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Non-linear video games
Basic Information
Type(s)
Terminology

The opposite of linear video games, non-linear video games are video games with a free-form system of progression. This includes sandbox and open-world games. A non-linear game or path is when a game lets the player affect where they go next. The path branches out, like a tree. Players have a choice of where to go, or what to do, next. Non-linear games are favoured in certain genres like role-playing video games.

List of non-linear games[ | ]

Popular non-linear games[ | ]

Early non-linear games[ | ]

References[ | ]

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  3. 005. “You first face cops in the "maze" segment, where you must hightail your keister into a building. Usually, you start out pretty close to an available edifice, so these mazey bits are really more of a hub where you pick either the "forklift" or "ice skate" building to tackle first.”
  4. Non-linear video games at Allgame via the Wayback Machine
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  24. Szczepaniak, John (2015). The Untold History of Japanese Game Developers. 2. p. 498. "Baraduke has a lot of iconic sci-fi elements, including from the Alien films. It's also a rather fun and intense free-roaming 2D shmup" 
  25. Szczepaniak, John (2014). The Untold History of Japanese Game Developers. 1. SMG Szczepaniak. p. 7. ISBN 978-0-9929260-3-8. "Riglas: Tamashii no Kaiki – large free roaming RPG exclusive to Japanese computers, worth checking out" 
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