Nightingale's "Open World" Concept Criticized by Former Mass Effect Devs

Former Mass Effect developers at Inflexion Games are overhauling their open-world survival crafting game, Nightingale, addressing player feedback and aiming for a more structured experience. A significant update, slated for late summer, will introduce key changes based on community input and the developers' own assessment of the game's current shortcomings.

The team, led by former Bioware boss Aaryn Flynn, openly acknowledged dissatisfaction with Nightingale's reception and player numbers since its February early access launch. While pleased with the recent addition of an offline mode, they feel the game's open-world design is currently too expansive and lacks sufficient direction.

Art and audio director Neil Thomson described the game as "almost too open world, too self-motivated in terms of goal-setting." The upcoming update will address this by incorporating clearer progression markers, more defined objectives, and improved realm design to combat repetitive gameplay. The developers plan to add more structure to guide players, enhancing the understanding of character progression and differentiating the various Fae Realms.

This overhaul will also involve reevaluating core game mechanics and increasing build limits for more elaborate structures. Flynn and Thomson expressed their commitment to improving Nightingale, highlighting the positive trend in recent Steam reviews, with approximately 68% of new reviews being positive. They emphasized their appreciation for player feedback and promised previews of the updated content in the coming weeks. The team believes these changes will significantly enhance the player experience, resolving issues such as the overly complex crafting system and lack of guidance.