7. Invisible Walls
As a gamer, I do my best to escape from the boundaries of reality; the constraints of the laws of physics. When I walk into a room in reality, I don't expect to be able to leave that room through the ceiling (usually), and I expect a game to allow my progression through its world to be equally believable, so as to emphasize the more fantastic elements; zombies, aliens and polite Frenchmen. But when presented with an open plan world, with forests and lakes I don't expect to adventure into the void of the unknown only to come up short in the face of... nothing. No wall, sea or cliff to prevent me from journeying off the edge of the map; just the endless abyss. It may be a problem not often encountered in modern game, but a patch or something would be nice for previous ones.
6. Pointless Environment Inclusions
Easter eggs and bonus features are all very well, and being rewarded for exploration in a game is as fun as it is when I go through my neighbors bins to look for batteries. One shortcut game developers use to extend the scenery and to maintain the appearance of a truly explorable environment is to have corridor with doors leading to... nowhere. You turn the handle, expecting to confront an enemy, to discover some precious ammo or a clue as to where to go next; instead there are stacks of boxes. Having an interactive environment is fun, and turning on every tap I find and breaking every crate is an activity I don't often engage in in reality, but having to traipse down endless stairs and through vents to be rewarded with nothing is not an expectation I hold when using a medium designed to give a player regular "hits." More versatility would go a long way to producing a truly real gaming environment.