8. No Map
The lack of a map really helps to deny exploration in Absolution, as the player has to use Instinct Mode - think of it as like Detective Mode in the new Batman games - to get a lay of their surroundings. Though there is a mini-map in the corner, all it indicates is the position of enemies, and gives you absolutely no awareness of doors, stairwells and so on, meaning that locating targets can often be confusing and frustrating. Furthermore, by denying the player greater spatial awareness, it discourages exploration, which is already done somewhat by the more linear level design (but we'll get to that in a bit). Though we can appreciate IO wanting to show off their shiny new Instinct mode - and it does work fairly well - to implement this at the expense of something as rudimentary as a map seems foolish, a choice that is unquestionably style over substance and, indeed, sense.