Linearity in Games
Posted on Feb 23, 2011 in Gameplay
Open world games have become increasingly popular over the past ten years. They're hardly a new concept - Wikipedia cites open world games from as far back as 1984. It has become an increasing trend for games to become less linear and more flexible in terms of plot progression and gameplay. Nonlinear gameplay isn't only in sandbox games, though - you can see elements of it in many different games. It's very common in RPGs and other genres that focus on replayability, but it can be seen in almost every genre.
The driving factor behind nonlinear gameplay - and open world games in general - is choice. To force players to make a choice is to help immerse them more into the game as they grow attached to the combination of choices they have made - this helps them feel that they're in control of the game as the story progresses. But, on the other hand, lack of choice can also assist the game in driving a point across, increase variation in gameplay, and help progress the plot and characters of the game at a faster pace.
Main-Quests and Side-Quests
Grand Theft Auto III was one of the biggest games of its time with an open world as the main gameplay element. That was back in 2001. It provides the player with a relatively large game world which grows bigger as the game progresses. The main story of the game is told through a set of linear, plot-advancing missions. Other side-missions are offered between the main set, and these have little impact on the plot of the game as it progresses.
GTA3 contains many of the elements that make up a lot of open world games currently. Examples include Deus Ex, Fallout 3, Mass Effect, and Infamous. All of these games have a defined "quest" structure built into the game - a quest may be a mandatory plot-advancing task, or it may be an optional side-quest. Usually side-quests offer rewards such as new items, abilities, or even a new character to join your team. This style of game, however, can usually be finished by ignoring all side-quests altogether.
Open World With Linear Gameplay
Pokémon Red and Blue made a huge splash in the gaming world in the late 90's. These games are well-defined RPGs with an open world and turn-based combat. All Pokémon games follow extremely linear plot progression to the point where it is, in most cases, impossible to do anything outside the pre-defined order. The open world, however, allows players to backtrack to previously-visited areas after they have learned new abilities in order to explore new areas.
A lot Nintendo RPGs follow this structure - The Legend of Zelda, Golden Sun, and Metroid are the best examples here. This structure is present in other games as well, such as System Shock 2, Psychonauts and Myst - although some of these let you choose the order to do several tasks, you always need to complete them all before you can proceed.
The True Sandbox Game
True "sandbox" games are rare, especially in action/adventure games. In fact, they're basically non-existent in that genre.
A sandbox game is one with no defined ending, where the player has infinite possibilities and can progress in any way. SimCity is a classic example of this - as well as most games in the sim genre.
Another example is Garry's Mod, which was originally a Half-Life 2 mod - it now spans the content of all Source games. Garry's mod (a.k.a. gmod) provides the players with the ability to spawn and manipulate any game entity and combine them in almost any fashion. This results in a variety of gameplay types such as fort-building, roleplay, and other forms of co-op gaming. There is no defined goal of the game - it is simply a game where players use their imagination to run wild.
Finally, I can't help but mention Minecraft, which has gained vast popularity in the past year. Minecraft is an infinite world of blocks with a simple mechanic of gathering resources (mining) and creating things out of them (crafting). There is an overall goal of one type of gameplay ("hardcore mode") which is to survive from hordes of zombie-like creatures at night. This is achieved by building some sort of fortress to keep them away from you. Everything else in the game is up to the player. Using the basic mechanisms in the game, people have been able to create songs, huge explosions, large sculptures, and even the Starship Enterprise.
Linear Game World With Linear Gameplay
The last category of game I want to look at is also the most common. This is the type of game with linear level and plot progression - usually there is only one way to do any task, and that is what must be done to advance to the next level. This is the category that your Uncharted, Dead Space, Halo, Call of Duty, and countless others fall into - it is by far the most popular genre for single-player games.
There's absolutely nothing wrong with these type of games - in fact, it's my favourite type. They simply have a different focus and purpose than the not-so-linear alternatives. These games usually focus quite heavily on the gameplay itself, as well as character and plot progression throughout the game. Half-Life is an excellent example of a linear game with good pacing and gameplay. The story is a bit lacking in the first game, but this is corrected in the sequel.
Wrapping Up
There are plenty of other types of linear and non-linear games, and I may follow this post up with another later down the track, but at the moment I think that's enough. It's worth noticing that sometimes you have less choice when playing a game than you actually think - some of the best games trick you into thinking there are countless choices to be made, when no such choice actually exists.
Adding choices and decisions to games can increase immersion and open up some interesting gameplay opportunities. On the other hand, too much choice can leave players confused and upset - it's important for a non-linear game to be designed in such a way to prevent this from occurring. I think it's worth remembering that while you can never have enough of a good thing, it can sometimes be hard to realise that what you have is not actually all that good.
Posted on Feb 23, 2011 in Gameplay
Follow-Up Blogs
- Linearity Part Two: Final Fantasy XIII [Apr 24, 2011]
