Vista
Also said as Reveal, Overlook, Compression and release
A wide view placed deliberately, usually after a tight space, so the world seems to open up all at once. Tunnels and cave mouths do half of the work, because the eye has just been starved of distance.
It shows the player how big the world is and where they might go next, and it costs no gameplay. Without the tight space before it, the same view is just more scenery.
Say it
“Run the path through a narrow canyon for 30 seconds, turn a corner, and open onto the whole valley. Keep the camera steady and let them stop.”
Where you’ve seen it
Breath of the Wild walks you out of a dark cave and onto a cliff edge, and the camera swings out over all of Hyrule. It is the first thing the game wants you to see, and most of what you see from there is somewhere you can go.
Not to be confused with landmark
A landmark is a thing you can see from many places. A vista is one place you can see many things from.