The indie game Sable had brilliant climbing mechanics. You have limited climbing like in most games, but you literally don’t need the extended climbing range for almost the entirety of the main game except for like one or two not-required missions, you only really need it to collect all of the collectables that extend your climbing range. You know how I know? I didn’t find the way to extend climbing range until like the very end of the game. Somehow completely skipped over it!
I feel like The Witcher 2 had a good balance. You’re instanced in a smallish but very meaningfully designed map that’s big enough to feel like you’re actually exploring a bit, but small enough to actually be hand-designed and decorated and feel like it too
Completing botw became more of a chore than anything else. I couldn’t get all the way through tears of the kingdom. The chores in that one just compounded. I managed to somehow light up the entire underworld and yet my gear was too fucking terrible to face the end bosses.
Botw was very cool at times, but it had a few things that made it utterly frustrating to play. The weapons breaking and having to watch Link go “uhh eeefff eeeff ooof” on the side of a cliff for hours was just painful and purposeless.
To your point, it seems like no game can manage to have an expansive, explorable world that’s actually rewarding to explore. Maybe there is an exception out there but I haven’t encountered it.
Elden Ring has done it best so far, particularly the dlc, but it also obliterated the replay value compared to other souls games with how much empty traversal it adds and now that you can go anywhere you know what’s available and wind up googling where things are instead of making do with your limited options as you go.
Often it’s climbing.
I’m looking at you, breath of the wild.
The indie game Sable had brilliant climbing mechanics. You have limited climbing like in most games, but you literally don’t need the extended climbing range for almost the entirety of the main game except for like one or two not-required missions, you only really need it to collect all of the collectables that extend your climbing range. You know how I know? I didn’t find the way to extend climbing range until like the very end of the game. Somehow completely skipped over it!
I 100%d sable and only found it mildly frustrating in certain parts. Pretty good game overall.
I wish there were more games like it where you could just enjoy the world instead of it being all about some missions.
If only it was climbing. BOTW was more like “oh there was light rain recently so fuck you, no access up here.”
Speaking of botw, lots to explore and find… And none of it is worthwhile or actually affect the gameplay in any real way.
Especially when it’s the excuse for the massive world that takes forever to traverse.
And now let’s convince the entire industry that this blight is a good idea and shoehorn it in to everything
I feel like The Witcher 2 had a good balance. You’re instanced in a smallish but very meaningfully designed map that’s big enough to feel like you’re actually exploring a bit, but small enough to actually be hand-designed and decorated and feel like it too
I’ll have to take your word for it, I couldn’t stand witchers combat until 3. Heard nothing but good things about it otherwise
Completing botw became more of a chore than anything else. I couldn’t get all the way through tears of the kingdom. The chores in that one just compounded. I managed to somehow light up the entire underworld and yet my gear was too fucking terrible to face the end bosses.
Botw was very cool at times, but it had a few things that made it utterly frustrating to play. The weapons breaking and having to watch Link go “uhh eeefff eeeff ooof” on the side of a cliff for hours was just painful and purposeless.
To your point, it seems like no game can manage to have an expansive, explorable world that’s actually rewarding to explore. Maybe there is an exception out there but I haven’t encountered it.
Elden Ring has done it best so far, particularly the dlc, but it also obliterated the replay value compared to other souls games with how much empty traversal it adds and now that you can go anywhere you know what’s available and wind up googling where things are instead of making do with your limited options as you go.