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Dragon Quest XI almost took an open world route, says series creator
There was a point in time when Square-Enix was considering taking Dragon Quest XI in an open-world route. As you know, that didn't end up happening, but Dragon Quest creator Yuji Horii did takes some time to discuss that potential path.
...after thinking about it as a turning point that is the 30th anniversary for Dragon Quest, we decided that because the stories we make are linear to a degree, we could deviate to an extent with a taste of some open-world gameplay.
While open-world games offer plenty of freedom, they are a double-edged sword. It may be difficult for some players to know what they need to do next. And I also I believe that it is difficult to create a flow for a big story in a world that lets you go just about anywhere from the start.