Chairman Yang
if he talks about books, you better damn well listen
I've heard games (and gameplay) often referred to as "non-linear", usually with positive connotations. What does this actually mean, to you? Some possible interpretations are:
- Open worlds: Probably the most common meaning I've seen. In practice, this usually means one or more really huge, mostly-contiguous levels and some degree of letting the player explore different parts of the game environment or taking on tasks in whatever order they choose. Sometimes these have basically linear stories (like with Rockstar's games).
- Story Reactivity: I've heard people discuss this in reference to games allowing players to alter the course of the story depending on the choices they make, sometimes in big ways (e.g. Witcher 2, Front Mission 3) and sometimes in a multitude of small ways as well (e.g. Witcher 3, Cyberpunk 2077, Fallout: New Vegas).
- Open gameplay: This probably has a bunch of subcategories of its own, but I'm basically referring to game mechanics that allow a high degree of flexibility, player expression, and alternative approaches to situations. Immersive sims are an archetypal example here, with varied mechanics and game reactivity that allow creative solutions, and levels built to accommodate and encourage those solutions. Immersive sim DNA in games that aren't immersive sims has become more and more common in recent years; see Baldur's Gate 3 and Tears of the Kingdom for examples.