The biggest changes in upcoming open world RPGs

Open world games have seen a massive boom in the last two decades and have come a long way technologically. It's pretty impressive to see how far we've come and what you can do. Games like Red Dead Redemption 2, Cyberpunk 2077and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild they kept innovating and moving on, enthralling us with these worlds that are so real and magical.

I'll admit it, though: I'm feeling a little open-world fatigue, and I'm certainly not the only one. The genre seems to have leaned too much towards “larger worlds”, and with players being left mostly uninspired, we may see big shifts in the next big open world RPGs to come out. Of course, there's no guarantee that these trends will come to fruition, but with some significant lessons to learn, both good and bad, I think we're on the cusp of big changes in the genre. I will use examples from already existing games to illustrate my points.

A fantasy of identity, not a fantasy of power

Unique player-centric stories

In every type of video game that allows buildcrafting, there has always been a fascination with over-the-top builds, and we've seen many versions of this over the years: Bleed builds in Elden Ringstealth archers v Skyrimand so on. But now players are searching for an identity. We don't just want to be all-powerful or really that powerful, but we want the essence of our characters and be able to define exactly what kind of main character they are. This means more traits that define their identity and a world that responds to that identity. Choosing a particular path should have huge consequences in the game.

For example, Cyberpunk 2077 lets you choose your life path between Corpo, Street Kid, and Nomad, and while the intro is different for each trio, there aren't any major differences in the main game, which is a bit of a shame. In Act 2, you get one unique quest depending on which path you choose, but it feels like it could use a little more work to really make that identity mean something more. For example, a Street Kid walking past the Arasaka building could be picked up by guards or attacked on sight, and Nomads would be harassed by gangs more often because they were seen as an outsider. In essence, they should be more than just flavor text so that you can actually tell your own story within the parameters of the game.

Completing the game is not the main goal

The games want you to stay

It's not about the end, it's about the journey. It's becoming more and more of an open world RPG. While there are outliers, the main quest is often just an afterthought when mirrored with the game's side quests and other activities. We're getting to the point where simply existing in the game is satisfying enough, with mundane activities like hunting, crafting, playing cards, exploring, and even building relationships and romantic interests far more engaging than rushing to the end of the story. If open-world RPGs soon start to feel more like simulations, it's because we're probably getting close to that point, and previous titles already show that.

Even earlier examples like Skyrim show it off with Hearthfire, which lets you build your own house. Fallout 4 and Star field came with settlement building, which is a side content that has no end and is highly replayable. Bethesda's shiny quests are also exactly that: replayability, no matter what you think of their quality. Elsewhere, Cyberpunk 2077 introduced encounters with characters you've come to love in your apartments. These are also replayable, so you can put off meeting Hanaki in Embers indefinitely until you're tired of calling Night City your home. I strongly believe that open world games will lean more into this in the future, although I hope Radiant quests are removed.

Elections are spreading around the world

Dialogue is not the only place for consequences

Choice is very important to players; that much is certain. Nothing is less empowering than making a choice that seems hard and important, only to have it do nothing at all in the grand scheme of the world. This has been seen time and time again in several open world RPGs in the past, and while it may be optimistic of me to write this, I truly believe we're getting to a point where players are so sick and tired of it that things will start to change. There are already examples of games that do this by implementing various Honor and Reputation systems (looking at your RDR2 and KDC2!), and that might be the first place to start when it comes to creating realistic worlds.

However, the biggest plan for this is without a doubt The Witcher 3and the huge effects that Geralt's decisions can have without you having any idea until the events actually take place. Speaking of RPGs, I also have to mention Baldur's Gate 3although it is not an open world game. There are several choices you can make in the game that will affect whether certain areas are accessible to you later. For example, killing Grove means you won't be welcome in the Last Light, and having Isobel captured means that the Last Light will succumb to the shadows. These are the types of massive world changes we need, depending on what actions and dialogue players choose, because choices shouldn't just be about taste.

Other games of the hybrid genre

Expect flavors of absorbing Sims, survival crafting and more

I touched on this a bit in a previous post, but more and more we're going to see genres mixed with the basic open world RPG flavor. And again, this is something we had ages ago: the art of survival seen in Fallout and The Elder Scrolls games, absorbing sim elements in games like Cyberpunk 2077where, depending on your specialization, you can move around areas and solve different quests and the like. Survival crafting has been particularly popular in the last decade, and it's likely that more games will lean into it in the future, as it encourages lingering rather than completing the game.

I'm excited that other genres will be explored, including strategy and management. One example to think about is Fallout 4 settlement management, which I know wasn't for everyone, but if done right I think it could be an interesting point of view. Imagine Project Orion where you have to manage resources and gang relationships in a cyberpunk world. Maybe it's a fringe idea, but we live in a time where I think the open world RPG format could really use some major changes and innovations.

Success is measured by longevity

Launch weeks are no longer the main event

We're in a time where big open-world RPGs are taking longer and longer to release. Grand Theft Auto 6 it is to be published more than ten years after GTA 5and The Elder Scrolls 6 it will probably be released more than fifteen years after Skyrim came out. All of this means that games now rely more on lifespan than release dates. One of the ways they support this is by developing DLC ​​to maintain interest and hype years after the game's initial release, or remasters and new versions (eg. Skyrim and all its various editions).

While some of them were good, some of them were also bad. DLC pricing has been a point of contention for some time now, as it's probably true that a successful game shouldn't need DLC to be successful and “complete”. On the other hand, free updates and tangible content a la Phantom Liberty that shows thought and commitment and comes with a free upgrade on the side could be a good way forward. What is non-negotiable, however, is that we won't see major releases of these big titles less often, especially after a disaster Cyberpunk 2077which served as a warning word. Not only that, but the state of the world economy means that with video game prices on the rise, fewer people can afford to commit to a game on release day at a staggering price. Most consumers will wait for a deep discount, more quality of life updates, free DLC and the like to jump into a more complete experience.

That said, I feel like we're going to have some outliers in this one, like GTA 6. That launch day and pre-orders are going to be crazy.

Larger worlds are no longer the goal

Handcrafted, more rigorous experiences are making a comeback

When the open world format first appeared, it was revolutionary because it was against the closed worlds that players were used to. Seeing a mountain in the distance meant you could probably never climb it, so he left the process to your imagination. Well, not anymore. Open-world games have largely broken this barrier, best illustrated by Todd Howard's words: “See that mountain? You can climb it!”

However, we have now moved across these vast worlds. Bigger doesn't always mean better, and the case Star field it teaches us perfectly. Procedurally generated planets were supposed to be the pinnacle of open-world technology, but in reality they went completely against what made Bethesda's previous open-world environments so charming and compelling: beautiful, interesting, hand-crafted points of interest and mystery interwoven with an environmental narrative. There were no repeated dungeons, although the property looked familiar and was reused from one location to another. The locations were still unique and that made them feel real, even if these worlds weren't as massive. But who wants a huge world anyway when it's just full of the same stuff you've already seen? Star field I hope this will be a lesson that many open world games in the next generation will learn from.