25 Immersive Open World Games To Explore – Forbes
Sometimes an open world can make you feel like you are really there. There’s nothing quite like open world games. The freedom to just do whatever you feel like is an experience no other type of game can offer. As technology has advanced we are no seeing more open world video games than ever before, and the size of them just keeps growing to the point entire cities and regions can now be simulated. With stories crafted in often lifelike locations, they provide epic narratives and tales you will never forget. In the modern era, the best open world games are some of the greatest ever made and are not to be missed.An open world game is as simple as the name: It’s a game set in a world you are free to explore as you wish, with no levels or closed off areas to speak of. There are of course technical limitations, but these days it’s rare for tech to be the thing to stop a world from being fully explorable.A lot of open world games fall into the action RPG genre in one way or another, often placing you as a newcomer to the area or someone low in the world’s hierarchy, and then challenges you to work your way up and across the world. However, other genres can also use open worlds, such as survival or racing games. This list features the best from all those genres, and has been decided based on critical and fan reception, longevity and a bit of personal bias.Platforms: PC, PS3, PS4, Vita, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Android, SwitchGearbox’s 2012 FPS RPG would be higher on any other list, but with a semi-open world that features a string of massive areas separated by loading screens, it only just counts. With billions of guns and a great story, anyone who likes shooting things will love this, but it’s not a true open world.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, SwitchBeing a Hogwarts student is the dream of many, and with the full school explorable in this action RPG by Avalanche, you can make that dream become a virtual reality. It’s one for Potter fans, but is a solid modern RPG, having launched in 2023, so worth it even if you don’t love the franchise.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, iOSKojima Productions’ 2019 debut is essentially a big trek across a giant open world, where you have to deliver things. It’s more fun than it sounds, and unlike anything else out there, so worth a play for Kojima fans or those looking for something totally new.Platforms: PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS5One of the few open worlds that is mostly water, Rare’s 2018 co-op pirate adventure really is unique. You and some pals can jump on a ship and do just about everything you’d expect a pirate to do, from naval combat to digging up buried treasure, making this one for all wannabe pirates out there.Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One, SwitchA zombie filled open world where survival is harder than most, Techland’s Dying Light is the ultimate zombie game in a city that feels very realistic and zombies that become more dangerous at night. The 2015 original hasn’t been bettered by the sequel, but the original’s DLC is also a must-play for zombie fans.Platforms: PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii U, SwitchArguably the best Batman game, Arkham City is the perfect open world playground for the caped crusader and his fans. Run around as the Bat and take out bad guys with some of the most satisfying combat ever, which has been mimicked many times since Rocksteady perfected it in this 2011 title, but never bettered.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5Sucker Punch’s 2020 open world samurai game is a rare open world game that doesn’t try to do everything under the sun. It knows it has great melee combat, so most of the game is exploring and slashing people with your sword, which is always great. It’s one for fans of Japanese culture and katanas.Platforms: PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/SQuite simply the best open world racing game ever made, Playground Games’ 2021 Forza Horizon 5 is the pinnacle of the series that puts you in epic open worlds loosely based on real life locations and gives you fast cars to race. One for racing fans or those who just like going fast.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5You can put either of Guerrilla’s Horizon games here, but 2022’s Forbidden West is a fantastic action RPG with an open world filled with robotic dinosaurs you can fight or be pals with. This is one that’s all about the story and world, as it’s a pleasure to experience and just be present in.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/SAnother entry where you could choose multiple games from Ubisoft’s Far Cry franchise (just not 2,) 2021’s 6th instalment is a great open world FPS that is all about creating chaos in a fictional Caribbean island. This is as much about having a fun playground to cause chaos in than the story.Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X/SBethesda’s 2023 space RPG is kind of open world, or open universe if you will. Whereas you aren’t exploring one big landscape, instead going to lots of planets, it’s still a giant space game in the classic Bethesda style. If you ever wanted Skyrim in space, this is your perfect game.Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One, SwitchAnother Ubisoft game, the RPG style Assassin’s Creed titles were all great, but it’s the ancient Greek Odyssey that’s the best of the bunch. Run around as an assassin, doing assassin things, in this epic open world that is truly massive. If you want a giant historical game, this is the one.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch, iOSWhen Hello Games launched this in 2016 it was mostly panned as a great universe with no actual game. But years later, it’s a fantastic space game full of planets to explore, mine and discover. If you want to fly around space, and try to survive, this is the one for you.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/SAnother Bethesda game, this one from 2015 is a post apocalyptic RPG shooter that features an epic base building system. If you love nuclear wastelands or building bases, this is the one for you. Also, if you saw the TV show, this is the best game to play in the series.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/SCD Projekt Red’s controversial 2020 cyberpunk RPG is, nowadays, one of the all-time greats with arguably the most dense open world ever. Almost every building is explorable, making what looks like a small open world full of life and possibilities. If cyberpunk or incredible worlds are your thing, this is the one for you.Platforms: Switch, WiiUNintendo proved it could make open worlds in 2017 with BotW, taking Link into a massive open world that is full of Nintendo charm. If you want a more family friendly open world RPG then this is a great option, as you run around taking down cartoonish enemies in this enchanting experience.Platforms: PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox OneAnother game from Kojima, this time his last with Konami from 2015, which might be the greatest stealth game ever. With a big open world to be all stealthy in, you’ll be infiltrating restricted areas, stealing things and taking down foes silently. One for the stealthy folks or those who think they are.Platforms: PC, PS3, PS4, PS5, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, SwitchThe final Bethesda game on the list, and the oldest releasing in 2011. However, it’s still as good as ever and the ultimate medieval fantasy RPG in an open world that still holds up today. Filled with iconic locations and quests, this is a must-play for any RPG fan.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5Insomniac’s debut Spider-Man game from 2018 is easily the best web slinging game ever, with a city that is clearly built for it. There is no other open world game where moving around is this satisfying, and that is entirely thanks to the fantastic city design. One for Spidey fans and crime fighters.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, SwitchThe game that turned CD Projekt Red into a household name in 2015, this action RPG features an epic open world with incredible creatures and even better storytelling. It’s a surprisingly varied landscape to explore and a story you’ll never forget. Everyone should play this.Platforms: SwitchThe bigger and better sibling of BotW, TotK saw Nintendo expand the ideas from the previous game and just make everything bigger. This 2023 title is the Switch’s best game and easily one of the all-time greats, as you run around on an epic quest in an iconic world. Nintendo fans will love this.Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox OneThe ultimate cowboy game from Rockstar redefined what open worlds could be in 2018. It’s really only rivalled by Cyberpunk in terms of how dense the world is, and this one comes with a riveting story and incredibly fun mechanics that keep you engaged for hours without doing a single mission.Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/SFromSoftware perfected their own souls-like genre with Elden Ring in 2022, with an incredible open world game that is all about the combat and being killed. It’s tough, but incredibly satisfying when you take down impossible enemies, and with a world built by George R. R. Martin it’s perfect for fantasy fans as well.Platforms: PC, iOS, Android, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4, PS5, Vita, WiiU, Switch, 3DSMojang’s ultimate sandbox from 2011, Minecraft is theoretically an infinite open world that is never the same, so quite possibly the best and worst of all the open worlds. You mine, craft and basically do whatever you want here, be it building impossible structures or just surviving off the land. Perfect for all gamers.Platforms: PC, PS3, PS4, PS5, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/SIt might not be the perfect open world, but the one Rockstar crafted in 2013 for GTA V is by far the most fun. Run around being a criminal, do some sports, drive fast cars, buy property, there are a lot of very fun things to do here in a place that feels like LA.Bottom LineOpen world games offer unmatched freedom to take things in unexpected directions, which makes them very satisfying. There’s a lot of variety when it comes to genres and settings, but having more control over what you do is fun no matter what you are doing, especially in these 25 top games.An open world game features a large map that you are completely free to explore as you wish. There are no levels to speak of, with the entire game taking place in this world, maybe with one or two excursions. While you will be guided, you can just go off and do what you want. A lot of genres can fit into an open world game, so they don’t all share the same characteristics, but there are usually a few similarities. The biggest is the ability to explore areas and, if you want, go in totally the opposite direction to where the story directs you. Freedom is key to a good open world game. Defining which game has the largest open world is a bit of an impossibility, with some games making use of procedural generation to create infinite worlds. Then there’s the open world space games that technically have the largest open worlds, because space is massive. The consensus is that No Man’s Sky has the largest open world, with over 250 galaxies to explore. The dev team estimates it would take a single person millions of years to explore every inch of the game. However, if you are looking for a more earth-like open world that award would go to Minecraft, which has a near infinite open world that caps out at around 1.5 Billion Square Miles. In terms of realistic options, Microsoft Flight Simulator recreates the entire earth, so it’s pretty hard to beat that. A lot of open world games fall into the survival genre, tasking you with staying alive as long as possible in the giant world you are placed in. Perhaps the best example is Mojang’s Minecraft, which literally drops you in an infinite open world and tasks you with surviving as long as possible. Other options with a slightly more defined goal include the likes of Fallout 4 from Bethesda that drops you in a nuclear wasteland and gives you quests to do, then asks you to build a settlement to live in. Or there’s No Man’s Sky from Hello Games that does essentially the same thing, just in space. Zombies and open worlds just work, with perhaps the best example being Techland’s Dying Light that puts you in a detailed city with zombies that get stronger at night and a gripping story to keep you hooked. It’s terrifying at times, and still the best open world zombie game. Other options include the likes of Day’s Gone from Bend Studio, which is really all about the giant hordes that can follow you around and being able to ride around on a motorcycle, or Project Zomboid from The Indie Stone which is a brutal isometric zombie survival game. Open worlds and RPGs go hand in hand, with many of the best open worlds coming from the genre. The best traditional style RPG with an open world is The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt from CD Projekt Red, which is an epic fantasy tale in the now iconic Witcher universe. Other options include the classic of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim by Bethesda, which really redefined what an open world RPG could be with a world you can do a ton of stuff in, or Cyberpunk 2077, another CD Projekt Red game, but this time in a fancy futuristic world with guns rather than swords. Open world car games remove the restrictions of race tracks and effectively allow you to create your own, with giant spaces to explore on four wheels, sometimes even going off the road to make that happen. There have been many classic open world car games over the years, but today one is above the rest. Forza Horizon 5 from Playground Games, or any of the recent games in the franchise, has defined what an open world racer can be. With incredible worlds to explore, based on a real world location, the place you are racing around is just as important as the cars you are driving. Any car fan will want to play this at some point in their life. One Community. Many Voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts. Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas and facts in a safe space.In order to do so, please follow the posting rules in our site’s Terms of Service. 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Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/technology/article/open-world-games/
