When you're exploring video games today, more often than not you will come across objects coated in yellow paint. This is an accessibility measure that is used to highlight important objects, be it a climbing path or a breakable crate. It's often a controversial talking point since some argue that it breaks immersion and is too visual and limits player discovery and agency whereas others simply note that it's helpful for aiding players to progress through video games.
Naoki Hamaguchi, known for most recently being the director of Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, has spoke with GamesRadar+ about the yellow paint dilemma, to which he explained the following.
"I get there is a debate about that, whether that fits with that world or not, whether some people want it, some people don't. I think as a game, there is definitely a need for that kind of thing in a lot of ways. I think obviously different developers experiment, try different things about what works best, what fits best, the right way of doing that in their game.
"The need to guide players around from a gameplay perspective and show them what can be done, what they need to do, there are definitely times where that is needed. So I think obviously there is more of a debate about how it's done, what level and what works. And there'll still be people who say, 'no, that doesn't fit at all. We don't like that.' That's fine, but I think there is definitely a need there, and it's something that is definitely worth looking at."
Some argue that a solution would be a settings option that can enable or disable yellow paint visually, so that more experienced players get a more immersive experience while others can still enjoy a more guided version of the title.
What is your stance on the yellow paint debacle?