GAMES THAT GET YOU IN THE MOOD FOR TRAVELLING
Media has an undeniable influence on many of our decisions, intentionally and indirectly. After watching Game of Thrones unfurl, tourists piled onto flights to Iceland to check out some of the most beautiful and iconic locations, while nearly two decades ago, New Zealand’s profile went through the roof following the cinematic masterpiece that is The Lord of the Rings trilogy.
However, a medium more powerful in this manner than shows or movies is gaming. Games immerse people in the setting and allow them to get a taste for it before finally, in some instances, convincing the player that they want to visit the location in real life. These are three of the best games that immerse you in the depicted location and make you think about being there in person someday.
Forza Horizon 4: Northern Britain
The acclaimed racing series available on the Xbox One and PC has created open-worlds based on the real world since 2012. In the first three editions, the game had players racing around Colorado, Southern France and Northern Italy, Australia, and now the series has come to Great Britain. Game critics including The Guardian agree that Forza Horizon 4 is spot-on in its portrayal that allows players to roam from Devon to the Scottish Highlands.
But the game doesn’t simply entice by mirroring the roads and sights of Northern Britain; it also shows the stark changes from season to season in Blighty, from the snowy winters to the rainy spring – all of which look beautiful and serene in-game. Forza Horizon 4 perfectly depicts how the upper stretches of the UK present new and stunning scenery throughout the year while also showcasing the cobble, wall-coddled windy roads.
Spider-Man: Manhattan
Bringing Marvel’s superheroes back into the triple-A video gaming world after a long hiatus was always going to be challenging, but Insomniac embraced the challenge with open arms to deliver a massive open-world for Spider-Man. Created for the PlayStation 4 exclusively, players get to swing around Manhattan as the friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man to get to missions, during missions, or stop random criminal encounters.
Spider-Man’s Manhattan may be filled with fictitious villains and characters, but it does boast many of the same iconic locations as it does in real life. There’s the Empire State Building, Times Square, Battery Park, Union Square, the Statue of Liberty, Governor’s Island, and Madison Square Garden. Having played the game, however, you may be put off visiting the area in real life as you won’t be able to tour it while swinging on webs. Other than that, Spider-Man is a superb advertisement for visiting Manhattan – bar random bits of crime fighting.
From Great Britain to Manhattan, playing these three games gets you in the mood for experiencing the real locations for which these creations base their theme and setting.
