Following several high-profile delays, the action RPG Forspoken's eventual January 2023 release has been met with a generally lukewarm reception from critics and players. Criticism has been aimed at major aspects including the dialogue, which is often cringe-inducing, to the combat mechanics which can feel unbalanced and chaotic. Perhaps one of the most troubling elements of Forspoken, though, is the barren and unremarkable open world of Athia, which serves as a stark reminder that size isn't everything in game design.
On paper, Forspoken's world of Athia seems perfect for a video game. Whisking a down-on-her-luck orphan who constantly finds herself on the wrong side of the law away from her home in New York and into a huge, mystical land full of magic and discovery has all the makings of an engaging narrative experience that should encourage gamers to explore its world. However, it hasn't quite worked out that way, and while Athia is not without its charm, it does little to inspire gamers to explore every nook and cranny the map has to offer.
Forspoken's Open-World of Athia is Mostly Forgettable
An open-world game usually lives or dies by how detailed and memorable its world is, and in this regard, 2022's Game of the Year Elden Ring set a new bar for open-world RPGs. Developer FromSoftware managed to ensure the game's huge map, known as The Lands Between, was packed to the brim, full of memorable encounters, unique and original areas, and secrets hiding in every corner. While the game can be completed without ever visiting large swathes of the map, most players strive to do so anyway; such is the sense of discovery and awe that Elden Ring invokes.
Whether trekking through the poisonous swamps of Caelid, or the volcanic, rocky mountains of Mt Gelnir, The Lands Between are full of surprises, and not a square inch of the map is wasted. While it would be unfair to hold every other open-world game up to this unbelievably high benchmark, Forspoken's world just isn't up to the same standard. Visually, Athia is still a stunning world, and for the console version at least, pre-launch fears of performance issues have thankfully proved to be unfounded. It is full of huge vistas, mountains, and grand castles tucked away in its far corners. While Athia does feature several biomes, they lack sufficient variety to make them memorable, and all are aesthetically similar, barring slight color variations.
Thanks to Forspoken's magic parkour, Frey's fluid mobility ensures it's easy for players to glide effortlessly across Athia's lands. In a matter of minutes, players can zip, jump and slide from one end of the map to the other. Doing so only serves to highlight Athia's main issues, though, as the uninspiring areas all blend into one big land mass, and players will quickly realize they remember precious little from their journey. Aside from a couple of interesting mini-boss encounters scattered throughout the land, there aren't really any standout locations that will stick in the memory long after the credits roll. Forspoken's scattered collectibles don't do enough to make Athia stand out.
As video games continue to evolve, and standards get higher with every new release, it's easy to assume that a bigger game should equal a better game. In reality, this is far from the case, and developer Ubisoft in particular has come in for some criticism recently for its bloated open-world map design in both the Far Cry and Assassin's Creed franchises. The key to a great open-world game is not the size of its map, but rather the diversity in its locations and the content it offers. If Athia had offered more variety, Forspoken may well have earned a better reception.
Forspoken is available now for PC and PS5.
