteland, released in 1988 by Interplay Productions, is another important pioneer in open-world game-play. The game features a large open world, where the player's actions have a permanent and persistent effect, keeping areas in the state that the player leaves them in. It had a non-linear game-play, where the player could explore much of the world from the beginning, and tackle quests and missions in any order, with the quests often having multiple possible solutions. The player also has the ability to interact with the world in other ways, using tools like ropes and shovels, to progress; an early example of true sand-box style game-play.

Sierra On-Line's 1992 adventure game King's Quest VI has an open world. Almost half of the quests are optional, many have multiple solutions, and players can solve most in any order.[27] Maps in Quarantine (1994) featured many locations where missions could be picked up and also popularized the drive-by shooting tactic by using the Uzi to shoot out from the side windows. Nintendo's Super Mario 64 (1996) was considered revolutionary for its 3D open-ended free-roaming worlds, which had rarely been seen in 3D games before, along with its analog stick controls and camera control.[28] Other early 3D examples include the Legend of Zelda games Ocarina of Time (1998) and Majora's Mask (2000),[4] the DMA Design (Rockstar North) game Body Harvest (1998), the Angel Studios (Rockstar San Diego) games Midtown Madness (1999) and Midnight Club: Street Racing (2000), the Reflections Interactive (Ubisoft Reflections) game Driver (1999),[29] and the Rareware games Banjo-Kazooie (1998), Donkey Kong 64 (1999), and Banjo-Tooie (2000).

21st century

Sega's ambitious adventure game Shenmue (1999) was a major step forward for 3D open-world gameplay, and considered the originator of the "open city" subgenre,[30] touted as a "FREE" ("Full Reactive Eyes Entertainment") game offering an unparalleled level of player freedom, giving them full rein to explore an expansive sandbox city with its own day-night cycles, changing weather, and fully voiced non-player characters going about their daily routines. The game's large interactive environments, wealth of options, level of detail and the scope of its urban sandbox exploration has been compared to later sandbox games like Grand Theft Auto III and its sequels, Sega's own Yakuza series, Fallout 3, and Deadly Premonition.[31][32][33][34] S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl was developed by GSC Game World in 2007, followed by two other games, a prequel and a sequel. The free world style of the zone was divided into huge maps, like sectors, and the player can go from one sector to another, depending on required quests or just by choice.

The series that had the greatest cultural impact was Grand Theft Auto, with over 125 million sales.[35] Grand Theft Auto III combined elements from previous games, and fused them together into a new immersive 3D experience that helped define open-world gaming for a new generation. For instance, radio stations had been implemented earlier in games such as Sega's Out Run (1986)[36] and Maxis' SimCopter (1996), the ability to beat or kill non-player characters date back to titles such as Portopia (1983),[37] Hydlide II (1985)[38] Final Fantasy Adventure (1991),[39] and various light gun shooters,[40] and the way in which players run over pedestrians and get chased by police has been compared to Pac-Man (1980).[41] After the release of Grand Theft Auto III, many games which employed a 3D open world, such as Ubisoft's Watch Dogs and Deep Silver's Saints Row series, were labeled, often disparagingly, as Grand Theft Auto clones, much as how many early first-person shooters were called "Doom clones".[42] Another well-known open world game is Minecraft, which has sold over 18,223,154 copies for the PC, Mac, and Linux.[43][44]

There were several early games that offered players the ability to explore an open world while driving a variety of ground vehicles. Turbo Esprit provided a 3D free-roaming city environment in 1986 and has been cited as a major influence on Grand Theft Auto.[23] TX-1 (1983),[45] The Battle-Road (1984)[46] and Out Run (1986)[36] were non-linear driving games that allowed the player to drive through multiple different paths that lead to different possible routes and final destinations.[36][45][46] Many of main arcade-style racing (as opposed to simulation) series had done open-world games by the 2010s.

Another notable example is The Elder Scrolls series of games, which feature a large and diverse world offering tasks and possibilities to play.

In 2011, Dan Ryckert of Game Informer wrote that open world crime games were "a major force" in the gaming industry for the preceding decade.[47]

More recent open world crime games include Sleeping Dogs in 2012 and Triad Wars both set in contemporary Hong Kong focusing on the Triad organized crime syndicate.

The Outerra Engine is a world rendering engine in development since 2008 that is capable of seamlessly rendering whole planets from space down to ground level. Anteworld is a world-building game and free tech-demo of the Outerra Engine that builds up on real world data to render planet Earth realistically on a true-to-life scale.[48]

Set to be released in 2015, No Man's Sky is a video game that features an open world universe so gigantic it would take all of Earth's inhabitants 505 billion years to explore it all at the rate of one planet per second. According to the developers, through procedural generation the game will be able to produce more than 18 quintillion planets for players to explore.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Sefton, Jamie (July 11, 2007). "The roots of open-world games". GamesRadar. Retrieved 2008-07-25.
  2. ^ Logan Booker (2008-07-14). "Pandemic Working On New 'Open World / Sandbox' IP". Kotaku. Retrieved 2008-07-25.
  3. ^ "The complete history of open-world games (part 2)". Computer and Video Games. May 25, 2008. Retrieved 2008-07-25.
  4. ^ a b c d e Harris, John (September 26, 2007). "Game Design Essentials: 20 Open World Games". Gamasutra. Retrieved 2008-07-25.
  5. ^ Chris Kohler (2008-01-04). "Assassin's Creed And The Future Of Sandbox Games". Wired. Retrieved 2008-07-26.
  6. ^ Harris, John (September 26, 2007). "Game Design Essentials: 20 Open World Games - Air Fortress". Gamasutra. Retrieved 2008-08-02.
  7. ^ a b Chris Kohler (2007-11-23). "Review: Why Assassin's Creed Fails". Wired.
  8. ^ James Ransom-Wiley (2007-08-10). "Sierra unveils Prototype, not the first sandbox adventure". Joystiq. Retrieved 2008-07-26.
  9. ^ Steven Poole (2000). Trigger Happy. Arcade Publishing. p. 101.
  10. ^ Bishop, Stuart (March 5, 2003). "Interview: Freelancer". ComputerAndVideoGames.com. Retrieved 2007-12-30.
  11. ^ Chris Remo and Brandon Sheffield. "Redefining Game Narrative: Ubisoft's Patrick Redding On Far Cry 2". GamaSutra. Retrieved 2008-08-02.
  12. ^ Chris Plante (2008-05-12). "Opinion: 'All The World's A Sandbox'". GamaSutra. Retrieved 2008-07-26.
  13. ^ "Freelancer (PC)". CNET (GameSpot). March 4, 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-30. {{cite web}}: |first= missing |last= (help)
  14. ^ a b Braben, David (31 December 2005). "Towards games with the wow factor". BBC News. Retrieved 1977-12-27. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  15. ^ Patrick O'Luanaigh (2006). Game Design Complete. Paraglyph Press. pp. 203, 218.
  16. ^ Shoemaker, Richie (August 14, 2002). "Games that changed the world: Elite". Computer and Video Games. Retrieved 2008-06-20.
  17. ^ a b c d Kosak, Dave (2004-03-07). "The Future of Games from a Design Perspective". gamespy.com.
  18. ^ "Le Gameplay emergent (in French)". jeuxvideo.com. 1928-01-19.
  19. ^ Crigger, Lara (2008). "Chasing D&D: A History of RPGs". 1UP.com. Retrieved 2010-11-09.
  20. ^ Barton, Matt; Bill Loguidice (April 7, 2009). "The History of Elite: Space, the Endless Frontier". Gamasutra. Retrieved 2009-12-27.
  21. ^ Whitehead, Dan (February 4, 2008). "Born Free: the History of the Openworld Game". Eurogamer. Retrieved 2008-07-25.
  22. ^ "The complete history of open-world games (part 1)". Computer and Video Games. May 24, 2008. Retrieved 2008-07-25.
  23. ^ a b Retrorevival: Turbo Esprit, Retro Gamer issue 20, page 48. Imagine Publishing, 2006.
  24. ^ Fahs, Travis (2008-03-24). The Leif Ericson Awards, IGN, Retrieved on 2009-07-16
  25. ^ Peckham, Matt (2012-11-15). "ALL-TIME 100 Video Games". TIME. Retrieved 2014-08-12.
  26. ^ Mc Shea, Tom (20121-21-12). "The Legend of Zelda 25th Anniversary A Look Back". Gamespot. Retrieved 2014-08-12. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  27. ^ Miller, Chuck (1993-01). "King's Quest VI: Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow". Computer Gaming World. p. 12. Retrieved 5 July 2014. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  28. ^ Super Mario 64 VC Review, IGN
  29. ^ Guzman, Hector (2006-03-20). "GameSpy: Driver: Parallel Lines - Page 1". GameSpy. Retrieved 2009-12-29.
  30. ^ Scott Sharkey. "Top 5 Underappreciated Innovators: Five genre-defining games that didn't get their due". 1UP.com. Retrieved 2011-04-01.
  31. ^ Brendan Main, Lost in Yokosuka, The Escapist
  32. ^ Shenmue: Creator Yu Suzuki Speaks Out, GamesTM
  33. ^ Yu Suzuki, IGN
  34. ^ The Disappearance of Yu Suzuki: Part 1, 1UP
  35. ^ Makuch, Eddie. "Grand Theft Auto series shipments reach 125 million". Gamespot. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
  36. ^ a b c Brian Gazza. "Outrun". Hardcore Gaming 101. Retrieved 2011-03-17.
  37. ^ John Szczepaniak (February 2011). "Portopia Renzoku Satsujin Jiken". Retro Gamer. Retrieved 2011-03-16. (Reprinted at John Szczepaniak. "Retro Gamer 85". Hardcore Gaming 101. Retrieved 2011-03-16.)
  38. ^ Kurt Kalata & Robert Greene, Hydlide, Hardcore Gaming 101
  39. ^ Andrew Vestal (1998-11-02). "Other Game Boy RPGs". GameSpot. Retrieved 2009-11-18.
  40. ^ Kalata, Kurt. "Konami Run 'n Guns". Hardcore Gaming 101. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
  41. ^ Brian Ashcraft (July 16, 2009). "Grand Theft Auto And Pac-Man? "The Same"". Retrieved 2011-03-08.
  42. ^ Doom, Encyclopædia Britannica, Accessed Feb 25, 2009
  43. ^ https://minecraft.net/
  44. ^ https://minecraft.net/game
  45. ^ a b TX-1 at the Killer List of Videogames
  46. ^ a b Battle-Road, The at the Killer List of Videogames
  47. ^ Ryckert, Dan (April 2011). "Embracing the Crazy". Game Informer (216). GameStop: 49.
  48. ^ Brano Kemen. "Outerra Tech Demo - Free tech demo, upgradable to the Anteworld sandbox game (alpha)".