UNIT 6

Critical Approaches To Creative Media Products

Learning Outcome 4
Video Game Genre Report

Kaan Sengunes
963083

I will be studying the Open-World video game genre that provides a controlling surrounding level with considerable
freedom to usually explore, complete missions or to exploit the realm. The free-roam option on this game presents
the player with an opportunity to dictate their own actions, this can be seen in games such as Grand Theft Auto.
Grand Theft Auto is an open-world game that has limitations on surroundings or the environment around the
character enclosing the sandbox circumstances, but rather includes factors of a non-linear storyline. This can be seen
in the various options in the path of actions that the players can take, often with few limitations to the variety of
movements that player can control. The generic open-world game includes an uncontrolled content, in this sense
the players have the freedom to direct the path of actions which will eventually sway the games storyline. Most
open-world games will provide the player with opportunities such as the ability to drive vehicles, use weapons and
interact with people, this is unique to the open-world genre, combined with areas the charter explores, and these
factors will also have an effect on the players ranking or levelling. Other games such as sandbox are less likely to
have a similar levelling hierarchy system with ranked players according to the relative status of the game.
Open world games are usually less likely to focus on the storyline of the game as the players will often seek freedom
without boundaries, nevertheless open-world games such as Just Cause will intentionally use the players desires in
the storyline. These types of games often include a chaotic storyline that features explosions and chases with a vast
amount of ways the player can reach the objective. This adds into the style of play because the characters are
presented in a non-linear atmosphere that can change the storyline experience for the player as they have more
control. Grand Theft Auto and Just Cause both have a correlation in visual effects, these type of games use realistic
depictions of violent related crimes. Both games will provide the audience with a sense of realism crossed with
extreme actions in the world around them, some examples would be the gun and drug crime presented in the areas
of the game. These are heavily reinforced with bold graphic content such as murder, without this type of content the
games would lack the desires of the players intentions throughout the experience of the game. On top of this the
overall atmosphere of the game is influenced by the audio present through the open-world, it is important that
these types of games include an interactive outlook throughout the campaign and online with computer and real
players. The audio present in the game is usually non-diegetic sounds to add to the realism of the content in the
game, it often includes the sound of vehicles, gunshots and general Foley surrounding the area.
Open-world games are created with modern advanced technology as they have to compete with each other to
appear the most realistic. Games such as Skyrim are created with advanced CGI and motion capture to attempt to
create a depiction of realistic movement and facial expressions. This example of an open-world game provides the
player with a more capturing experience; the player often will be interested in there soundings being cohesive and
seamless with realism, otherwise they might be diverted away and the attention may not be grasped for long. Video
game companies attempt to patch the game to prevent any interruptions with the common glitches that can be
found in open-world games. Aside from this the companies attempt to make their products as close to real life as
possible with the content visible in the graphics of the game, they will attempt to prevent fuzziness by creating clear
illustrations of the structure of the inner subjects. The game is distributed through many forms such as sold online,
sold by disc, mobile, or downloadable applications. Open world games are usually either sold by disc or downloaded
directly onto the system, this is because they may require more information to be installed than an application on
mobile; this allows more information for a larger open-world experience for the audience playing. This is vital to an
open-world games image because of the competition for detail and size that are common in this genre.
Other games such as Assassins Creed represent the characters in expandable paths that can be altered at the
gamers will, they provide various options that can be customizable and are not set the same for repeating the paths
of the missions or storyline; making the game an non-linear structure. Because of this common factor on openworld games, the player is given opportunities to divert the consequence of the actions that they may create. The
online community provides a social experience that is often an option in open-world games. Representing each
character with a unique rendition of the players customisation options, creating an involved variety of options that
the player can dictate. It is important the structure of open world games are almost completely changeable. This
affects the market for games as it is vital for the production of other game standards to follow if the intend to seek
the players desires, and when one game provides more free options it can have an effect on the way players view
the other games. In some cases this can affect the narrative structure of the games storyline as the actions taken can
prevent or liberate the campaign in different directions; making the overall experience very open ended to the
players. Without these common factors and themes, the games would lack a certain sense of satisfaction to a certain
extent, if a game lacks behind on the variety of editable options it may start to seem less appealing as the players
would prefer certain games because of the miner aspects.