Our last co-creator starts the developer debate as he declares that linear games are easy to make.

The Last of Us co-creator and longtime Naughty Dog game director Bruce Straley has sparked a developer debate on social media, after announcing that linear games are easy to make. The implication here is that titles that have a set path, such as perhaps Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, take less of a toll on teams than massive open world releases, such as Horizon Forbidden West.

Many developers agree with the point, and many fans are also stating that they prefer more directed experiences overall. “Easier to build, more creatively interesting, and less time to play,” said one fan. “Sounds like a win-win to me!”

We’re obviously nowhere near as informed as a veteran like Strawley, but we can certainly see how it would be easier to develop a more linear title than an open world one, since there’s clearly less stuff. Which can potentially go wrong when you generally know what path the player is going to follow. Sandbox releases have to fill their worlds with content, otherwise they feel empty and bland.

Personally, we don’t have a horse in either race: we like linear games and we also like open world games. But we’ve always been big supporters of the hybrid approach: titles like Hitman, with their massive levels, give you plenty of opportunities to explore without forcing you to traverse hundreds of kilometers of terrain. We also like that God of War Ragnarok handles this, by providing plenty of opportunities to venture off the beaten path, while still maintaining the high production values ​​of a more directed campaign.

But when push comes to shove, do you prefer linear games or open world games? Let us know in the poll and comments section below.