One dedicated have steadily gotten larger as technology improves. With the next generation of consoles, whose solid-state drives allow them to load massive environments in short amounts of time, worlds will likely grow even bigger still. For the completionist gamer, this means that finding every secret and hidden collectible in an open-world game can become a nightmare if the game does not provide adequate tools for the task.
On the plus side, these larger environments have led to many other gaming improvements over the years, particularly as they pertain to maps. In the uses a Metroidvania style of map, items that are discovered but not picked up will show up on the map so that players don’t need to exactly where they were. The use of rumbling controllers has also been used to aid the completionists’ journey in games where the controller will vibrate if the player is near a hidden collectible.
In a post on Reddit by SlowHandDono, they proudly display what appears to be a handmade map of the game’s entire overworld. In the comments, the poster specifically draws attention to the fact that the map contains the locations of legendary animals, dinosaur bones, rock carvings, and dreamcatchers. While it is possible to learn the locations of some of these items through in-game maps and tools, it is undoubtedly simpler to have all the items’ locations in one place from the start so that the player can lead Arthur Morgan to them as quickly as possible.
There are other online tools that players can use to figure out these items’ locations as well. One website, the Red Dead Redemption 2 Interactive Map, actually contains every point of interest in the entire game, including bounty posters, item requests, robbery missions, and treasures. While this is certainly useful, Red Dead Redemption 2 is the type of game that heavily emphasizes immersion. When the game first released, for example, it was not uncommon to see players post pictures of themselves playing the game while wearing cowboy boots and a fedora. For diehard Red Dead fans, it probably does not get much better than traversing the game’s version of the Wild West with a physical map in hand.
Going forward, it’s impossible to say how much larger video game overworlds will get. Games like Grand Theft Auto V, The Witcher 3, and Far Cry 5 feature maps that span thousands of real-life miles and can take hours to traverse. For games like Horizon Zero Dawn and presumably, its sequel that like to sprinkle hidden collectibles throughout their maps, new and creative methods are always being devised to make the process of reaching the coveted 100% a little more manageable. However, SlowHandDono’s post is a welcome reminder that there will always be a certain charm to simply doing it the old-fashioned way.
Source: SlowHandDono/Reddit
