Best Open-World Games With Unpredictable Quest Outcomes

Key Takeaways

• Open-world games that focus on unique, twist-filled quests with unpredictable outcomes keep players engaged and invested longer, offering memorable experiences that stand out from predictable, repetitive tasks.
• The Witcher 3
  and
  Cyberpunk 2077
  by CD Projekt Red stand out for their high-quality, unpredictable quests that always leave players with something to think about.
• Red Dead Redemption 2
  and
  Grand Theft Auto 5
  by Rockstar offer some of the most immersive worlds, full of unexpected situations and interactions at every turn.

Open-world games engage players in different ways — some focus on the world itself and its hidden treasures, others on varied activities, and some prioritize intriguing characters and quests. A sure way to keep players invested in exploring every side quest is to make quests surprising, full of twists, and with unpredictable outcomes. After all, nobody wants to spend time on tedious tasks like merely collecting items.

While many open-world games rely heavily on predictable side activities and fetch quests, which can cause players to lose interest once they’ve had a taste of the formula, some titles take a different approach. These games emphasize unique quests and storytelling, drawing players into memorable journeys that make each new quest feel rewarding. Below are some of the best open-world action games with quests that keep players on their toes with surprising twists and varied outcomes, ensuring that the experience remains fresh and avoids feeling like a series of mundane tasks.

1 Red Dead Redemption 2

A World That Genuinely Feels Alive And Unpredictable

Red Dead Redemption 2 is an open-world game where players can never fully plan their next move. The game’s world is truly alive, constantly generating unique situations and interactions that make it feel unpredictable. Quests in Red Dead Redemption 2 are just as dynamic — no mission ever goes entirely as planned, and even the simplest tasks can spiral into complex chains of events with serious consequences for the Van der Linde gang.

This subversion of expectations keeps the experience fresh, though after several hours, players may start to catch onto the pattern and brace themselves for any twist. Instead of expecting quests to play out as they seem, players come to anticipate the unexpected — a fitting mindset for the Wild West, where unpredictability rules the frontier.

2 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

A True Benchmark For Quests In The Open-World RPG Genre

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt set a new standard for questing in open-world games, famed for its emotional depth and unexpected twists at every turn. Whether it’s complex, intertwined questlines that reveal new layers of the story or the simplest tasks — like searching for a lost goat or locating a frying pan for an elderly woman — The Witcher 3 fills its massive world with meaningful and engaging stories that sustain players for over a hundred hours.

The game’s impressive quest quality and variety come down to CD Projekt Red’s unique development approach. As the game expanded, the developers performed a critical rescoping phase, where they assessed and refined each quest. By weeding out weaker content, they ensured that only the most compelling remained, resulting in a rich and immersive questing experience that continues to captivate players years after the game’s 2015 release.

3 Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth

One Of The Best In A Long-Running Series Known For Its Twisted And Fun Quests

The Yakuza series is celebrated for its eclectic mix of side quests and mini-games, with Yakuza 0 often cited as one of the series’ most engaging and accessible titles. However, for players seeking a vast open world packed with colorful characters, captivating activities, and deeply intricate quests, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth may be the ultimate choice.

As the latest addition to the mainline series, Infinite Wealth delivers the definitive Yakuza experience, securing its place as one of the highest-rated games in recent years. The game’s storylines and quests are thrilling, unpredictable, and filled with clever twists, keeping players hooked for dozens of hours. With engagement at its core, this entry brings a level of creativity and excitement that makes it a standout in the Yakuza franchise and a memorable journey for newcomers and long-time fans alike.

4 Elden Ring

Taking The Unpredictability Of Quest Solving To New Extremes

Elden Ring offers a unique take on open-world quests that emphasizes unpredictability and discovery. While many side stories have surprising outcomes, it’s the unconventional process of completing quests that truly engages players. With no journal, clear objectives, or map markers — including for NPC locations — navigating even a few side quests without external guidance becomes a challenging adventure in itself.

FromSoftware’s minimalist approach to questing has both fans and skeptics, but it undeniably enhances the game’s atmosphere, mystery, and sense of reward when players manage to solve quests independently. Although there aren’t a vast number of side quests in Elden Ring, each one stands out as an emotional journey, leaving a lasting impression on players long after they’ve completed it.

5 Grand Theft Auto 5

Just Like In Real Life, It’s Hard To Predict What Will Happen Next

More than a decade after its launch, Grand Theft Auto 5 remains an open-world masterpiece, known for its wide variety of missions with surprising twists and outcomes. With three playable characters — particularly Trevor — chaos feels inevitable, yet Rockstar still finds ways to keep players guessing. Each major mission often splinters into unexpected sub-tasks, with situations spiraling wildly out of control.

But the surprises don’t end with story missions in GTA 5. Every random encounter in Los Santos has the potential to launch players into an unpredictable chain of events, pulling them into the lives of diverse characters across various social strata. As players explore the city, they can always expect something intriguing around the corner, where even the smallest encounters can lead to unplanned adventures.

6 Cyberpunk 2077

Each New Quest Can Lead To A Dark Revelation

Cyberpunk 2077 continues CD Projekt Red’s tradition of crafting top-tier, well-written, and surprising quests in an open-world RPG. What sets it apart from The Witcher 3 is its dark, futuristic megapolis setting, allowing the game to explore disturbing themes less available in fantasy settings — like espionage, memory manipulation, and social inequality on a vast scale. This unique environment also changes the rules for acquiring and completing quests.

In Cyberpunk 2077, players meet new people not only in the streets but also through random phone calls from strangers, reminiscent of GTA 5. The hazardous world of Night City favors the bold, encouraging players to take risks and explore paths they might otherwise avoid. Some of the game’s most memorable quests — like the haunting “Dream On” with the Peralez family or the thought-provoking “Sinnerman” questline — will linger in players’ minds long after they’ve been completed.

7 Fallout: New Vegas

Deep RPG Elements Allowing For Many Possible Quest Outcomes

The opening scene of Fallout: New Vegas, where the player’s character is shot in the head, perfectly sets the tone for the wild and unpredictable Mojave Desert — a place where anything can happen with little to no warning. True to the series’ spirit, Obsidian packed the game with some of the franchise’s best quests, offering devious twists, complex outcomes, and a remarkable degree of player-driven choices.

Even years after its release, Fallout: New Vegas remains one of the most beloved open-world RPGs for players who enjoy building unique characters and exploring a world where their choices matter. With four major factions vying for control, the Mojave becomes an intricate battleground of hidden agendas, betrayals, and player-shaped outcomes. The game allows players to navigate this uncertain landscape and forge their own path, becoming anything from a feared warlord to a peace-seeking mediator.

8 Assassin’s Creed Valhalla

A New World Events Quest System Featuring Small, Memorable Stories

One of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla’s standout features is its fresh approach to side quests. While Origins and Odyssey leaned into open-world action RPG elements, they often fell short on delivering truly engaging side stories, focusing more on quantity than quality. Valhalla addresses this with its World Events system, offering players compact, unique stories with unexpected twists.

For instance, some encounters might involve humorous or unusual requests, like helping a character “rest” with an axe in their skull or burning down someone’s house to reignite a lost spark of romance. Additionally, many of Valhalla’s side quests avoid excessive hand-holding, encouraging players to explore and solve tasks independently without heavy reliance on quest markers — a refreshing change from previous entries.