This past week, I've been doing pretty much nothing but playing Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. It's an interesting game, since there really hasn't been any other Metal Gear game quite like it. It's kind of like Peace Walker, but the open world really changes the flow of the game. Whenever I hear people talking about open worlds in games, it's usually something along the lines of how you can "do so many things", and I heard this particularly for The Phantom Pain. While it is a good thing that there are many gameplay options, I don't think that being able to do a lot has anything to do with how it works well. My initial reaction to hearing about an open world Metal Gear was "It's never going to work," but I've been proven wrong, and it's because of the design mentality behind the open world.
The infamously inaccurate scale chart. Since when was Ground Zeroes ten times the size of Metal Gear 1?
Now, when The Phantom Pain was continually being hyped up, I was becoming more and more sceptical. The trailers showing off the first mission in the hospital in Cyprus were amazing, and I was immediately excited for the game, even though at the time I had only a little experience playing The Twin Snakes (and anybody who knows me knows my opinion of that game). But the more they showed, the more I questioned if the game would live up to the series name. I was enjoying Ground Zeroes, the prequel game with the same gameplay. But I had no idea how an open world would work with stealth gameplay. I'd never really seen it done before, and with the way most games handle their open worlds, it's no surprise I was unsure.
The most prevalent design philosophy I've seen behind open world games is prioritizing the world itself. Design the gameplay in such a way that uses a big world to its fullest potential. Different genres do this in different ways, but the general idea stays the same. Big western RPGs such as Fallout or Elder Scrolls games use the world as a land integral to the story, and make the gameplay revolve around getting quests from towns and going to dungeons for loot. Games like Grand Theft Auto are sandboxes where you can cause civil chaos, and Just Cause 2 and 3 take the same idea to Micheal Bay levels of mayhem. They all have different approaches, but they all use the world in an important way. With the large space stripped away, the games wouldn't be nearly as interesting.
The most prevalent design philosophy I've seen behind open world games is prioritizing the world itself. Design the gameplay in such a way that uses a big world to its fullest potential. Different genres do this in different ways, but the general idea stays the same. Big western RPGs such as Fallout or Elder Scrolls games use the world as a land integral to the story, and make the gameplay revolve around getting quests from towns and going to dungeons for loot. Games like Grand Theft Auto are sandboxes where you can cause civil chaos, and Just Cause 2 and 3 take the same idea to Micheal Bay levels of mayhem. They all have different approaches, but they all use the world in an important way. With the large space stripped away, the games wouldn't be nearly as interesting.
Some open worlds may be bigger than others.
So if open worlds have been proven to be versatile when the focal point of design, why would it be a problem with stealth gameplay? Well, relying on an open world just doesn't mesh with sneaking. I surely can't think of any way to utilize an open world through sneaking, an already unusual game concept. So The Phantom Pain does it simply: it just doesn't rely on it. It has large bases for sneaking around, small outposts for gaining resources for building Diamond Dogs, and open areas to get from base to base, as well as pick up some flora and fauna for your base. The game doesn't flaunt itself on a big world (at least when it comes to the game itself), it only leaves just enough space between areas of interest for breathers and safe helicopter landing zones. It's not a massive open world with gameplay to accommodate, it's a stealth game with a world to fit with that.
I have to say, the gameplay of Metal Gear Solid V did surprise me, since it was the thing I was most hesitant about. The military building aspects from Peace Walker return much better than before, with much more to managing funds and resources. The controls are the most streamlined they've ever been, and there are no "You could do that?" moments like there were earlier in the series. And with the way it handled the open world design, it's no surprise it's one of the best in the series on that front. You know, I think I'm gonna go back to playing it right now. On that note, this is your captain, signing off.
I have to say, the gameplay of Metal Gear Solid V did surprise me, since it was the thing I was most hesitant about. The military building aspects from Peace Walker return much better than before, with much more to managing funds and resources. The controls are the most streamlined they've ever been, and there are no "You could do that?" moments like there were earlier in the series. And with the way it handled the open world design, it's no surprise it's one of the best in the series on that front. You know, I think I'm gonna go back to playing it right now. On that note, this is your captain, signing off.