Half Life 2...more tunnels?

Quote from [HP]

13 hours ago, [HP] said: Would be awesome if we could somehow bring back games that try to mix both worlds? Like Far Cry 1? I remember loving how large the environments were, but they still had a flow to them.

Even Crysis 1, everyone remembers it as this wide open world game, but the levels were still "linear" in it's design, they were just wider "corridors".

Stalker's world structure is also a good example or Borderlands I would say. Hell, even something smaller in scope like Saints Row's open world would be welcomed as opposed to some of the 100+ hours epic adventures that everyone is pushing for (thanks a lot Skyrim).

Also, Crytek has been teasing at a remaster of the original for the past 2 days.

Quote from [HP]

14 hours ago, [HP] said: Even Crysis 1, everyone remembers it as this wide open world game, but the levels were still "linear" in it's design, they were just wider "corridors".

Yeah, Crysis 1 level design was one of the main reasons I liked it so much. The sense of freedom was there, but it didn't feel overwhelming. It hit just the right balance.

Quote from Radu

1 hour ago, Radu said: Also, Crytek has been teasing at a remaster of the original for the past 2 days.

Can't wait for a proper remaster or a new entry with the same kind of design as Crysis 1.

I think the new God Of War had a very nice semi open world design. The main hub level changed many times during the game, which made it feel fresh all the way through.

I've been recently playing AC: Origins, and tho the gigantic open world is impressive, it's also in some sense almost too big for it's own good. I spend a lot of time Fast traveling because of it. I've heard that Odyssey has an even bigger world. Impressive and off putting at the same time. ?

Quote from Izuno

On 11/6/2003 at 4:30 AM, Izuno said: Can a single player first person shooter (with a story) have non-linear levels?

-by non-linear levels I mean you have multiple ways of completing an objective, and the levels themselves are "open" in that you can go almost anywhere for longer distances than you can in typical FPS levels.

Yes. There is in fact a well-known cult classic made in 1999 that defined a entire game genre where this exact thing happens an which in it is the only member of to this day. Deus Ex. I could fan over this game and it's themes and how it even decades later reflects on to current effects. But more importantly for this thread, it's a game where levels are open without any invisible walls. They are small levels and not a fully fledged open world, so I think it fits your definition pretty well. Deus ex has a linear story, but every objective can be tackled in as many creative or boring ways as you wish. You can open a door of angry genetically engineer test subjects at the patrols below, or throw a gas bomb below their feet and decapitate them so the alarm would not be set off. Or you could use a little hole in their patrols to sneak past them. Or you could backtrack to some other area of the map and try some environmental puzzle solving to skip that area. While the story might be linear, like the level design of Half life, it doesn't feel linear. You can kill key characters at almost any point in the story. Even after 20 years of it's release, There still has not been any games that did what it did even remotely as well. Wanting to design anything open world with linear story and not knowing Deus Ex is like trying to make orchestra music without knowing Mozart.

Thief. Lord Baffords Manor is a master piece.

Sort of on topic, specially that GDC talk.

Quote from [HP]

19 hours ago, [HP] said: I'm playing Ori Will of the Wisps right now, and it does this exact thing relatively well. Plus, with unlockable powers, you can go bacl to old areas and explore them further. Although, I think it's sort of the nature of the Metroidvania genre to include this to a certain extent, Ori absolutely nails it, beautiful game too.

Currently playing through Guacamelee 2 and it does a similar thing. The levels themselves don't change, but your character gains extra abilities that allow you to reach previously inaccessible spots and progress through the game.

Quote from Squad

9 hours ago, Squad said: Currently playing through Guacamelee 2 and it does a similar thing. The levels themselves don't change, but your character gains extra abilities that allow you to reach previously inaccessible spots and progress through the game.

it's called a metroidvania.

Quote from Radu

On 4/15/2020 at 8:55 AM, Radu said: Also, Crytek has been teasing at a remaster of the original for the past 2 days.

Still not official but

[Blocked Image: https://cdn.wccftech.com/wp-content/upl…red-740x360.jpg]

https://wccftech.com/crysis-remaste…switch-release/

Quote from blackdog

On 4/16/2020 at 2:24 PM, blackdog said: Still not official but

[Blocked Image: https://cdn.wccftech.com/wp-content/upl…red-740x360.jpg]

https://wccftech.com/crysis-remaste…switch-release/

Ah Crysis, the most overpriced bench-marking tool ever released