Summary
What is a “stepping out” moment in a video game? Well, it’s when you, the player, are finally given the reins to set out on your own, usually in an open-world game, after what can sometimes be hours on end of linear tutorials just herding you along a path. This moment is meant to give you your first taste of how much freedom you’re about to enjoy, and when done right, it’s the first big hook that really sets the tone for the rest of the game.
But it can be more than that as well, and it’s not just exclusive to open-world games. Sometimes, a stepping out moment is also a narrative tool, meant to give you a taste of what’s to come rather than setting you loose right then and there. In this case, it hints at the scope of the world you’re about to spend dozens of hours in, bringing those hype levels right on up. So here are some of the most impactful in terms of these two ideas, in no particular order.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was not only many people’s first Elder Scrolls title but also many players' first open-world game. So, it really had to nail this spot, and it’s probably safe to say it passed with flying colors.
When you step out of the dingy dungeons beneath Helgen, you find yourself greeted with a lush, albeit rather chilly, landscape that’s entirely yours to explore as you see fit. With a clear path in front of you and a single quest marker, you have some direction. But you’re sure to be sidetracked by something along the way, just as intended.
Sometimes, a good stepping out moment is there to tell you that this isn’t the game you remember. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order had its share of secrets and branching paths, but it was, by and large, a linear experience. But when its successor, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, came about, the scope expanded almost exponentially, with plenty of separate but vast open worlds to explore.
This shot in Jedi: Survivor serves to demonstrate just how much more freedom you’re about to enjoy compared to the first game. Landing on Koboh in search of Cal’s old buddy Greez, you take in a massive gorge that only serves as the first step into a larger world. How thematically appropriate for Star Wars.
While not as drastic as thedifferences between Star Wars Jedi: Survivor and Fallen Order, the changes seen in Horizon Forbidden West after its predecessor, Horizon Zero Dawn, are anything but minor. This most notably includes the visuals showcased spectacularly during a particularly breathtaking scene early in the game.
You find yourself, as Aloy, taking a long cable car ride down into the region you’ll be running around in for the duration of Forbidden West’s story (aside from the excellent Burning Shores DLC). But rather than serving as a simple cutscene, this slow descent allows you to remain in control of the camera as it plays out, giving you an expansive view of your new playground out west.
This one is unique in that it gives you a sort of before-and-after view of the world. The prologue of Fallout 4 sees you spending a few minutes with your family just before the bombs drop, and you have to rush to the vault for safety. Despite the urgency, you do get a nice little view of the Sanctuary Hills suburbs on the way.
Then, when you emerge topside once again, you’re given a hauntingly beautiful view over the streets you just ran through, along with some other points of interest off in the distance, like the Red Rocket truck stop. Just enough information to entice you as you begin your journey.
There are few gaming milestones as impactful asthe major jump into 3Dmodels and environments, a time still looked back on fondly by those who experienced it firsthand. If you were there, you know exactly how cool and almost otherworldly it felt to play new games with familiar characters in these entirely fresh playstyles.
This feeling was arguably at its most potent in the Nintendo 64’s Super Mario 64 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, the latter of which greeted you with a sweeping view of the wide open Hyrule Field once you left the decidedly more compact Kokiri Forest. At the time, it was quite possibly unlike anything you’d seen before, and this moment’s influence is still felt in games today.
This one is a bit different, since you probably already know thatMass Effect 2isn’t an open-world game. But it does have one very special moment in its intro that sets the scope for the whole game, and it’s one that still leaves people breathless all these years later.
During the introduction, when Commander Shepard is under attack from an unknown enemy, they step out into the Normandy’s galaxy map room to find it not only destroyed but cracked open like a particularly sleek egg. You can see straight into the vacuum of space as well as an imposing nearby planet, immediately telling you that this is going to be a far different experience from the first game.
Bethesda practically invented and perfected the stepping out moment, and the work they put into the first thing you see in an open world is always evident. They want you to have two pieces of information. First, this is a wide open world for you to explore at your own pace, and second, they have a soft suggestion or two on where to start.
The opening of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is one example of that philosophy, where the first thing you see upon exiting those sewers after a traumatic event (another shockingly common yet oddly comforting Bethesda trope) is a carefully curated view of an intriguingly crumbly ruin backed by a sprawling land of infinite possibilities. Not even yet a twinkle in the Adoring Fan’s eye, and you’re ready for adventure.
As divisive as some of the story choices were inFinal Fantasy 7 Remake, it’s difficult to deny that it made a huge impression and earned Square Enix a pretty massive success. But as ambitious as it was, it still had to leave room for its sequel to really up the ante.
So when you find yourself escaping Kalm inFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirth, you soon emerge from a secret tunnel into the gorgeous plains of the Grasslands, the first of the game’s many open-world regions. Funnily enough, the characters themselves seem as shocked as you likely are at the sudden wealth of space after the largely linear experience of Remake.
This is perhaps the quintessential version of the stepping out moment. At the very least, it’s the instance you might initially envision when you hear the term, and for good reason.
Like with Oblivion, Bethesda crafted this first glimpse of the Washington D.C. wasteland inFallout 3after escaping from Vault 101 with meticulous detail. You’re taken to a scenic overlook where you can glimpse landmarks like a Red Rocket station and the settlement of Megaton all the way to the Capitol Building itself. The amount of information this shot gives you while never forcing you in any one direction remains impressive even to this day. It’s no wonderFallout 3’s step out moment remains a favorite.
