Environments

Usually in gaming, environments guide the player through the game, from beginning to end. Others stick to a linear style providing the player with freedom and room to explore. This is difficult considering the limitations of the game engine. Refering to Elders Scrolls, the game engine loads certain sections depending where the player is. When the player reaches the border of the environment, the next environment is loaded or pre loaded and then launching the player to a different map. Apart from the minor loading issue, the transition is un-noticable. Other styles stick to a path that is loaded in each level before the player begins.
Objects and obsticals are carefully thought out and planned to imerse the player in to environment without disturbances or abnormalities. Referring to crisis, vehicles and objects are positioned according to realise, thinking "would that object be there in the real world?" and even giving the environment a character and personality. Some aspects that characters embrace is situated in the environment. This brings the evironment to life. For example, Silent Hill, the etire environment give the horror scene and appealing to the genre with the colours used and effects shown. The walls are gritty and the lighting is positioned appropriately.
But their is a thin line before realism and style. In some games, they can be completely stylized but is some situations, if they are based on real life places, then they need to portray that. Everything in a game is refered to something positioned in life but too much realism will give the game a very dull outcome but if the artist concentrates on the style they are trying to achieve, they get lost in the moment and creates a pretty but dull atmostphere. Every scene needs to make the player feel like they are there but also escape reality. Referring to a game to be released, Crysis 2, is based on New York and retains it's features but has that crysis style and fits the specifications.
The level designer for crysis 2, Cevat Yerli, designed the levels from New York in an apocolyptic style. This pays homege to many films that feature New York with special effects that give a very intense atmosphere.
A new and upcoming game that I am excited about is guild wars 2,that even the trailer shows the creators explaining the compostion of the game. They state that they treat the environment as a character itself and consider a scripted back story and give it a personality.