Gaiff
SBI’s Resident Gaslighter
The chief culprit to me is Assassin's Creed. Not only are their maps utterly uninteresting (lacking landmarks and ways to guide the players without opening the map), but the icons make it so I will avoid 90% of the map because I know what's already there. Oh, a lion's den? Don't need it. A fort? Nah, pass. So once you know where everything is, you just speed to wherever you need to go all the while ignoring the rest which makes that sprawling open world completely pointless.
Now, I understand the design flaw lies in Ubisoft's map/world design more than anything else. Removing the markers and keeping everything the same wouldn't suddenly make things interesting. You simply wouldn't know how to avoid the useless stuff.
However, I recently started playing Fenyx Rising and it's surprisingly fun which I didn't think was possible for a Ubisoft open-world anymore. I spent most of the game so far without map markers except for after I have discovered them. Unlike AC, this game actually has landmarks and other elements in the terrain that help locating where you are without relying on the map. The side activities are also much more fun and interesting. Eventually, I got to a point where I had to climb a statue that revealed the map and I could zoom in to "reveal" points of interest such as treasures and upgrades. Needless to say, I didn't bother using that. I figured I rather randomly stumble across stuff I'm not expecting rather than knowing what is where and simply heading where I need to go. It keeps the sense of wonder and discovery. Otherwise, I feel that having everything marked turns the exploration into a boring checklist.
This is reminiscent of Morrowind which lacked a large map and to get around, you had to rely on signposts and directions from NPCs and landmarks. Finding something because you were told it was located west of the great forest right next the haunted valley to me was better than just opening your map and stamping it before mindlessly following a waypoint afterwards.
What are your thoughts Gaf? Nay or yay for map markers/icons and all that jazz?
Now, I understand the design flaw lies in Ubisoft's map/world design more than anything else. Removing the markers and keeping everything the same wouldn't suddenly make things interesting. You simply wouldn't know how to avoid the useless stuff.
However, I recently started playing Fenyx Rising and it's surprisingly fun which I didn't think was possible for a Ubisoft open-world anymore. I spent most of the game so far without map markers except for after I have discovered them. Unlike AC, this game actually has landmarks and other elements in the terrain that help locating where you are without relying on the map. The side activities are also much more fun and interesting. Eventually, I got to a point where I had to climb a statue that revealed the map and I could zoom in to "reveal" points of interest such as treasures and upgrades. Needless to say, I didn't bother using that. I figured I rather randomly stumble across stuff I'm not expecting rather than knowing what is where and simply heading where I need to go. It keeps the sense of wonder and discovery. Otherwise, I feel that having everything marked turns the exploration into a boring checklist.
This is reminiscent of Morrowind which lacked a large map and to get around, you had to rely on signposts and directions from NPCs and landmarks. Finding something because you were told it was located west of the great forest right next the haunted valley to me was better than just opening your map and stamping it before mindlessly following a waypoint afterwards.
What are your thoughts Gaf? Nay or yay for map markers/icons and all that jazz?