Summary
- Not every RPG needs an open-world; linear games can have stronger gameplay pillars.
- Dragon's Dogma's combat shines, but its inclusion of an open world could've been more engaging.
- Assassin's Creed Odyssey suffered from a bloated open world, taking away from its strengths.
Open-world RPGs have become all the rage in modern times. These titles combine two of gaming's most popular genres, letting players enjoy an epic adventure across a riveting world that is full of side content to explore and secrets to uncover.
However, not every RPG needs to integrate a huge sandbox-style world. Some games would arguably have been better if they had followed a linear path, instead. No one is lamenting the inclusion of an open world in these role-playing games, but a convincing case can be made that the other gameplay pillars of these titles could have been stronger with a more focused approach.
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6 Dragon's Dogma
Combat Could Have Been Less Repetitive Without A Sandbox
Dragon's Dogma
- Released
- May 22, 2012
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Suggestive Themes, Violence
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG
The combat in Dragon's Dogma is one of the best parts of the experience. Players love uncovering the movesets of various Vocations as they take on various mobs of enemies and fight the biggest bosses in epic encounters where players can outright climb their foes to wail on them.
While the open world is fun, it's far from the best integration of a sandbox in a video game. Some of the distractions can feel meaningless. Players can't help but feel that this title could have been more engaging with a semi-open world structure, or even a linear experience that would help combat encounters feel more curated and less haphazard.
5 Assassin's Creed Odyssey
The Bloated Open World Took Away From This Title's Strengths
Assassin's Creed Odyssey
- Released
- October 15, 2018
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, Open-World
The Assassin's Creed franchise has historically been open-world, so it says something when players wished that Odyssey didn't feature such a bloated and tiresome world to explore. The game map is massive for the sake of being massive, which takes away from the overall experience.
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It reaches a point where players would have preferred if this game had tried to be either an RPG or an open-world game. In a bid to tread both lines, it ended up sticking the landing on neither. It became the catalyst that sparked fan requests to bring the series back to its roots, instead of continuing this approach.
4 Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot
The Filler Content Gets Grating To Deal With
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot
- Released
- January 16, 2020
WHERE TO PLAY
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot is a fun game that covers the entire Z Saga, with DLCs covering the story's prequels and sequels. Combat is fun, if somewhat easy, and the authenticity of this game is something fans appreciate.
However, the open world of this game is pretty by-the-numbers, with the lack of meaningful rewards from the main story hampering both the pacing and players' enjoyment. If the game featured a greater focus on the story and didn't distract players with open-world busywork, then players would have loved it. Most would prefer an action-packed DBZ game with great pacing as opposed to an open-world Dragon Ball game with an equal mix of highs and lows.
3 Final Fantasy 15
The Story Doesn't Work With A Sandbox Structure
Final Fantasy 15
- Released
- November 9, 2016
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Language, Mild Blood, Partial Nudity, Violence
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG
Final Fantasy 15 is a very charming open-world game; there's no doubt about that. However, the game's story was so ambitious that the sandbox itself was ignored in the latter half as the game became linear. This makes it puzzling as to why the open world was such a major focus to begin with.
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Expanding on Insomnia before Noctis leaves for his road trip and ensuring that the story and gameplay worked in harmony should have been bigger priorities for this title, instead of the integration of a sandbox. While this open world does convey a sense of adventure, some puzzling design elements make players wonder how meaningful it really is to explore these admittedly beautiful environments.
2 The Elder Scrolls 2: Daggerfall
The Open World Is Too Huge And Uninteresting
The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall
- Released
- September 20, 1996
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- m
- Genre(s)
- RPG
Some open-world games can be too massive for their own good. Nowhere is this more apparent than in Daggerfall, which is ridiculously huge and does nothing to justify its size. The bulk of these environments are procedurally generated and feel a bit too similar. If Daggerfall had adhered to the technical limitations of its time and let players enjoy a small but well-designed world, it could have attracted more fans.
1 Mass Effect: Andromeda
Fans Missed The Focused Structure Of Previous Games
Mass Effect: Andromeda
- Released
- March 1, 2017
WHERE TO PLAY
Mass Effect: Andromeda is one of the most controversial RPGs of all time, with many players hating how it doesn't live up to Commander Shepard's epic adventures. The open-world elements seemed interesting at the time, but they just added to the game's bloat.
Fans would have preferred a focused and intense adventure where the level design wasn't so open-ended. Sure, Andromeda's open-world hubs shine in their own way, but the reception to this game makes it clear that most people would have preferred the approach from the original games.
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