The
1986 Japanese release of legend of Zelda introduced open world, nonlinear
gameplay; the concept that players could go wherever they wanted and there were
multiple routes to winning.
A
non-linear game is a game that can be completed taking different approaches and
routes in contrast to a linear game which has always a fixed path of
sequences. Zelda is considered for many as the founder of the non-linear genre
known these days as sandbox.
