This is inspired by this thread. But this is something I've been thinking about for a while. There's something special about how Bethesda makes their worlds.
I'm going to break down this comparison differently.
(I don't have the most experience with GTA, so my comparison might not be faithful there.)
From an NPC standpoint, these 3 categories view NPCs differently.
Ubisoft: a small selection of NPCs have a purpose. Many other NPCs exist for decoration. Villagers who have a job but you can't interact with them.
Rockstar: similar to the above, except most NPCs at the very least are able to respond to the situation. They have more agency, but most are just nameless NPCs who are just there.
Bethesda: the vast majority of NPCs have names, jobs, routines, etc. Even the ones that solely exist to be killed on sight, they still often stories, or at the very least they have possessions.
From an item standpoint Bethesda open worlds are different. You could drop a lot of items at a spot, and those things get saved in their spots. Items will often reset, but it's never because the game can't remember something like most games.
I think in a way, Bethesda games are designed as life simulators first, games second. Everything exists to be interactive. Most games are built the opposite, there's a core gameplay experience, everything else is just there to help with immersion.
I'm going to break down this comparison differently.
(I don't have the most experience with GTA, so my comparison might not be faithful there.)
From an NPC standpoint, these 3 categories view NPCs differently.
Ubisoft: a small selection of NPCs have a purpose. Many other NPCs exist for decoration. Villagers who have a job but you can't interact with them.
Rockstar: similar to the above, except most NPCs at the very least are able to respond to the situation. They have more agency, but most are just nameless NPCs who are just there.
Bethesda: the vast majority of NPCs have names, jobs, routines, etc. Even the ones that solely exist to be killed on sight, they still often stories, or at the very least they have possessions.
From an item standpoint Bethesda open worlds are different. You could drop a lot of items at a spot, and those things get saved in their spots. Items will often reset, but it's never because the game can't remember something like most games.
I think in a way, Bethesda games are designed as life simulators first, games second. Everything exists to be interactive. Most games are built the opposite, there's a core gameplay experience, everything else is just there to help with immersion.