Are Open Worlds Overdone?

Episode 251Open World games, once a rare treat, have now saturated the gaming landscape - some people can't get enough, and some feel they have overstayed their welcome. Today, we discuss how we feel about the open world genre, and explore "modern" open world design and how we feel it improves the genre. As always, we conclude with the games we're playing (Crimson Desert, Pokémon Scarlet, Battlefield 6, Slay The Spire 2). This episode was recorded in April 2026. Intro and outro music composed for Gametalk by Dylan Chase.Chat us up in Discord - discord.gg/JZCj5QnOr email us at gametalkpodcastofficial@gmail.comSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/369MuzfFy8RB6vFULVY7Zy?si=26cb1639927c4cc8YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PodcastGametalkInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/podcastgametalkTiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podcastgametalkBluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/podcastgametalk.bsky.socialTimestamps:0:00 - Opening Banter3:26 - Thoughts On Open Worlds30:21 - "Modern" Open World Design51:10 - Crimson Desert1:06:47 - Pokémon Scarlet1:13:30 - Battlefield 61:18:40 - Slay The Spire 2