Opinion
5 years of "Baldur's Gate 3": Why the game remains an unrepeatable masterpiece
by Rainer Etzweiler
No more mapflation! Smaller game regions are better
12.6.2024
Translation: Patrik Stainbrook
A huge map is part and parcel of a modern AAA game. Too often, however, it’s filled with copy-paste assets. I’d prefer a smaller map if it’s vividly designed and full of details.
What may excite you, rings alarm bells within me. In May, Ubisoft announced the following during the unveiling of Assassin’s Creed Shadows: its playable world will apparently be similar in size to predecessors Origins, Odyssey or Valhalla. Very big, then.
The pattern continues in current AAA games. Worlds are getting bigger and bigger. Development studios market their giant maps as a bonus – and we gamers are stupid enough to take the bait. After all, the bigger the better. But is that really the case?
As recent games have shown, this is a fallacy. Massive maps feel empty and are stuffed with filler content. In Starfield, I can visit an almost infinite number of planets. But every single one of them is boring.
Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V
Development studios fill their ever-larger maps by copy-and-pasting. That, or they generate areas procedurally. In other words, they throw assets – i.e. houses, enemies, trees and sections of landscape – into a machine and wildly throw them onto a canvas. Not identical, but very similar areas are then spat out.
In the end, a desert is just sand
Admittedly, the vast virtual sandy deserts in Assassin’s Creed: Origins impressed me at first glance. But without offering anything to do, even the most beautiful dune becomes a pile of boring sand. Enemies? None. Loot? Nope. Action? Nada. I have no reason to stay here. I just want to get through the desert as quickly as possible and get to the next town.
As big as necessary, as small as possible
After all, why do you think the majority of missions in Grand Theft Auto V take place in the city centre of Los Santos, even if it only makes up around a third of the map? Because the rest consists of uninhabited mountains, fields and motorways – yawn. The city itself is rich in detail, handmade and lively. I can feel it, it begs for my attention.
Sometimes smaller is better
As a gamer, I’m aware that bigger isn’t always better. Creating an exciting game world is time-consuming. If a development team sets itself limits, it can concentrate on fine-tuning what already exists. That’s why I don’t expect new games to get bigger and bigger. I prefer games that don’t let me go, even after twenty hours. Instead of just boring me after four hours.
Now, a AAA game with a map half the size of its predecessor would be really refreshing. Just make it twice as detailed.
Header image: Ubisoft / «Assassin's Creed Origins»
Valentin Oberholzer
Freelance Editor
v4lentin.oberholzer@gmail.comMy retreats have names like Middle Earth, Skyrim and Azeroth. If I have to part from them due to IRL commitments, their epic soundtracks accompany me through everyday life, to a LAN party or to my D&D session.
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