So after Eiji Aonuma's little announcement on Nintendo Dirct that they are looking into changing the linear structure of the next major Zelda release, I was discussing this with a friend. Being an old-school Nintendo fan, it brings back memories of the earlier 2D Zeldas, in which most of them could be completed in any particular path you wish, and I must say I'm excited to see what they come up with. My friend, on the other hand, is not too happy about it.

"Games need a logical progression in order to provide depth into the story", he says. Of course, I'm starting to wonder if he has a point. Have the more recent Zelda titles become this way in order to provide a more detailed storyline? What about other linear/nonlinear games?

Here's what I consider a summary of the advantages of each:

Linear:

- Story progression. Since the game requires you to complete things in a certain order, the story can progress along with each step completed.

- Potential for more intricate puzzles, since the progression creates an affirmation of, for instance, what items you already have in order to solve a puzzle.

Examples: Final Fantasy 4, Final Fantasy 6 (World of Balance), most 3D Zelda games.

Non-linear:

- More free and open world. More incentive to explore and discover, because you know you're not diverting away from a story that practically holds your hand to the next place.

- More potential for efficiency. Speedruns, challenges, ways to complete the game in an insane amount of time, provided you have the skill for it.

- Linear puzzles (such as some boss fights) can be cliche (eg. always use the same item  that you found in the dungeon on the boss for that dungeon. Rinse, repeat). Nonlinear can remove this because the game progression does not guarantee that you have a particular item. For instance, said item just might make the fight easier.

Examples: The Legend of Zelda, 2D Metroid series, Megaman series

Which do you think is better?

Well, it depends on the game. As you said it is easier to keep a consistent story, if you make the game linear. For Zelda I think, a more non-linear way may be great, if it is done in a good way (not simply all the dungeons are available from the beginning, but are the same as if the game would be linear).

I agree. A nonlinear game that does not play by it's advantages would be rather boring. People have found rather interesting ways to beat the original Zelda (only 3 hearts, no sword until Ganon, etc). This is why I consider Super Metroid as the king of nonlinear games. Certain elements in the game such as the wall jump can open some ways up much earlier than usual, provided you have the skill to pull it off. I've seen videos of people completing lower Norfair without the Varia suit. That is INSANE!

There is no "better". Either can make for a great game. It's like asking if ice cream is better than pizza. It depends on what the developers are trying to accomplish.

One of the things that I find amusing, though, is how many people think an RPG is non-linear just because it appears to be open world, even though most of the world is closed off until you unlock story events in sequence. That's always kind of confused me.

I usually prefer linear games as they're better at story telling. Even though some of my favourites are non-linear (Fallout 3, Skyrim etc.)

I agree. A lot of RPGs give the feeling of non-linearity, but still require things to be done in a certain order.

I think FF6 was one of the few RPGs that pulled off a nice mix quite well. The World of Balance builds the entire story and plot. It was linear, but once you get the airship in the World of Ruin, you're free to explore the world and complete tasks in any order that you wish. There was still storyline there, but it generally had no correlation between the others (mostly building of one individual's character or such).

They both have their strengths and weaknesses. I wouldn't say one genre is better than the other though.

This is what I was going to say. I'm pretty neutral on this subject.

Non-linearity, as much as possible. Story should be made by the player's imagination not the developer's.

Linearity is neither good or bad. You can do linear well and poorly, just as easily as you can do non-linear well and poorly.

@ Soleron

Then why not write a book or act if its all up to the player's imagination.