History Main / DirectContinuousLevels

* ''Sensory Overload'' for the Macintosh used elevators, stairways, or airlocks for transitions between levels.

* Stages 4-6, 9-10, and 11-13 in ''WonderBoy III: Monster Lair''.

* ''{{Halo}}'' smoothly transitions into cutscenes by adding widescreen-esque bars with the level names on them, but without changing perspective immediately. ''{{Halo 2}}'' has several pairs of contiguous levels, such as "Outskirts/Metropolis", "The Arbiter/The Oracle", and "Delta Halo/Regret".

* ''{{Quake}} II'' and ''IV''.

* Most of ''SoldierOfFortune II'', and a few levels of the original. The PS2 version of the original divided the levels into contiguous sublevels.

** The older ''MOH'' games also did this, eg "Battle in the Bocage" in ''Allied Assault'' directly continues to "The Nebelwerfer Hunt", and "Sniper's Last Stand" is made up of two contiguous levels, same for "Yard By Yard/Arnhem Knights" and "Clipping Their Wings/Enemy Mine" in ''Frontline''.

* ''{{Halo}}'' smoothly transitions into cutscenes by adding widescreen-esque bars with the level names on them, but without changing perspective immediately. In ''{{Halo 2}}'', some levels are contiguous, such as "Outskirts/Metropolis", "The Arbiter/The Oracle", and "Delta Halo/Regret".

* ''{{Halo}}'' smoothly transitions into cutscenes by adding widescreen-esque bars with the level names on them, but without changing perspective immediately.

* ''Game/{{Unreal}}'' did this too, seldom allowing you to go back to a previous level but always maintaining a certain direct progression from one area to the next.

* The original ''{{Unreal}}'' did this too, seldom allowing you to go back to a previous level but always maintaining a certain direct progression from one area to the next.

* Each act of ''{{Return to Castle Wolfenstein]]'' is contiguous, and extremely large. Several even invoke [[TakeYourTime something of a hot pursuit]].

* The ''GodOfWar'' series. No division into levels, and no loadscreens to break up areas.

* ''Sonic3AndKnuckles'' did this between acts, with the end of one act also being the beginning of the next. Between zones, it had a transition (such as falling down a cliff into the next level - Angel Island > Hydrocity - or being shot from a cannon into the next level - Carnival Night > Icecap), but the zone transition isn't quite an example of this trope, while the act transition is.

* ''DukeNukem 3d'' plays with it. The first two episodes aren't too concerned about it, but by episode three a lot of the levels begin precisely where the previous level ended. In E3L2, for example, you start off in the final area of E3L1.

* The ''SilentHill'' series does this. Every area you go to logically progresses from the immediate previous one, with rarely a cutscene showing, say, a car or boat ride to the next place.
* ''{{Portal}}'', even with its linear set of testing chambers, is this, particularly once you escape them.
* ''[[RaySeries RayForce]]''. It does briefly show the individual level's names, but there's no score screen or Fade To Black and all of the levels have a logical link between them, unlike most shmups.

* ''Sonic3AndKnuckles'' did this between acts, with the end of one act also being the beginning of the next. Between zones, it had a transition (i.e. falling down a cliff into the next level - Angel Island > Hydrocity - or being shot from a cannon into the next level - Carnival Night > Icecap), but the zone transition isn't quite an example of this trope, while the act transition is.

WideOpenSandbox games are not this, since they are not linear and not divided into straightforward "levels" anyway. This trope is when linear games are either divided into levels that connect naturally, or do a good job of hiding the fact that they are, to try to give the illusion of continual progression through the world as you get closer to your goal.

See also {{Metroidvania}}.

WideOpenSandbox games are not this, since they are not linear and not divided into straightforward "levels" anyway. This trope is when linear games are either divided into levels that connect naturally, or do a good job of hiding the fact that they are, to try to give the illusion of continual progression through the world as you get closer to your goal.

* ''SonicTheHedgehog3AndKnuckles'' did this between acts, with the end of one act also being the beginning of the next. Between zones, it had a transition (i.e. falling down a cliff and beginning the next level in the place where you end up), but the zone transition isn't quite an example of this trope, while the act transition is.
* The Arcade versions of the first and second DoubleDragon games.

Other games go a bit further, and do away with beginning/end of level screens altogether, along with the entire concept of "levels" as distinctly different places. Those tend to be games that go for a more cinematic feel. Some of them may display chapter titles onscreen at intervals, some may even have loading times hidden within tunnels or hallways (i.e. ''HalfLife''), but they do away both with outright stating that you're in a level, and having any sort of level intro/results screen.

* ''SonicTheHedgehog3AndKnuckles'' did this, by showing how Sonic (Or Knuckles) moved from one level to another.

* ''SonicTheHedgehog3AndKnuckled'' did this, by showing how Sonic (Or Knuckles) moved from one level to another.