Scale of the world

[Dragonslayer Ornstein]

I'd think a world map system like the old game would do really well to allow for a big world with lots of detailed locales without them using resources capriciously. I mean, really, every inch of it explorable? Might be a bit too much.

 

[hleV]

I'd rather they break down the map into areas than make the world canonically very small. Midgar itself could probably be an area, or multiple even. Not sure about travelling between areas, though. Perhaps you'd need to go to the edge of one area, then fast-travel to the next one in that particular direction.

 

[Flare]

Well, I'd be happy with them doing it several ways. They could do an updated old-style world map, making it bigger and better and more detailed, but still a world map, and then have separate big locations to explore.
Or they could do it like the recent games, but with more ways to traverse/explore (like climbing things?). That would eliminate a world map. Then (because if they don't let you fly the Highwind I'll riot) they can have a seperate 'map' system that allows you to fly over all the locales and the world map, but of course you can't land everywhere, only in actual locations.

 

[Mayo Master]

The way I'd do it would be about separating zones like in FFXII when exploring the world on ground level. Then, when aboard the Highwind, you would fly at high altitude over a "world map". In a way, it wouldn't strictly handle the same environments when being at ground level or when being on the Highwind - there would be position relationships between the two and some "cutscene - transitions" for taking off and landing.
Still, I wonder if FFXV will give us some clues about how Square is going to handle the exploration aspects in FF7 remake.

 

[Theozilla]

I'd rather they break down the map into areas than make the world canonically very small. Midgar itself could probably be an area, or multiple even. Not sure about travelling between areas, though. Perhaps you'd need to go to the edge of one area, then fast-travel to the next one in that particular direction.

The way I'd do it would be about separating zones like in FFXII when exploring the world on ground level. Then, when aboard the Highwind, you would fly at high altitude over a "world map". In a way, it wouldn't strictly handle the same environments when being at ground level or when being on the Highwind - there would be position relationships between the two and some "cutscene - transitions" for taking off and landing.
Still, I wonder if FFXV will give us some clues about how Square is going to handle the exploration aspects in FF7 remake.

I believe clowd made that suggestion before as well in the hopes for gameplay/combat thread, something like this?:

OK, I figured out a way I'd like to see the world map done.

Split it into 'regions'. Each region is highly detailed with seamless towns and battles. Crossing from one region to another requires a loading screen.

Some areas cannot be directly accessed in a region. These places can be considered 'sub' regions. For example, after passing the Midgar Zolom, you'll see a cave entrance. Once entered there is a loading screen and you are transported to the Mythril Mines. At the other end of the Mythril mines is a cave exit that leads you to the region that has Fort Condor and Junon. So while you have these large 'regions' there can be entrances in them to more areas which are not restricted by geographical location or size.

Another example would be the Nibelheim Mountains. They won't have their own region, but that wont stop them from being expansive. Just like the original game, you enter in the Nibelheim region and come out in the Rocket Town region.

Highwind travel can be done by having it fly high in the sky over a map in the same style as the original game. But since you're so high you dont really notice the inferior graphics. If you settle over the chocobo farm and request to land, there will be a loading screen and you'll be dropped off at the exact location in the Chocobo Farm / Midgar region. Of course you can call the highwind to pick you up at anytime, as long as your not in a 'sub' region. This way you can experience the freedom, speed, and control the Highwind from the original game offered.

Yeah, a to-scale open world map could only work with sectioned regions/areas, otherwise it would either require too much development time/work and/ or processing power to try to do a non-sectioned open world of a entire planet or have open word planet that is obviously too small to be an actual planet.

Yeah, when you're dealing with an entire planet there has to be some sort of scaling.

In terms of scale once you leave Midgar I'd like Kalm to be just visible in the horizon. Just like this picture

You don't think that towns/cities (in addition to Midgar) need to be separated by their own loading/transition screen though? That wouldn't take to much processing power?

You are right, the bigger cities like Junon, Midgar etc would need to have their own loading/transition screen. Now smaller locations like the Chocobo farm should require no extra loading. In the Final Fantasy XV demo theres a gas station with a dozen people, a few cars and a highly detailed building with full interior in the middle of a gigantic region and none of it required extra loading/transition.

Also would the traversable parts of the ocean have their own ocean specific regions or would they just be chopped up into the different land regions?

In terms of traveling the shallow ocean in the Tiny Bronco, the edges of each region can be modeled a certain distance out into the ocean to allow passage around them.

As for the Highwind and the oceans, you can fly above them but you can only be dropped off where there is land.