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#2. Blurring the line between main quests and side quests:-
What makes an open world game even more unrealistic is the checklist of things the game offers. Often the games these days are littered with collectables to obtain, side missions to complete which are repetitive grinds and are almost always some kind of fetch quests. These kinds of stuff are only added to the game's world to add more hours of content and fill in the game world.
What game developers need to realize is that quality matters over quantity. The open world needs to feel organic. There shouldn't be any difference between the main quests and the side quests as both are equally important in an open world game, at least to some extent.
Also, there shouldn't be a distinct column made indicating 'main missions' or 'side missions'. Let player prioritize what quests they are interested in. The recent open-world titles such as Far Cry 5, Assassin's Creed Origins, Marvel's Spiderman seems to throw a huge chunk of content to us players but sadly only a very little percentage of those contents are actually interesting or memorable.
#3. More emphasis on the game's score and environment sound:-
Ever wondered why you feel a sense of adventure while exploring the world of Skyrim? Or why the streets of Novigrad in The Witcher 3 always feel so lively and alive when compared to the towns or cities in other open world games? Well it's all because of the game's incredible sound design, which developers such as Bethesda and CD Projekt Red gives equal amount of importance when developing the game as it helps bring the open world to life.
More and more developers need to realize the importance of a good score in a game that defines the entire title, as well as the environment sounds such as the splattering of rain, the howling of the wind, the NPCs chattering in the background which helps make the game world feel alive.
The Witcher 3 is probably the best example of the environment sound done the way. Never have I been drawn to the game's world as while exploring Velen in The Witcher 3. When the rain hits the floor, or the breeze hits the dancing trees in the background. It all comes to life very organically in The Witcher 3. Here's hoping that the next generation of games focuses on better sound designs.
