Nintendo Veteran Drops the Golden Rule About Maps and Terrain That Makes Hogwarts Legacy, Red Dead Redemption 2, and Others More Immersive

One of the interesting factors of popular games like Hogwarts Legacy or Read Dead Redemption is the presence of vast terrains and landscapes highlighting the experience of the gamers. Considering the immense immersive experiences brought by these RPG games, the importance of the beautiful landscapes and vast maps provided in the gameplay can’t be overlooked.

Masahiro Sakurai, the veteran Nintendo team member, recently released a video on his official YouTube channel explaining the importance of terrains and maps in RPG games. He focuses on how maps are a predominant factor in video games. He further adds that irrespective of the presence of vast maps and stunning landscapes gamers of in-focus on the maps that are present in the corner of their screen. Sakurai states that such a tendency of gamers often lets them miss opportunities of the immersions provided by the game world.

Tit-Bits from Mashahiro Sakurai’s discussion

In this video, Sakurai about how developers face challenges in representing three-dimensional maps in the gameplay that requires the presentation of intricate terrains. He says that a common solution to such problems might be switching to a full-screen display of the game map.

Read more: Community Persuades Hogwarts Legacy Developers to Imbibe Immersive Aspects From Red Dead Redemption 2 for the Sequel

He refers to the series of Mystery Dungeon as an example to show how the game offers a semi-transparent map across the screen helping the players to view the game map while making an action. In this game, players can also lead the game screen to disappear by pressing a button that leaves the map properly visible.

By bringing the example of the racing game Forza, Sakurai explains how the guide display helps the players to have a better understanding of the corners. He uses this example to present how maps help in incorporating informative elements with visual cues that help the players to navigate and experience the game map effectively.

Sakurai also mentions that developers need to focus on the attention part of the players which makes it more change it more challenging for the developers to align the informative and visual cues with the player’s awareness.

Sakurai’s Discussion helps players to understand the constant struggle of the developers to create a game map that is effective and parallel to players’ attention. We finally get to understand how the proper alignment between the map design and players’ awareness can help in bringing more immersive experiences to the game.

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