Videogames often hinge on an unrealistic yet satisfying balance of restriction versus freedom. Too much freedom and there is no challenge, no friction on the way to satisfying the player’s desires; too much restriction and there is no pleasure in grimly following the rules. The first problem afflicted many of the first forays into ‘open-world’ videogame styles, before developers figured out clever narrative and other funnels to enhance a sense of progression; the second may rear its head when you are
