Does a game need to have levels? Does having no levels put people off?
I am working on a game where levels shouldn't be necessary, just the resources you have should put (reasonable) constraints.
I used to play simcity and it purported to be open ended. However it has some arbitrary conditions forcing you to acquire some things before others (in effect linearizing and adding levels to the game).
Hi John,
Actually I allways prefered non liner games.
Most RTS games suffer from this illness ( you build up a nice base and than the stage is over and you start from scratch again ).
Startegy and simulation games usually have a less direct level system, like you mentioned.
While some form of advancment is needed to keep players interested, it does not have to be liner.
Depending on the type of game you are developing, I think the more flexibility of individual playstyle the better.