If you haven’t heard, one of the co-founders of the beloved studio Arkane is getting ready to make another release. They’re trying to mimic what Arkane did in the past with their “immersive sims” and want to show just how grand and detailed the game can be without being too big or too unfocused. However, you might not know what it means to be an “immersive sim,” as there are numerous titles floating around the gaming space. So, in a chat with PC Gamer, Wolfeye founder Raphael Colantonio explained that games like Skyrim could count as one such immersive sim.
“If you really think about it, Bethesda games—or Obsidian games—are very, very immersive sim,” Colantonio revealed to them. “The overlap between first-person RPG and immersive sim, it’s very blurry. I would say they are less physical than Arkane games, and they’re more on the stats, but at the end of the day they totally rely on simulation. Doing things such as fooling a merchant by putting a bucket on its head is definitely an immersive same thing, right?”
We can see where he’s coming from on that point, as the game has a nature to it where you are allowed to do things at your own pace and in your own way. There’s a certain quest where a character offers you the chance to get boots that aren’t as good as the ones she’s wearing. So, you could choose to kill her and take her boots and thus get the best of both worlds. It’s your choice entirely, and that’s what makes it fun.
Oh, but wouldn’t that mean that games’ like Baldur’s Gate 3 are also an “immersive sim?”
“I do see Baldur’s Gate definitely as at least immersive sim-adjacent,” Colantonio said, “If being turn-based still makes sense for an immersive sim. You can definitely see where they were going with that. I loved it, by the way. I loved Baldur’s Gate, fantastic game.”
That would fit with what’s going on in the game, including how certain things are more constrained to dialogue than actions. However, you can change the dialogue and actions at times depending on who you are and what path you’re taking, such as with the “Dark Urge” storyline that players can choose.
Either way, immersive video games are absolutely a part of the culture, and they are something that many love to partake in. So, if you are one who enjoys those kinds of games, you’ll want to keep an eye on WolfEye Studios.
