Yes, BioShock is a ‘pathway’ game, that’s what makes it great.

in Latest interview with game industry.bizKen Levine disrespects his most popular and popular game. BioshockIt’s like a “very long corridor.” He uses this description disparagingly to distinguish his 2007 first-person puzzle game from his current project, a science fiction FPS. JudasThe game, he said, is being created. “Very different”, he wanted the consequences of this to Judas That would “more…reflect player agency,” but I’d like to step in and argue across the aisle. Why has the current widespread abandonment of these things taken away some of the most interesting aspects of gaming?

Before we get into the weeds, what do Levine and others mean by “pathway”? It is the idea that there is only one main path in the game. It is a predetermined path that every player must walk. Where we are not free to choose our own direction. Looking back to our current era where open world games dominate the AAA market, this can give rise to the appearance of designs that erase or limit player agency to harmful results.

And to make it incredibly clear Some walkways do that. While first-person games are born in level-based mazes (Return to Wolfenstein Castle.– Doometc.) There are so many games that are almost literally walkways, so ridiculously restrictive that it feels like you’re being dragged down an inevitable tunnel by your nostrils. Shoulders scraping against uncomfortable walls along the way. in naming names The worst thing is call of duty Campaign from black ops Next—a game that kills you if you dare move left or right. instead of walking straight and pushes you to the back to watch NPCs play games for you

But I would argue that almost no one plays. Bioshock in 2007 responded by saying “Damn, that’s just a path” because it’s a game that even has one main path. Players also feel a great sense of freedom. You choose. big Amount of money entered BioshockFrom how you actually play (running shooting game Interception and stealth using equipment virtual reality sim) to how you respond to the nature of the world around you. At least from the way you treated Little Sisters, people celebrated the game for the incredible freedom it offered within its tightly scripted narrative. And all of this is to ignore that the game is a predetermined path. at all points–

Sorry to spoil an 18 year old game, but the fact that you have no choice but to follow the instructions you’re given is the big third act reveal. The fact that the game takes place in an unavoidable corridor is for a number of reasons. Bioshock It’s great because if you let players visit any point in the underwater city of Rapture whenever they want. Everything about it would fall apart.

BioshockThe drama of this often depends on you being where the game designers want you to be. In those moments they need you there. And that kind of precise narrative choreography is the product of passage. By rejecting the game’s design as a failure. We are losing this type of experience. And I really believe That it’s something we should be fighting to protect instead.

Of course, corridors are only part of the game. I’m not stupid, I love great open world games. And of course, RPG games have been played since the 1980s, giving players a lot of freedom when approaching their world. I argue for nothing more than a desire to preserve the passage as an alternative among many others and therefore not to disparage it as if it were a failure of the past. Because it brings a lot of success.

I didn’t think I’d have to be this much of a loner. In fact If you watch the show Any number of “best games of all time” are welcome. and adapt to newness There are some names that keep popping up over and over again: Half Life 2– Theus X– 2nd earthquake– hello– Untrustworthy– They share space on those lists with games that do quite the opposite, great RPGs that tend to avoid passages entirely. But games with direct routes undeniably dominate. Indeed, they are a clear example of how to hide passages in the best way possible.

But instead we go into detail about how and why camouflaging the walkway was the key to their success. Let’s see what would be lost without them.

An open world ExcellentAnd I’m more than happy to clear icons on the Ubisoft map or choose my own specific path through the actions. Baldur Gate III– But what they can’t do as well is puppeteer the players. Create deliberate moments and tell stories on a deliberate narrative path. They couldn’t have presented anything more resembling a movie scene. The impact of Event B is much more meaningful. Because it comes as a direct response to the actions of Event A, and the aftermath of this event drives the emotional resonance of Event C.

I remember in the early ’00s the early days of rejecting corridor gameplay as a design choice. Responding with the same argument that’s in mind right now: “Do you refuse to read books in order?” Would the book be a failure if page 37 came after page 36 every time?” immediately is “A game is not a book. That’s why we call it something else.” And sure, but my point is: games. can Aim to be like the book in the best possible way. Because when your game is in the aisle When various scenes It is as inevitable as the pages of a book. How we interact with different scenes It’s what defines those scenes. It places emphasis on our own personal interpretations of what we are presented with. And instead it’s a sandbox where we can play as God. Instead, we get into a story where we have a unique way to experience it.

(Actually, this is the basis of why I argue against that. The end of Mass effect 3 It is not a failure to recognize the player’s agency.Instead, moments are scripted that are uniquely understood based on your personal experiences gained from all three games).

Agency can be a wonderful thing. But it often comes at a cost. That’s the cost of a curated, directed, and deliberate narrative experience. Yes, it wouldn’t be great if all games were like that. But it’s better to dismiss it as an anachronistic flaw in game design. Bioshock Only usable because It’s a walkway. And it really is a thesis. on the walkwayIt makes it all the more strange for a game that was thrown under the bus of history. There is value in experiencing a curated and predetermined story. It’s driven by our unique approach to how we turn those pages. I don’t want it to disappear, in the name of “bigger player agencies”.