Games like Grand Theft Auto IV, The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, and ARMA 2 feature open-world environments as a key conceit of their level design and game play mechanics. Player choice is incorporated as a functional element in the larger game design while emergent game play, or complex situations that arise from the interaction of basic game mechanics, separates these choice-based games from their more structured, linear counterparts. Games like Half-Life 2, Fable, the Final Fantasy series, and the Call of Duty franchise rely on linear spatial models to place emphasis on specific game play elements and to develop cohesive level design within a finite playable space. In my thesis I purport that the function of non-interactive spaces in spatially linear video games contributes significantly to the overall ambiance of a level via use of scripted actions, set pieces, and other factors that can communicate complex narrative without the necessity of an open-world.
This claim, countering the assumption that open-world settings afford players more immersive, flexible and therefore more advanced game worlds through emergent game play instead of scripted or choreographed elements, can be supported by placing the spatial concerns of games within the context of setting in film and other non-interactive media, like television and 2D design. There are several key statements that I will use to support my claim. I support my claim, which will examine the effect of level design that eliminates a scope of player choice and allows for the illusion of space. Level designers can implement scripted elements into free-form play so that the function of linearity in games allows the designer/designers more control in environmental variables, and so that implied, non-playable space can be choreographed into player’s experiences similar to the static perspective of conventional film.
With the success of open-world formats the concept of linearity in games has come to be seen as a negative, undesirable attribute, but linearity has a place among interactive narratives. In “The Future of Games from a Design Perspective” from Gamespy.com, Blizzard designer Dave “Fargo” Kosak stated that “complete freedom in a game world is boring after about ten minutes. People like to have challenges, goals, and something to struggle toward.” The tendency in modern game design puts emphasis on making games that give people total freedom, but that alone is not sufficient for a well-designed experience.
In order to understand the interplay between space and narrative within a confined world, I plan to use a variety of research methods including but not limited to first-hand play, primary academic sources, and secondary analyses of specific game spaces. There is a wealth of information on open-world games that have both succeeded and faltered with their use of space – Tamriel, the fictional fantasy empire in the Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall, contains a playable area that is twice the size of Great Britain but has been criticized for flaunting quantity over quality of game play. Over 750,000 non-player characters populate the universe in 15,000 towns. The 2007 game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. modeled a highly detailed, 30 square kilometer open-world environment based on the Zone of Alienation and the town of Pripyat near Chernobyl. The game’s designers referenced Andrei Tarkovsky’s 1979 film Stalker as a heavy influence, and the game has been praised for its expansive, highly-detailed and ambient atmosphere. The combat simulator ARMA 2 possesses non-player characters that have memory and the ability to recall events the player did not witness – for example, if an enemy squad passes through a town a few miles from where the player is, NPC’s will observe this action, and depending on their allegiance will pass that information on to the player. These games, in many respects, use their openness as a core advantage in communicating narrative, though not all “sandbox” style games function effectively. Noteworthy games that adapt a linear level design are some of the most commercially and critically successful – including Valve’s Half-Life series, which is consistently cited as an example of linear level design that has far more in common with the spatiality of a film than an open world. The relationship between the static qualities of film and the inflexibility of player choice in linear games is a parallel that I will examine using the framework of media criticism and analysis.
Game designer Ed del Castillo frames the difficulty in balancing open-world design techniques, which have been increasingly prominent in next-generation titles, versus the benefits of linear level design, which has been categorized as passé in light of rapidly advancing game engines and technological developments. Del Castillo states that designers “sometimes think arrogantly that [they] know better than the gamer” by either “narrowly defining [the player’s] possible experiences, or … [by going] the other way and [creating] a sandbox game, which does a very poor job of creating interesting drama within the experience. Somewhere in the middle is the balance.” Del Castillo affirms that players “don’t want to be led on a rail, because they can go to a movie for that. If we continue to insist that they play the game our way, then we’ll continue to lose them” (http://www.gamesradar.com/the-roots-of-open-world-games/?page=2). The latter part of this statement is highly contentious, though not entirely unwarranted. I am interested in del Castillo’s former claim – namely that a blend of player choice that is limited by linear spatial cues can assemble to form a highly functional game world.
New sources:
Bissell, Tom. “Video Games: the Addiction.” The Guardian. 20 Mar. 2010. Web. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/theobserver/2010/mar/21/tom-bissell-video-game-cocaine-addiction>.
This piece chronicles writer Tom Bissell’s codependent struggle with his addiction to cocaine and Grand Theft Auto IV. I found the piece moving and indicative not only of the power of open-world games, but also illuminating of their less than desirable attributes – namely the tendency of players to become “lost” in the complex environments, particularly given a predisposition to addictive behavior. This is not to say that open-world games are unhealthy, but rather to offer a unique viewpoint on the allure of such a design choice.
Braben, David. “Towards Games With the Wow Factor.” News.BBC.co.uk. 31 Dec. 2005. Web. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4553620.stm>.
Byrne, Edward. Game Level Design. Hingham, MA: Charles River Media, 2005. Print.
This book offers a comprehensive look at video game level design. I haven’t read through the entire text, though I am confident it will serve as a good reference throughout my research.
Kosak, Dave. “The Future of Games from a Design Perspective.” GameSpy.com. 7 Mar. 2004. Web. <http://archive.gamespy.com/articles/march04/dice/molyneux/>.
Salen, Katie, and Eric Zimmerman. Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals. Cambridge, MA: MIT, 2003. Print.
Another comprehensive look at the principles of game design. I used this in a class I took last semester, Concepts in Gaming. It provides a thorough basis for game design and will help me to pinpoint accurate terminology and concepts that are currently foreign to me. I plan to use it when I incorporate information on game mechanics.
Sterling, Jim. “The Path of No Divergence: Why Linear Games Have Their Place.” Destructoid.com. ModernMethod, 15 June 2008. Web. <http://www.destructoid.com/the-path-of-no-divergence-why-linear-games-have-their-place-90753.phtml>.
Pertinent Quotes (starting point to counter these views):
“The player is stuck on pre-defined railway lines, forced to follow their character’s pre-determined adventures, much as in a book or a film. In story-telling terms at least, games have not yet broken free of their non-interactive roots. The Holy Grail we are looking for in fifth generation gaming is the ability to have freedom, and to have truly open ended stories. Games that have even hinted at that freedom in the past like Elite and Grand Theft Auto have been hugely successful. This Holy Grail is what will herald the new era for gaming.”
– David Braben, “Towards games with the wow factor,” BBC News (31 December 2005)
“You need great simulational technology … [simulated worlds] have more power than scripted worlds because they allow people to play around in that world.”
– Peter Molyneux, “The Future of Games from a Design Perspective,” Gamespy.com (7 March 2004)
“Game Designers are becoming more like [film] Directors now.”
– Peter Molyneux, “The Future of Games from a Design Perspective,” Gamespy.com (7 March 2004)
