I totally agree with Paul Beakley​ that travel is handled terribly in games. Even beyond the internal transformation, games do precious little for the sense of awe and wonder that comes from being exposed to new and astonishing things.

There’s a moment in the movie Gladiator where Djimon Honsou’s character sees the Flavian Amphitheatre for the first time and says something to the effect of “I did not know men could build such things.” I’ve felt similarly many times in my travels, gawking at both human-made and natural wonders. No amount of XP can properly represent the feeling, and as yet, I’ve never seen a game that tries to emulate it in any other way.