Open world or Linear

[Juneau]

Hi everyone, I'm up todate on the more recent stuff but I was late to joining the kickstarter campaign and only came across it when replaying NWN2 and getting stuck.

 

How open world / linear will the game be?

 

Will it be a case of you start at place X and venture out to places Y and Z first and from there places A B and C then become available and so on (A bit like NWN2)

 

Or will you arrive at city A) and then be able to go anywhere (outside of the later main mission areas - like TES games)?

 

Or are we unsure yet.

Edited February 4, 2013 by Juneau

[PrimeJunta]

As far as I know, they haven't said yet. I guess the default assumption is that it'll be more like the IE games and NWN (your first example) than fully open-world like TES or Fallout. But who knows, they might surprise us.

[rjshae]

My understanding is that this will not be a sandbox game; you'll be limited to traveling to fixed area maps per the IE games. However, I don't think we've been informed yet about how this travel will be performed. It may be strictly point-to-point, or it may involve free or somehow constrained movement across a strategic map.

[JFSOCC]

it'll be a fairly free experience, but there are some "bottlenecks" which you have to go through to progress the story.

[Ganrich]

Crossing my fingers for baldurs gate 1 type of open world. Not as expansive as fallout or TES but more so than the other IE games.

 

This is one of those issues that I am waiting to hear more on. If they go more story focused then I am ok with it being more like PST or MoTB, though. It just depends.

[Heresiarch]

Frankly, I prefer BG2 design with a single main location, several locations to travel for side missions and being locked away at times in far-away places. Also I like returning to the same place again and again, seeing how it changes over time. I even liked DA2 because of this, horrible recycled dungeons and lame countryside notwithstanding.

[AGX-17]

Presumably somewhere in between. I doubt you're ever going to be intentionally railroaded.

[Sedrefilos]

Since they said about implementing map skills I guess there will be some freedom on map moving. Maybe something like the fallout 2 map travel or a mix of classic IE games map travel and old fallouts.

[Ffordesoon]

IE-style, obv. Though an attempt to capture BG1's more freeform approach to exploration would be nice, since none of the other IE games really recaptured it.

[Juneau]

Guess this answers my question - We have assumptions and ideas. Here's to hoping we get a good mix. I liked the NWN2 style but I can't see this allowing much world change etc..

[curryinahurry]

From what was stated during Kickstarter (I haven't followed many discussions since), it seems that the game will have BG2 style nodes and some overland travel/exploration system a la SOZ, or possibly from older (Pre-IE) games.  I'm not sure there will be any of the BG style map to map wilderness exploration.

[Karkarov]

As far as I know, they haven't said yet. I guess the default assumption is that it'll be more like the IE games and NWN (your first example) than fully open-world like TES or Fallout. But who knows, they might surprise us.

Pretty sure that is what it will be since that was in the sales pitch and all.  Also I have no idea how they could do open world with the type of art design they are going for right now, it just wouldn't work well. This game and it's mechanics just would not benefit from an open world so I can't see them using one.

[Luridis]

I'd love a sandbox, but I don't think they have the team quantity and funds to do it... There's so many more variables to track in a go-anywhere-anytime world.

[moridin84]

I think it depends on your definition or linear and open world. 

 

They definitely aren't doing "sandbox", e.g. Bethesda games. 

 

I think the are going to split the game into "acts" (or something) with each act having a certain number of locations to visit. 

Edited February 7, 2013 by moridin84

[rjshae]

Something I would like to see are explorable areas that can expand beyond the original boundaries via a streams loading technique. That is, if you go to a certain location (or locations) along a border, then the next section of the area gets loaded into memory and you could explore further without needing to go through a transition panel. That would go a long way toward creating the sense of openness you experience in a sandbox game.

[JFSOCC]

Something I would like to see are explorable areas that can expand beyond the original boundaries via a streams loading technique. That is, if you go to a certain location (or locations) along a border, then the next section of the area gets loaded into memory and you could explore further without needing to go through a transition panel. That would go a long way toward creating the sense of openness you experience in a sandbox game.

It's an old thread, but what would you think of this as a way to define borders?: http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/62261-a-wilderness-idea/

[rjshae]

 

Something I would like to see are explorable areas that can expand beyond the original boundaries via a streams loading technique. That is, if you go to a certain location (or locations) along a border, then the next section of the area gets loaded into memory and you could explore further without needing to go through a transition panel. That would go a long way toward creating the sense of openness you experience in a sandbox game.

It's an old thread, but what would you think of this as a way to define borders?: http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/62261-a-wilderness-idea/

 

It's a decent idea as it stands, but I'm just not all that interested in wandering around in a randomly generated wilderness. The overland map approach in NWN2 SoZ could be used to produce something similar, albeit being viewed from a higher perspective.

[entrerix]

i hope its most like BG1 in terms of map exploration

[Tsuga C]

it'll be a fairly free experience, but there are some "bottlenecks" which you have to go through to progress the story.

This is both my hope and understanding, as well.  I have no qualms about some areas in each chapter being too tough to handle if we approach them too soon provided that there's fair warning for most of them.

[moridin84]

Something I would like to see are explorable areas that can expand beyond the original boundaries via a streams loading technique. That is, if you go to a certain location (or locations) along a border, then the next section of the area gets loaded into memory and you could explore further without needing to go through a transition panel. That would go a long way toward creating the sense of openness you experience in a sandbox game.

 

Sounds kinda neat but I doubt it's worth the effort of implementing. 

[rjshae]

 

Something I would like to see are explorable areas that can expand beyond the original boundaries via a streams loading technique. That is, if you go to a certain location (or locations) along a border, then the next section of the area gets loaded into memory and you could explore further without needing to go through a transition panel. That would go a long way toward creating the sense of openness you experience in a sandbox game.

 

Sounds kinda neat but I doubt it's worth the effort of implementing. 

 

Well I mentioned it because that approach may make it easier to mod areas; you just add a new map area to the edge of an existing map. Shrug. No matter.

[AGX-17]

I'd love a sandbox, but I don't think they have the team quantity and funds to do it... There's so many more variables to track in a go-anywhere-anytime world.

Sandbox and IE-style don't mix. A sandbox game (à la Minecraft, a pure sandbox, or GTA, a mostly sandbox,) is more about dicking around and making your own fun, not story, companions and combat depth. Edited February 7, 2013 by AGX-17

[Lephys]

Sandbox and IE-style don't mix. A sandbox game (à la Minecraft, a pure sandbox, or GTA, a mostly sandbox,) is more about dicking around and making your own fun, not story, companions and combat depth.

*Nod*. That was the main issue with Skyrim. It wasn't "Oh look, a story is taking place around me!" It was just a big buffet of little story bits, that kind of fit together. You were hardly ever placed in any actual situations. I mean, they had exploration... gotta give 'em that much. But the whole GAME was exploration, pretty much.

 

Some freedom and contextual exploration is great, but it's gotta follow the framework and circumstances of the story skeleton.

[Luridis]

 

I'd love a sandbox, but I don't think they have the team quantity and funds to do it... There's so many more variables to track in a go-anywhere-anytime world.

Sandbox and IE-style don't mix. A sandbox game (à la Minecraft, a pure sandbox, or GTA, a mostly sandbox,) is more about dicking around and making your own fun, not story, companions and combat depth.

 

Doesn't have to be one or the other, hense what I said about too many variables to track. I've seen it done in other games, but I don't see the dev-time/dollars to make it happen with PE.

[Ganrich]

I don't think it is so much that sandbox and something like IE games don't mix, but that the consumers expectations are different.  I have never bought a TES game expecting the pinnacle of story telling, but freedom to explore and find those tidbits of lore and story.  Just as the IE games were more about story telling in a more direct, typical, and dramatic fashion, but that isn't do say that you couldn't do an IE game with the open world paradigm.  I just don't think you would compete with Bethesda on that front in a top down game.  I feel the 3d graphics and long draw distances make TES exploration what they are.  I am definitely not wanting that model here.  At least not at the sacrifice of a gripping tale. 

 

As I have said, I want some exploration (More than PST and IWDs, and preferably a bit more than BG2), but I am ok with it being somewhat minimized if the story is rock solid.  Of which I have no doubt the devs will put a lot into said story. 

 

PS:  If exploration was minimized almost completely and we got something as enthralling as PST... I would still be happy.  I am pretty malleable, I guess.  lol