This is probably my biggest greif with the game (coupled with the game being too highly styleized but thats another thread). There should be ways to traverse the whole world *unless* there is something in the world that blocks you. In Baldurs Gate you cannot enter the city because of the iron crisis, it has to be solved within the game before you can continue. It makes sense in the world. You cannot enter the Bandit Camp before you have a map to it, makes sense too because its obviously hidden. You cannot enter the Cloakwood though, doesnt really make much sense other than that its too close to the starting area and it would make people wander into their deaths. But dont know, north of the Friendly Arms Inn is lands infested in Ankhegs that one-shot any level 1-2 character that goes there. In the SCS mod (I think it is) the Cloakwood is open from the start except for the mines and I guess you could make the arguement that the mines are a covert operation and thus hard to find (similar to the bandit camp) but yea.
But you had Durlags Tower just east of Nashkel and you "shouldnt" go there until you're basically done with the game. Curious, but why is that? Well, it does create a sense that the world is there regardless of you. It doesnt care if you go there or not, the world just *is*. This for me is a marker of excellent game creation. The only thing that aught to stop you from going somewhere is the difficulty of the content (or as mentioned, it makes sense in the world). You want to retrieve the farmers sons body in the Ankheg cave at level 2? Go ahead and try, most likely you will reload several times and make a note that you will return once you're higher level.
Invisible barriers and linear progression kills immersion faster than anything else.
