Why Modern Games Are So Boring: Reclaiming Exploration and Player Agency
Okay, here’s a blog post draft designed to meet the specified requirements. I’ve aimed for a balance of strong opinion, practical advice, and theoretical grounding, all while keeping the tone approachable and the style minimalist.
Why Are Modern Games So Boring?
Something feels missing in modern games, doesn’t it? The sprawling worlds are beautiful, the mechanics are polished, and the stories are epic. Yet, there’s a hollowness, a lack of genuine connection.
It’s a feeling driven by a shift in game design, prioritizing efficiency over experience. Modern level design, saturated with waypoints and objective markers, is killing the joy of exploration.
The Death of Discovery
Remember the feeling of getting lost in a game? That exhilarating mix of frustration and excitement as you stumble upon a hidden path or a secret area? That’s quickly disappearing.
Games now hold your hand, leading you by the nose. Waypoints are the primary offenders.
Waypoints: A Necessary Evil?
Waypoints aren’t inherently bad. For example, consider the game "Elden Ring".
It is a recent game that provides the player with guidance, but does not hold their hand. It leaves a lot of the discovery to the player.
They are a useful tool for guiding players through complex environments, especially in open-world games. But their overuse transforms exploration into a checklist. You go here, then here, then here. There is nothing left to discover for yourself.
The joy of organic discovery is replaced with the satisfaction of ticking off tasks. The sense of wonder is replaced with a feeling of obligation.
The Checklist Mentality
This obsession with efficiency stems from a fear of frustrating the player. Developers don’t want players to get lost, or to miss content. Therefore, they sanitize and streamline the experience.
But this creates a passive player. The checklist mentality extends to quest design. "Go here, collect this, return".
These quests provide little to no player agency. “Horizon Forbidden West” suffers greatly from this.
A Better Way?
How can developers balance guidance with freedom? How do we create games that respect the player’s intelligence and allow for genuine exploration?
Start by trusting the player. Allow them to get lost.
The Art of Organic Guidance
Organic guidance is a subtle nudge in the right direction. It uses environmental cues, sound design, and clever level design to guide the player without explicitly telling them where to go.
This allows the player to discover things for themselves. They still feel in control of their journey.
Environmental Storytelling
Environmental storytelling is a powerful tool. It lets the world communicate with the player.
Consider the “Dark Souls” series. It’s masterful at using the environment to tell its story. The ruined architecture, the placement of enemies, and the subtle details all hint at the world’s history.
“Dark Souls” guides the player without waypoints. It encourages them to observe, to experiment, and to piece together the narrative for themselves.
Audio Cues and Sound Design
Sound design is another crucial element. A distant sound, a subtle change in the music, can pique the player’s interest.
It can draw them towards a specific location without ever showing them a waypoint. Think about the sound of wind chimes in a quiet forest, leading you to a hidden shrine.
Clever Level Design
Level design should naturally funnel the player towards points of interest. This doesn’t mean creating linear paths.
It means designing spaces that encourage exploration while subtly guiding the player’s attention. Consider a winding path that gradually reveals a stunning vista.
It should make the player want to explore further. All without the help of a waypoint.
Example: Hollow Knight
“Hollow Knight” is a metroidvania game that excels at organic guidance. The game world is vast and interconnected, but never feels overwhelming.
The game uses a combination of environmental storytelling, sound design, and clever level design to guide the player. The player can explore freely, discover new areas, and unravel the mysteries of Hallownest at their own pace.
“Hollow Knight” gives players a strong sense of accomplishment. This is because they have charted their own course.
Reclaiming Player Agency
Player agency is the feeling that the player’s choices matter. Modern level design often undermines this.
It makes the player feel like they are simply following a predetermined path. How can we restore a sense of agency?
Meaningful Choices
Give players choices that have real consequences. These choices should affect the game world, the story, and the player’s relationship with other characters.
“The Witcher 3” provides multiple difficult choices. Each choice has a lasting impact on the game world.
Branching Narratives
Branching narratives allow players to shape the story through their actions. This doesn’t mean creating multiple endings.
It means offering players different paths through the game. Allow them to experience the story in their own way.
Emergent Gameplay
Emergent gameplay is when unexpected and interesting things happen as a result of the game’s systems. This can be difficult to design for.
It requires creating systems that are flexible and unpredictable. But the results can be incredibly rewarding.
The Pitfalls of Illusion of Choice
Be wary of the illusion of choice. Giving the player a choice that ultimately doesn’t matter is worse than giving them no choice at all.
This can make the player feel manipulated and disrespected. The game “Telltale’s The Walking Dead” is notorious for this.
The Future of Exploration
The future of exploration in games lies in striking a balance between guidance and freedom. We need to create games that respect the player’s intelligence.
Allow for genuine discovery, and foster a sense of wonder. This requires a shift in perspective.
Embracing Ambiguity
Embrace ambiguity. Don’t be afraid to leave some things unexplained.
Let the player piece together the story, to fill in the gaps. This can create a more engaging and rewarding experience.
Trusting the Player
Trust the player. Believe that they are capable of navigating complex environments.
Assume they can solve challenging puzzles, and understand nuanced narratives. Give them the space to experiment, to fail, and to learn.
The Value of Getting Lost
Remember the value of getting lost. Getting lost can be frustrating, but it can also be incredibly rewarding.
It forces the player to pay attention to their surroundings. It encourages them to experiment with different approaches. It leads to unexpected discoveries.
Redefining “Fun”
Redefine “fun.” The modern definition of fun often equates to instant gratification.
But true fun comes from overcoming challenges, from learning new things, and from experiencing a sense of accomplishment. These are all things that require effort and patience.
A Case Study: “Outer Wilds”
“Outer Wilds” is a prime example of a game that understands the true meaning of exploration. The game throws you into a solar system with no clear objectives.
You must explore, experiment, and unravel the mysteries of the universe before the sun explodes. The game provides no waypoints, no quest markers, and very little explicit guidance.
The player must rely on their own curiosity. They must use their own intelligence, and intuition to figure things out.
“Outer Wilds” is a challenging game, but it’s also incredibly rewarding. It gives the player a true sense of discovery.
It reinforces a deep sense of wonder, and provides a level of player agency that is rare in modern games.
Practical Steps for Developers
So, how can developers implement these ideas in their own games? Here are some practical steps to consider:
Reduce reliance on waypoints: Use them sparingly and only when necessary. Explore alternative methods of guidance.
Embrace environmental storytelling: Use the environment to communicate with the player. Hide clues, hints, and narrative details in the world around them.
Experiment with sound design: Use audio cues to guide the player’s attention. Create a soundscape that encourages exploration.
Design levels that encourage exploration: Create spaces that are interesting to explore. Guide the player without being obvious.
Give players meaningful choices: Allow the player’s choices to have a real impact on the game world.
Embrace ambiguity: Don’t be afraid to leave some things unexplained. Let the player fill in the gaps.
Trust the player: Believe that they are capable of navigating complex environments. Give them the space to experiment and to learn.
Playtest extensively: Get feedback from players on how they experience the game. Use this feedback to refine your design.
Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
Here are some common mistakes developers make when designing exploration-based games, and how to avoid them:
Over-reliance on tutorials: Don’t hold the player’s hand too much in the beginning. Allow them to learn by doing.
- Solution: Integrate tutorials seamlessly into the game world. Teach players through environmental cues and subtle hints.
Too much hand-holding: Avoid giving the player too much explicit guidance. Let them figure things out for themselves.
- Solution: Trust the player’s intelligence and intuition. Provide just enough guidance to keep them from getting completely lost.
Lack of meaningful rewards: Ensure that exploration is rewarded with meaningful content. Don’t just hide useless collectibles in hard-to-reach places.
- Solution: Reward exploration with new abilities, story content, or unique items.
Unclear objectives: Don’t make it impossible for the player to figure out what they are supposed to be doing. Provide just enough information to get them started.
- Solution: Use environmental storytelling to hint at the player’s objectives. Provide clear but subtle cues that guide them in the right direction.
Punishing exploration: Don’t punish players for exploring off the beaten path. Make sure that there are interesting things to discover in every corner of the game world.
- Solution: Create a world that is both rewarding and challenging to explore. Ensure that there are always interesting things to discover, no matter where the player goes.
The “Ubisoft Open World” Problem
Ubisoft games, while visually impressive, often fall into the trap of repetitive and uninspired open worlds. Towers that reveal the map, endless side quests that feel like chores, and a general lack of meaningful player agency plague their titles.
This is a direct consequence of prioritizing efficiency over experience. The focus is on filling the world with content, rather than creating a world that feels alive and engaging.
A Call to Action
It’s time for developers to rethink their approach to level design. Let’s prioritize player agency.
Let’s embrace organic discovery, and foster a sense of wonder. Let’s create games that are truly unforgettable.
The Last Word
The future of gaming depends on it. We need to move beyond the checklist mentality.
We need to create games that respect the player’s intelligence, and reward their curiosity. Let’s make games boring no more.