AAA open-world games are losing their charm: What went wrong along the way

Do you remember what “open world” once meant? An open world is a huge, untapped map, an unseen horizon. Also read: GTA 6 extended look preview: What to expectThe map that ruined the mapTake any AAA world map today, and you will see the equivalent of a little kid running amok with stickers. The games that still make us feel something are the games that reminded themselves the whole point of an open world was a world, not a series of icons. It lost its charm because too many studios confused size for soul, and forgot that the whole point of an open world was never how much was in it.