View source for Sliding Scale of Content Density vs. Width

{{trope}}
Content in video games, whether it's new gameplay or plot, can be presented to the player in various ways.

Sometimes, the developers keep a taut pace with the content, keeping large areas, optional items and sidequests to a minimum to maintain that pace; these games are content intensive and have "Denser" content. Other times, developers space out the content so that the main portion of the game is experienced much slower and amidst a myriad of extra options; these games are content extensive and have "Wider" content.

Each approach has potential boons and drawbacks. Games with Density can easily maintain the player's attention and provide a meaty experience within a relatively short playtime, but the types of experiences can be fairly limited and not very cerebral. Games with Width offer a broad palette of experiences over a frequently long playtime and a potential for greater [[World Building]] (in games that actually have plot), but can also leave players bored by the pacing or overwhelmed by the sheer amount of content.

Genres that tend to be Denser include [[Action Game|Action]], racing games, [[Casual Video Game|Casual Video Games]], [[Platform Game|Platformers]], and [[Rail Shooter|Rail Shooters]]. Genres that tend to be Wider include [[Adventure Game|Adventure]], [[Action Adventure]], [[Role Playing Game|Role Playing Games]], [[Strategy Game|Strategy Games]], and [[Wide Open Sandbox|Wide Open Sandboxes]]. Gaming in general saw a shift to Width with the [[Video Game 3D Leap]] during the 5th console generation.

Tangentially related to the [[Sliding Scale of Linearity vs. Openness]], as Linearity typically correlates with Density, while Openness typically correlates with Width. [[Fake Longevity]] is sometimes present in games on the Width end of the scale. The [[Super Trope]] of [[Sliding Scale of Video Game World Size and Scale]].
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=== Instances where the Scale was consciously considered when producing a game: ===

* [[Shigeru Miyamoto]] and Eiji Aonuma feel that ''[[The Legend of Zelda]]'' got a bit too Wide with ''[[Twilight Princess]]''. This is why they made sure that ''[[Skyward Sword]]'' was Denser.

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