It doesn't matter what kind of setting, aesthetic, or gameplay style an open-world game is aiming for; the one thing they all have in common is a map. Offering such a large landscape to explore can be pretty daunting, and without a way of knowing where the player has been or where to go next, it can be hard to keep track of everything. However, some open-world games defy this expectation and either limit the player's mapping capabilities or remove the map entirely, leaving nothing but their sense of direction and a few environmental cues to guide them on their journey. This style of exploration feels far more organic and natural, as rather than being pushed from one place to another over and over, players are figuring things out for themselves, even if that means getting lost a few times along the way.
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There are plenty of great examples where a game limits navigation tools without the core experience feeling overwhelming or too hard to grasp. Oftentimes, especially in modern gaming, players rely heavily on tools and mechanics like maps or waypoints to tell them exactly where to go and what kinds of things they may find on the way there. However, in many cases, this can actually remove much of the joy that comes from stumbling upon random camps, mysterious structures, or NPCs that would be missed if the player just ran straight to the next objective. When all those markers are gone, the world and the player become a single entity, and the act of exploring becomes so much more rewarding, turning even small discoveries and observations into vital pieces of information that can easily save lives.
Outward
No Safety Nets To Catch You
- No minimap or quest markers.
- Landmark-driven exploration.
Outward deliberately withholds modern navigational comforts, forcing players to instead rely on landmarks and their own memories of the world around them. The world is hostile and shows no hesitation when it comes to dishing out some pain, which means that unprepared players can easily be caught off guard if they wander too far into unknown territory. However, that act of getting lost never feels like a mistake but an expected part of the journey. With each death and misstep comes a flood of knowledge that players can use to aid them the next time around.
Because of the limited guidance, exploration becomes a slow, methodical process shaped by trial and error as players become accustomed to the dangerous environment that surrounds them at all times. In a lot of ways, knowledge becomes key to the player's survival, as a single memory of a cliff face or a distant structure can easily turn a failed expedition into a successful one. Outward is a game about risk and reward, and only those willing to take the plunge will see the true joy and excitement that comes from exploring the world effectively blind.
Subnautica
Lost Under The Sea
- Explore shifting deep-sea biomes.
- Players are guided by the resources they need and the desire to see more.
Subnautica removes traditional mapping tools in favor of environmental storytelling and player-driven discovery. The alien ocean is vast, vertically layered, and intentionally disorienting, with biomes bleeding into one another across the depths without any clear boundaries. Early exploration relies entirely on visual cues, making each descent feel tense and uncertain, as players start their adventure knowing full well that there are no easy ways back to safety.
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As players venture deeper, curiosity replaces objective markers, and they become guided purely by the desire to learn more about the world, as well as a few necessary resources that they will need to craft their next big project. Navigation becomes an exercise in understanding, and the game turns into an ecological study that rewards those willing to learn the ins and outs like the back of their hand. Even when their tools improve, the sense of getting lost never fully disappears, reinforcing the game's core theme of isolation that never really leaves the player, no matter how many hours they spend under the sea.
The Long Dark
Suffering Through The Silence
- Manual mapping that is still no better than a guideline.
- Active disruption by weather, illness, and desperation.
The Long Dark strips exploration down to its harshest essentials, leaning heavily into the realism aspects of survival without any easy routes forward. There is no automatic map, no GPS, and no HUD assistance; instead, players must manually chart the world by exploring regions and mapping landmarks while combating the perilous weather and wildlife hiding in the northern wilderness.
The elements start to show their true colors further into the game, and aspects like the darkness and snowfall quickly become the main threats to the player and their efforts to explore. Simple steps quickly turn into life-or-death decisions that can very easily go either way, and regardless of how comfortable players may feel in the world, there will always be another spanner thrown in the works to completely sidetrack them and generally ruin their day.
The Forest
Danger Around Every Corner
- Sparse navigational tools make exploration tense.
- Dense, misleading environments that are easy to get lost in.
The Forest plays with the idea of certainty in a big way, completely gutting any navigational comforts present in other survival games and replacing them with primitive tools that can sometimes work against the player without them even realizing it. The world offers no minimap, and landmarks are often obscured by dense foliage, creating a constant feeling of vulnerability that only becomes more potent as the sun sets.
Players must learn the island organically, often under threat from hostile inhabitants that punish hesitation with a quick death. Even when using the compass and basic maps, they still only serve as outlines that demand a lot of input and attention. Also, by limiting the player's ability to guide themselves easily, the game's horror elements are elevated, as not only do players need to think about building shelters and defending themselves from hungry cannibals, but they also need to actively think about every step taken into the wilderness.
Minecraft
Charting The World One Block At A Time
- Procedural open-world that encourages experimentation.
- Player-created landmarks and maps.
Minecraft is perhaps the purest example of an open-world game that focuses solely on the player and their desire to explore the world. There are literally no markers, no objectives, and no questlines, only a procedural world full of blocks of all kinds waiting to be shaped into something truly breathtaking. The map functionality within the game is kept intentionally limited by being restricted to craftable items that need to be physically held and by forcing players to physically map out the entire landscape for the item to be populated with the layout of the land.
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This means that, for the most part, players will be relying on retracing their steps, placing landmarks, and following coordinates to guide them between different locations across the world. The more they explore, the bigger their world becomes, and a small plot of land can quickly start to span 1000s of blocks across several different biomes, requiring more and more thought from the player every time they go out hunting again. Also, because of the way worlds are generated, certain areas or structures can appear very far away from the original spawn, meaning that if players want those special items or to finally conquer the Ender Dragon, then they are going to need to start walking at some point, even if that means running off into the sunset without any way of knowing how far their adventure will take them.
Outer Wilds
Curiosity Leads The Way
- Knowledge is the primary source of guidance.
- Minor maps for general navigation.
Outer Wilds removes basically every form of map, aside from a few general ones, to prioritize curiosity above all else. The solar system is compact yet complex, and exploration is guided solely by the player's ability to observe and deduce the mystery around them, with the narrative often being hidden within the environment in far more subtle ways than it initially appears.
Each planet reshapes how navigation works, forcing players to adapt to gravitational shifts and environmental hazards that keep them guessing every time they touch down. Not knowing where to go or how to get there is the point of the experience, and when the puzzle pieces finally start falling into place, the satisfaction is virtually impossible for any other game in the genre to beat.
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