Open-ended (gameplay)
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video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
with nonlinear gameplay presents players with challenges that can be completed in a number of different sequences. Each player may take on (or even encounter) only some of the challenges possible, and the same challenges may be played in a different order. Conversely, a video game with linear gameplay will confront a player with a fixed sequence of challenges: every player faces every challenge and has to overcome them in the same order. A nonlinear game will allow greater player freedom than a linear game. For example, a nonlinear game may permit multiple sequences to finish the game, a choice between paths to victory, different types of victory, or optional side-
quests A quest is a journey toward a specific mission or a goal. The word serves as a plot device in mythology and fiction: a difficult journey towards a goal, often symbolic or allegorical. Tales of quests figure prominently in the folklore of ev ...
and
subplot In fiction, a subplot is a secondary strand of the plot that is a supporting side story for any story or for the main plot. Subplots may connect to main plots, in either time and place or thematic significance. Subplots often involve supporting cha ...
s. Some games feature both linear and nonlinear elements, and some games offer a sandbox mode that allows players to explore an open world game environment independently from the game's main objectives, if any objectives are provided at all. A game that is significantly nonlinear is sometimes described as being open-ended or a sandbox, and is characterized by allowing players to measure progress through self-determined goals, independent of scripted game elements.


Level design

A game
level Level or levels may refer to: Engineering *Level (instrument), a device used to measure true horizontal or relative heights *Spirit level, an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is horizontal or vertical *Canal pound or level *Regr ...
or
world In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...
can be linear, nonlinear or interactive. In a linear game, there is only one path that the player must take through the level, however, in games with nonlinear gameplay, players might have to revisit locations or choose from multiple paths to finish the level. As with other game elements, linear level design is not absolute. While a nonlinear level can give the freedom to explore or backtrack, there can be a sequence of challenges that a player must solve to complete the level. If a player must confront the challenges in a fixed order nonlinear games will often give multiple approaches to achieve said objectives. A more linear game requires a player to finish levels in a fixed sequence to win. The ability to skip, repeat, or choose between levels makes this type of game less linear. ''
Super Mario Bros. is a platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). The successor to the 1983 arcade game ''Mario Bros.'' and the first game in the ''Super Mario'' series, it was first released in 1985 for th ...
'' is an early example of this, where the player had access to warp zones that skipped many levels of the game. In some games, levels can change between linear design and free roaming depending on the objective of the stage. ''
Super Mario 64 is a platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It was released in Japan and North America in 1996 and PAL regions in 1997. It is the first ''Super Mario'' game to feature 3D gameplay, combining traditional ''Su ...
'' is an example where the main stages are free roam, while the levels where Bowser is encountered follow a straight path to the end.


Open worlds and sandbox modes

When a level is sufficiently large and open-ended, it may be described as an open world, or "sandbox game", though this term is often used incorrectly. Open-world game designs have existed in some form since the 1980s, such as the space trading game ''
Elite In political and sociological theory, the elite (french: élite, from la, eligere, to select or to sort out) are a small group of powerful people who hold a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a group. D ...
'', and often make use of
procedurally generated In computing, procedural generation is a method of creating data algorithmically as opposed to manually, typically through a combination of human-generated assets and algorithms coupled with computer-generated randomness and processing power. In ...
environments. In a game with a sandbox
mode Mode ( la, modus meaning "manner, tune, measure, due measure, rhythm, melody") may refer to: Arts and entertainment * '' MO''D''E (magazine)'', a defunct U.S. women's fashion magazine * ''Mode'' magazine, a fictional fashion magazine which is ...
, a player may turn off or ignore game objectives, or have unlimited access to items. This can open up possibilities that were not intended by the
game design Game design is the art of applying design and aesthetics to create a game for entertainment or for educational, exercise, or experimental purposes. Increasingly, elements and principles of game design are also applied to other interactions, in ...
er. A sandbox mode is an option in otherwise goal-oriented games and is distinguished from open-ended games that have no objectives, such as ''
SimCity ''SimCity'' is an open-ended city-building video game series originally designed by Will Wright. The first game in the series, ''SimCity'', was published by Maxis in 1989 and were followed by several sequels and many other spin-off "''Sim' ...
'', and ''
Garry's Mod ''Garry's Mod'' is a 2006 sandbox game developed by Facepunch Studios and published by Valve. The base game mode of ''Garry's Mod'' has no set objectives and provides the player with a world in which to freely manipulate objects. Other game ...
''.


Branching storylines

Games that employ linear stories are those where the player cannot change the story line or ending of the story. Many video games use a linear structure, thus making them more similar to other
fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...
. However, it is common for such games to use
interactive narration Narrative structure is a literary element generally described as the structural framework that underlies the order and manner in which a narrative is presented to a reader, listener, or viewer. The narrative text structures are the plot and the ...
in which a player needs to interact with something before the plot will advance, or
nonlinear narrative Nonlinear narrative, disjointed narrative, or disrupted narrative is a narrative technique, sometimes used in literature, film, video games, and other narratives, where events are portrayed, for example, out of chronological order or in other ways ...
s in which events are portrayed in a non-chronological order. Many games have offered premature endings should the player fail to meet an objective, but these are usually just interruptions in a player's progress rather than actual endings. Even in games with a linear story, players interact with the game world by performing a variety of actions along the way. More recently, some games have begun offering
multiple endings A narrative typically ends in one set way, but certain kinds of narrative allow for multiple endings. Comics * ''The Death-Ray'' by Daniel Clowes. * ''Cliff Hanger''. Literature * The ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' series. * ''Fighting Fantasy ...
to increase the dramatic effect of moral choices within the game, although early examples also exist. Still, some games have gone beyond small choices or special endings, offering a branching storyline (also known as an
interactive narrative Interactive storytelling (also known as interactive drama) is a form of digital entertainment in which the storyline is not predetermined. The author creates the setting, characters, and situation which the narrative must address, but the user (a ...
outside of a video game context), that players may control at critical points in the game. Sometimes the player is given a choice of which branch of the plot to follow, while sometimes the path will be based on the player's success or failure at a specific challenge. For example,
Black Isle Studios Black Isle Studios is a division of the developer and publisher Interplay Entertainment that develops role-playing video games. It has published several games from other developers. Black Isle is based in Irvine, California. The division was f ...
' ''
Fallout Nuclear fallout is the residual radioactive material propelled into the upper atmosphere following a nuclear blast, so called because it "falls out" of the sky after the explosion and the shock wave has passed. It commonly refers to the radioac ...
'' series of role-playing video games features numerous quests where player actions dictate the outcome of the story behind the objectives. Players can eliminate in-game characters
permanently ''Permanently'' is the third studio album by American country music singer Mark Wills. Released in 2000 on Mercury Nashville Records, the album produced three singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Country Songs) charts: ...
from the virtual world should they choose to do so, and by doing so may actually alter the number and type of quests that become available to them as the game progresses. The effects of such decisions may not be immediate. Branches of the story may merge or split at different points in the game, but seldom allow backtracking. Some games even allow for different starting points, and one way this is done is through a character selection screen. Despite experimenting with several nonlinear storytelling mechanisms in the 1990s, the game industry has largely returned to the practice of linear storytelling. Linear stories cost less time and money to develop, since there is only one fixed sequence of events and no major decisions to keep track of. For example, several games from the ''
Wing Commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...
'' series offered a branching storyline, but eventually they were abandoned as too expensive. Nonlinear stories increase the chances for bugs or absurdities if they are not tested properly, although they do provide greater player freedom. Some players have also responded negatively to branching stories because it is hard and tedious for them to experience the "full value" of all the game's content. As a compromise between linear and branching stories, there are also games where stories split into branches and then fold back into a single storyline. In these stories, the plot will branch, but then converge upon some inevitable event, giving the impression of a Nonlinear gameplay through the use of
nonlinear narrative Nonlinear narrative, disjointed narrative, or disrupted narrative is a narrative technique, sometimes used in literature, film, video games, and other narratives, where events are portrayed, for example, out of chronological order or in other ways ...
, without the use of
interactive narrative Interactive storytelling (also known as interactive drama) is a form of digital entertainment in which the storyline is not predetermined. The author creates the setting, characters, and situation which the narrative must address, but the user (a ...
s. This is typically used in many
graphic adventure game An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story driven by exploration and/or Puzzle video game, puzzle-solving. The Video game genres, genre's focus on story allows it to draw ...
s. A truly nonlinear story would be written entirely by the actions of the player, and thus remains a difficult design challenge. As such, there is often little or no story in video games with a truly nonlinear gameplay. '' Facade'', a video game often categorized as an interactive drama, features many branching paths that are dictated by the user's text input based on the current situation, but there is still a set number of outcomes as a result of the inherent limitations of programming, and as such, is non-linear, but not entirely so.


Visual novels

Branching storylines are a common trend in
visual novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...
s, a subgenre of
interactive narrative Interactive storytelling (also known as interactive drama) is a form of digital entertainment in which the storyline is not predetermined. The author creates the setting, characters, and situation which the narrative must address, but the user (a ...
and
adventure game An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story driven by exploration and/or Puzzle video game, puzzle-solving. The Video game genres, genre's focus on story allows it to draw ...
s. Visual novels frequently use multiple branching storylines to achieve multiple different endings, allowing non-linear freedom of choice along the way. Decision points within a visual novel often present players with the option of altering the course of events during the game, leading to many different possible outcomes. Visual novels are popular in
East Asia East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea and ...
, especially in
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
where they account for nearly 70% of
personal computer game A personal computer game, also known as a PC game or computer game, is a type of video game played on a personal computer (PC) rather than a video game console or arcade machine. Its defining characteristics include: more diverse and user-deter ...
s released there. A recent acclaimed example is '' 999: Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors'', where nearly every action and dialogue choice can lead to entirely new branching paths and endings. Each path only reveals certain aspects of the overall storyline and it is only after uncovering all the possible different paths and outcomes through multiple playthroughs that everything comes together to form a coherent well-written story. It is not uncommon for visual novels to have morality systems. A well-known example is the 2005 title '' School Days'', an animated visual novel that
Kotaku ''Kotaku'' is a video game website and blog that was originally launched in 2004 as part of the Gawker Media network. Notable former contributors to the site include Luke Smith, Cecilia D'Anastasio, Tim Rogers, and Jason Schreier. History ...
describes as going well beyond the usual "black and white choice systems" (referring to video games such as ''
Mass Effect ''Mass Effect'' is a military science fiction media franchise created by Casey Hudson, Drew Karpyshyn and Preston Watamaniuk. The franchise depicts a distant future where humanity and several alien civilizations have colonized the known univers ...
'', ''
Fallout 3 ''Fallout 3'' is a 2008 action role-playing game developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. The third major installment in the ''Fallout'' series, it is the first game to be developed by Bethesda after acquiring ...
'' and ''
BioShock ''BioShock'' is a 2007 first-person shooter game developed by 2K Boston (later Irrational Games) and 2K Australia, and published by 2K Games. The first game in the ''BioShock'' series, it was released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 pla ...
'') where you "pick a side and stick with it" while leaving "the expansive middle area between unexplored." ''School Days'' instead encourages players to explore the grey, neutral middle-ground in order to view the more interesting, "bad" endings. It is also not uncommon for visual novels to have multiple protagonists giving different perspectives on the story.
C's Ware C's may refer to: * The Boston Celtics, American basketball franchise * Citizens (Spanish political party) Citizens ( es, link=no, Ciudadanos ; ca, link=no, Ciutadans ; eu, link=no, Hiritarrak; gl, link=no, Cidadáns; shortened as Cs—C's un ...
's '' EVE Burst Error'' (1995) introduced a unique twist to the system by allowing the player to switch between both protagonists at any time during the game, instead of finishing one protagonist's scenario before playing the other. ''EVE Burst Error'' often requires the player to have both protagonists co-operate with each other at various points during the game, with choices in one scenario affecting the other. ''
Fate/stay night ''Fate/stay night'' is a Japanese visual novel developed by Type-Moon and originally released as an adult game for Windows on January 30, 2004. A version of ''Fate/stay night'' rated for ages 15 and up titled ''Fate/stay night Réalta ...
'' is another example that features multiple perspectives. Chunsoft sound novels such as '' Machi'' (1998) and '' 428: Shibuya Scramble'' (2008) develop this concept further, by allowing the player to alternate between the perspectives of several or more different characters, making choices with one character that have consequences for other characters. ''428'' in particular features up to 85 different possible endings. Another approach to non-linear storytelling can be seen in ''
Cosmology of Kyoto ''Cosmology of Kyoto'' is an adventure game developed by Softedge and published by Yano Electric. It was released Video games in Japan, for Japan in 1993, and then in North America, for the Macintosh in 1994 and then for the IBM PC compatible, PC ...
''. The game lacks an overall plot, but it instead presents fragmented narratives and situations in a non-linear manner, as the
player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...
encounters various
non-player character A non-player character (NPC), or non-playable character, is any character in a game that is not controlled by a player. The term originated in traditional tabletop role-playing games where it applies to characters controlled by the gamemaster o ...
s while wandering the city. These narratives are cross-referenced to an
encyclopedia An encyclopedia (American English) or encyclopædia (British English) is a reference work or compendium providing summaries of knowledge either general or special to a particular field or discipline. Encyclopedias are divided into articles ...
, providing background information as the narratives progress and as the player comes across various characters and locations, with various stories, situations and related information appearing at distinct locations.''AUUG Conference Proceedings'', September 1995
pages 398-399
/ref> It provides enough freedom to allow for the player to experiment with the game, such as using it as a resource for their own
role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within ...
campaign, for example.


Role-playing games

Branching storylines are also often used in
role-playing video game A role-playing video game (commonly referred to as simply a role-playing game or RPG, as well as a computer role-playing game or CRPG) is a video game genre where the player controls the actions of a character (or several party members) immers ...
s (RPGs) to an extent. An early example, published in 1999, is the
fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...
role-playing game '' Might and Magic VII: For Blood and Honor'', where players have to choose between Light and Dark. While the dark side wants to destroy the world of Enroth, the light side tries to save it. The choice determines which grandmaster levels the player characters can obtain and the quests they have to do in that part of the game. Earlier in the game, the player already has to choose sides in a
border conflict Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders ca ...
between Elves and Humans, or remain neutral. This affects the flag in their Castle Harmondale and a few quests, but not the outcome. A second example is
Obsidian Entertainment Obsidian Entertainment, Inc. is an American video game developer based in Irvine, California. It was founded in June 2003, shortly before the closure of Black Isle Studios, by ex-Black Isle employees Feargus Urquhart, Chris Avellone, Chris Par ...
's '' Fallout: New Vegas'', where the player's decisions influence whether one of three different factions gain control of the area surrounding post-apocalyptic
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
. These factions include Caesar's Legion, a group of
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
-esque slavers; the New California Republic (NCR), an expansionist military government; and Mr. House, the enigmatic ''
de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...
'' ruler of New Vegas, in command of an army of robots that patrols the city. Each of the three sides aim to control
Hoover Dam Hoover Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between the U.S. states of Nevada and Arizona. It was constructed between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression and was dedicated on Se ...
, which is still operational and supplying the
American Southwest The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, N ...
with power and clean, non-irradiated water; thus, control of the dam means effective control of the region. A fourth option, siding with a robot named Yes Man and prevailing upon or eliminating the other faction leaders, enables the player to go solo and take over the Hoover Dam for themselves. Another RPG example is
tri-Ace is a Japanese video game developer, video game development company formed in March 1995 by former Telenet Japan employees Yoshiharu Gotanda (programmer, current tri-Ace President), Masaki Norimoto (game designer) and Joe Asanuma (director). Th ...
's ''
Star Ocean is a franchise of action role-playing video games developed by the Japanese company tri-Ace and published and owned by Square Enix (formerly Enix). Development History The series is also known for being some of the earliest action RPGs to allo ...
'' series, where the storyline is not affected by moral alignments like in other role-playing games but, inspired by
dating sim Dating sims, or , are video game subgenre of simulation games with romantic elements. Dating sims are often dialog-heavy and focus on time management. The player must befriend and carefully build and maintain a relationship with one or more ...
s, by friendship and relationship points between each of the characters.Brendan Main
Hooking Up in Hyperspace
'' The Escapist''
'' Star Ocean: The Second Story'' in particular offers as many as 86 different endings with hundreds of permutations, setting a benchmark for the number of possible outcomes of a video game. Another unique variation of this system is the ''
Sakura Wars is a Japanese steampunk media franchise created by Oji Hiroi and owned by Sega. It is focused around a series of cross-genre video games. The first game in the series was released in 1996, with five sequels and numerous spin-off titles being ...
'' series, which features a
real-time Real-time or real time describes various operations in computing or other processes that must guarantee response times within a specified time (deadline), usually a relatively short time. A real-time process is generally one that happens in defined ...
branching choice system where, during an event or conversation, the player must choose an action or dialogue choice within a time limit, or not to respond at all within that time; the player's choice, or lack thereof, affects the
player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...
's relationship with other characters and in turn the direction and outcome of the storyline. Later games in the series added several variations, including an action gauge that can be raised up or down depending on the situation, and a gauge that the player can manipulate using the
analog stick An analog stick (or analogue stick in British English), sometimes called a control stick or thumbstick, is an input device for a controller (often a game controller) that is used for two-dimensional input. An analog stick is a variation of a joy ...
depending on the situation. A similar type of conversation system later appeared in a more recent
action role-playing game An action role-playing game (often abbreviated action RPG or ARPG) is a subgenre of video games that combines core elements from both the action game and role-playing genre. Definition The games emphasize real-time combat where the player h ...
also published by
Sega is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo. Its international branches, Sega of America and Sega Europe, are headquartered in Irvine, California and London, r ...
, ''
Alpha Protocol ''Alpha Protocol'' is a 2010 action role-playing game developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Sega. The player assumes control of agent Michael Thorton, a new recruit at a clandestine United States agency called Alpha Protocol, whic ...
''. Another unique take on the concept is combining non-linear branching storytelling with the concepts of
time travel Time travel is the concept of movement between certain points in time, analogous to movement between different points in space by an object or a person, typically with the use of a hypothetical device known as a time machine. Time travel is a w ...
and parallel universes. Early attempts at such an approach included Squaresoft's ''
Chrono Chrono may refer to: Prefix ''chrono-'' a Greek combining form relating to time * chronometry, science of the measurement of time *"chrono", colloquialism for chronograph in watch and clock collectors' language Games * ''Chrono'' (series), a Ja ...
'' role-playing game series (1995–1999) and
ELF An elf () is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic mythology and folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology. They are subsequently mentioned in Snorri Sturluson's Icelandic Prose Edda. He distinguishes "ligh ...
's
visual novel A , often abbreviated as VN, is a form of digital semi-interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with and used in the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narrative with sta ...
'' YU-NO: A girl who chants love at the bound of this world'' (1996). ''
Radiant Historia is a role-playing video game co-developed by Atlus and Headlock for the Nintendo DS. It was released in Japan in 2010 by Atlus, and in North America in 2011 by their subsidiary Atlus USA. An expanded remake for the Nintendo 3DS, titled ''Ra ...
'' takes it further by giving players the freedom to travel backwards and forwards through a timeline to alter the course of history, with each of their choices and actions significantly affect the timeline. The player can return to certain points in history and live through certain events again to make different choices and see different possible outcomes on the timeline. The player can also travel back and forth between two parallel timelines, and can obtain many possible parallel
endings End, END, Ending, or variation, may refer to: End *In mathematics: **End (category theory) **End (topology) **End (graph theory) ** End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) **End (endomorphism) *In sports and games **End (gridiron football) ...
. The PSP version of ''
Tactics Ogre is a 1995 tactical role-playing game developed and published by Quest Corporation for the Super Famicom. It was later ported to the Sega Saturn (1996) and the PlayStation (1997), the latter released in North America in 1998 by Atlus USA. The ...
'' featured a "World" system that allows players to revisit key plot points and make different choices to see how the story unfolds differently. ''
Final Fantasy XIII-2 is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It was released in 2011 in Japan and 2012 in North America and PAL regions, and was ported to Microsoft Windows in 2014 and iOS and Androi ...
'' also features a similar non-linear time travel system to ''Radiant Historia''.


Early examples

Early examples (pre-1983) of nonlinear gameplay include: *''
Colossal Cave Adventure ''Colossal Cave Adventure'' (also known as ''Adventure'' or ''ADVENT'') is a text-based adventure game, released in 1976 by developer Will Crowther for the PDP-10 mainframe computer. It was expanded upon in 1977 by Don Woods. In the game, the pl ...
'' (1976) *''
Zork ''Zork'' is a text-based adventure game first released in 1977 by developers Tim Anderson, Marc Blank, Bruce Daniels, and Dave Lebling for the PDP-10 mainframe computer. The original developers and others, as the company Infocom, expanded and ...
'' (1977/1980) *''
MUD1 ''Multi-User Dungeon'', or ''MUD'' (referred to as ''MUD1'', to distinguish it from its successor, ''MUD2'', and the MUD genre in general), is the first MUD. History MUD was created in 1978 by Roy Trubshaw and Richard Bartle at the Univer ...
'' (1978) *''
Akalabeth ''Akalabeth: World of Doom'' () is a role-playing video game released in 1979 for the Apple II. It was published by California Pacific Computer Company in 1980. Richard Garriott designed the game as a hobbyist project, which is now recognized as ...
'' (1979) *''
Star Raiders ''Star Raiders'' is a first-person space combat simulator for the Atari 8-bit family of computers. It was written by Doug Neubauer, an Atari employee, and released as a cartridge by Atari in March 1980. The game is considered the platform's kille ...
'' (1979) *''
Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...
'' (1979) *''
Temple of Apshai ''Temple of Apshai'' is a dungeon crawl role-playing video game developed and published by Automated Simulations (later renamed to Epyx) in 1979. Originating on the TRS-80 and Commodore PET, it was followed by several updated versions for other c ...
'' (1979) *''
Computer Bismarck ''Computer Bismarck'' is a computer wargame developed and published by Strategic Simulations, Inc. (SSI) in 1980. The game is based on the last battle of the battleship Bismarck, in which British Armed Forces pursue the German ''Bismarck'' in ...
'' (1980) *''
Flight Simulator A flight simulator is a device that artificially re-creates aircraft flight and the environment in which it flies, for pilot training, design, or other purposes. It includes replicating the equations that govern how aircraft fly, how they rea ...
'' (1979/1980) *''
Mystery House ''Mystery House'' is an adventure game released by On-Line Systems in 1980. It was designed, written and illustrated by Roberta Williams, and programmed by Ken Williams for the Apple II. ''Mystery House'' is the first graphical adventure gam ...
'' (1980) *''
The Prisoner ''The Prisoner'' is a 1967 British television series about an unnamed British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a mysterious coastal village, where his captors designate him as Number Six and try to find out why he abruptl ...
'' (1980) *'' Rogue'' (1980) *''
Adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...
'' (1980) *''
005 ''005'' is a 1981 arcade game by Sega. They advertised it as the first of their RasterScan Convert-a-Game series, designed so that it could be changed into another game in minutes "at a substantial savings". It is one of the first examples of a ...
'' (1981) *''
Bosconian is a multidirectional scrolling shooter arcade game which was developed and released by Namco in Japan in 1981. In North America, it was manufactured and distributed by Midway Games. The goal of the game is to earn as many points as possible by ...
'' (1981) *''
Castle Wolfenstein ''Castle Wolfenstein'' is a 1981 action-adventure game that was developed by Muse Software for the Apple II home computer. It is one of the earliest games to be based on Stealth game, stealth mechanics. An Atari 8-bit family port was released ...
'' (1981) *''
Crush, Crumble and Chomp! ''Crush, Crumble and Chomp!'' is a 1981 video game where the player takes control of a movie monster and attacks a major city, such as New York or San Francisco. It was published in 1981 for the TRS-80, Apple II, and Atari 8-bit family. Ports ...
'' (1981) *'' Ultima'' (1981) *'' Star Warrior'' (1981) *''
Venture Venture may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music *The Ventures, an American instrumental rock band formed in 1958 *"A Venture", 1971 song by the band Yes *''Venture'', a 2010 EP by AJR Games * ''Venture'' (video game), a 1981 arcade gam ...
'' (1981) *''
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial ''E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial'' (or simply ''E.T.'') is a 1982 American science fiction film produced and directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Melissa Mathison. It tells the story of Elliott, a boy who befriends an extraterrestrial, d ...
'' (1982) *''
Haunted House A haunted house, spook house or ghost house in ghostlore is a house or other building often perceived as being inhabited by disembodied spirits of the deceased who may have been former residents or were otherwise connected with the prope ...
'' (1982) *''
The Hobbit ''The Hobbit, or There and Back Again'' is a children's fantasy novel by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. It was published in 1937 to wide critical acclaim, being nominated for the Carnegie Medal and awarded a prize from the '' ...
'' (1982) *''
Pitfall! ''Pitfall!'' is a platform video game designed by David Crane for the Atari 2600 and released by Activision in 1982. The player controls Pitfall Harry and is tasked with collecting all the treasures in a jungle within 20 minutes. The world con ...
'' (1982) *''
Raiders of the Lost Ark ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Lawrence Kasdan, based on a story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman. It stars Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman, Ronal ...
'' (1982) *''
Snipes Snipes may refer to: * Snipe, a wading bird * Snipes (surname) * ''Snipes'' (film), a 2001 film * ''Snipes'' (video game), a 1983 text-mode networked computer game * Snipes Mountain AVA Snipes Mountain AVA is an American Viticultural Area l ...
'' (1982) *''
Time Pilot is a multidirectional shooter arcade game designed by Yoshiki Okamoto and released by Konami in 1982. It was distributed in the United States by Centuri, and by Atari Ireland in Europe and the Middle East. While engaging in aerial combat, the ...
'' (1982) *''
Ultima II Ultima may refer to: Places * Ultima, Victoria, a town in Australia * Pangaea Ultima, a supercontinent to occur in the future * ''Ultima'', the larger lobe of the trans-Neptunian object 486958 Arrokoth, nicknamed ''Ultima Thule'' Companies and p ...
'' (1982)


See also

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Massively multiplayer online game A massively multiplayer online game (MMOG or more commonly MMO) is an online video game with a large number of players, often hundreds or thousands, on the same server. MMOs usually feature a huge, persistent world, persistent open world, alt ...
s *
Multiple endings A narrative typically ends in one set way, but certain kinds of narrative allow for multiple endings. Comics * ''The Death-Ray'' by Daniel Clowes. * ''Cliff Hanger''. Literature * The ''Choose Your Own Adventure'' series. * ''Fighting Fantasy ...
* Open world *
Metroidvania Metroidvania is a sub-genre of platform video games focused on guided non-linearity and utility-gated exploration and progression. The term is a portmanteau of the names of the video game series '' Metroid'' and ''Castlevania'', with games in th ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nonlinear Gameplay Video game gameplay Video game terminology Emergent gameplay