Summary
Open-world games need to have compelling gameplay loops and amazing exploration to hook players in and never let them go. Given how saturated this genre is,it takes some really unique games to really stand out from the rest of the pack. As things stand, many open-world games don’t add anything memorable to the equation, leading to them being largely forgettable.
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However, some titles do an incredible job ofletting players enjoy a wondrous sense of discoveryas they uncover a wealth of secrets in the game world. These can be anything from unique enemy encounters, obtuse puzzles, amazing landmarks, and everything in between.
6The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild
Breath of the Wildisone of the greatest open-world games ever made. The title is packed with some of the most intuitive world design that has been seen in an open world for quite some time, with many people still in shock and awe at how natural it feels to explore the world ofBreath of the Wild.
WhileTears of the Kingdomis still a massive leap overBreath of the Wildin every way, the sense of discovery is still somewhat muted despite the map having both multiple Sky Islands and an Underground section. The original world of Hyrule and the vast secrets that lay within was truly mind-blowing at the time of release and still excite most players to no end!
5Elden Ring
Elden Ringisone of the most popular FromSoftware gamesthat reached unprecedented heights of popularity. The open world in this game is genuinely gigantic and does a great job of conveying its sense of scale whenever players see the massive landscapes that they’ve yet to explore in this impressive sandbox.
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Every corner ofElden Ring’s world hides a powerful weapon, tough bosses, unique items, or anything else along the same lines. The game clearly took a page out ofBreath of the Wild, with players seeing some amazing landmarks in the distance that they’d want to reach to discover.
Red Dead Redemption 2is one of the greatest open-world games ever made, chronicling Arthur Morgan’s journey as he strives to function under Dutch’s leadership, only to doubt his judgment after some personal losses cause his decision-making to go haywire. The game’s focus on the life of outlaws in a world that is rejecting them certainly makes for a great time.
It helps that the massive world ofRed Dead Redemption 2is a joy to explore, with each corner housing a beautiful secret of its own. What makes things even better is that there’s an entire second half of the game with areas from the first title that players will find interesting when they step into this part of the map.
3The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
The Witcher 3: Wild Huntis the reason why CD Projekt Red has attained such a massive level of success, with this massive open-world title wrapping up Geralt’s journey with a neat little bow that was further refined by the two amazing DLCs. Even with the disastrous launch ofCyberpunk 2077, players simply can’t discredit the company because of the amazing work they put into this game.
Every corner of the many massive zones inThe Witcher 3housed a great secret, an engaging side quest, unique enemy encounters, or anything else along the same lines. Players were encouraged to explore the map as much as possible,which is made even more enthralling with the next-gen updatethat adds ray-tracing support and enhanced graphics to the proceedings!
2The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim
There’s a reason whySkyrimtook over the world when it was released, with this massive open-word game allowing players to discover a wealth of unique locations as they strutted across the map while flexing their skills as the Dragonborn. The sheer amount of visual variety in the province of Skyrim is the biggest reason why this game ended up being such a smash hit!
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The world ofSkyrimis massive and rife with many interesting and optional areas to explore. The fact that players are still embarking on expeditions in this game religiously even now shows just how much of a cultural impactSkyrimhad, with mods doing a great job ofmodernizing any of its dated gameplay systemswhile adding new content to make exploration feel as fresh and engaging as ever!
1Sunless Skies
Sunless Seawas a truly unique Lovecraftian game that players had a great time with, mainly because of the epic sense of exploration it conveyed as players explored the Zee and uncovered the many locations where they could uncover some truly unique stories. This sense of adventure has been taken up a notch inSunless Skies, which is pretty much a perfect sequel in every department.
Despite starting somewhat slow, it doesn’t take long forSunless Skiesto endear itself to playerswith its massive world, improved combat, and some truly impressive writing. Later areas up the scare factor in the game too, sending a chill down players' spine as they encounter enemies and discover areas with nightmarish implications.
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