Best Open-World Games With Martial Artists As Protagonists, Ranked

Summary

• Open-world games need engaging combat mechanics, interesting content, & side activities to stand out.
• Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise lets players master Hokuto Shinken for satisfying combat.
• Yakuza 0 offers multiple combat styles for Kiryu & Majima, letting players decimate enemies in style.

Open-world games have become so ubiquitous that the simple inclusion of a sandbox won’t cut it anymore. These titles need to be packed with interesting content, engaging combat mechanics, and numerous side activities for players to get lost in.

Surprisingly, martial artists are rare in most open-world games, even though players love the idea of controlling a master of hand-to-hand combat and pummeling their foes to oblivion. When these combat systems click, players can enjoy some truly great open-world games that will feel satisfying to play until the very end.

Honorable Mention: Jade Empire

It may not feature an actual open-world sandbox per se, but Jade Empire‘s huge hubs let players enjoy a semi-open world instead in one of BioWare’s most unique games. It’s a shame that the studio didn’t build on this IP, since players were enamored by this Wuxia RPG that let players use several unique martial arts in combat.

Making progress in the story, bonding with characters, and tackling several optional challenges are just a few ways that Jade Empire keeps players occupied. Using a bevy of powerful hand-to-hand techniques to wallop enemies unlucky enough to come in the way of a gifted student helps this game stand out as an excellent RPG worth anyone’s time who loves what this genre has to offer.

7 Fist Of The North Star: Lost Paradise

Players Master The Fictional Martial Art Of Hokuto Shinken To Decimate Their Foes

Fist of the North Star is one of the most iconic shonen manga of all time, embodying a trend that was popular during that time of shonen protagonists wowing everyone by showing off immense strength that made them near-infallible in combat.

Lost Paradise is RGG Studio’s take on this series, letting players control Kenshiro as he masters the fictional martial art of Hokuto Shinken to inflict death on his foes. The game had its problems, but fans of the Yakuza formula were more than happy to check out a different game from this studio that embodied the cathartic hand-to-hand combat they can’t get enough of.

6 Judgment

Players Control A Detective Who Can Switch Between Different Martial Art Styles

With the mainline Yakuza series making the jump to turn-based combat, fans could rest assured that numerous spin-offs would continue to develop the real-time combat that this series had become known for. This applies to the Judgment games, letting players switch around different combat stances as they control a new protagonist.

Players may not be sold on Yagami as a main character, but there’s no denying that this detective is a blast to control in combat. Juggling enemies and using powerful Heat Actions to decimate foes is a gameplay loop fans are familiar with and helps Judgment stand out as one of the best spin-off Yakuza games.

5 Absolver

A Challenging Multiplayer Open-World RPG That’s A Joy To Play Through

Players who want to check out heart-pounding combat in a multiplayer game will love what Absolver brings to the table. The skill ceiling in this game is high but one that fans will love to conquer if they want to experiment with combat as a martial artist.

It helps that the game lets players explore an open world and tackle combat challenges at their own pace, ensuring that the difficulty doesn’t get too overwhelming. It can seem daunting, but players will love mastering hand-to-hand combat in a great open-world game where players will slowly master the basics before moving on to more advanced martial arts moves.

4 Shenmue

A Revolutionary Open-World Game Where Players Control A Teenage Martial Artist

Shenmue was a revolutionary open-world game, letting players mess around in sandbox environments as a timer kept ticking down. It may be somewhat frustrating to play through now, but it can’t be stated enough just how captivating this game was for players who wanted to immerse themselves in a realistic world.

The protagonist, Ryo Hazuki, must avenge the death of his father and develop his skills as a martial artist to take out the many enemies standing in his way. The combat isn’t a huge focus of the game, but players will love getting into battles that were made using Virtua Fighter‘s engine to defeat enemies with their hand-to-hand combat skills.

3 Sleeping Dogs

Inspired By Hong Kong Action Flicks With Plenty Of Close Quarters Combat

Players who love the vibe of Hong Kong action flicks will love Sleeping Dogs. This underrated open-world game is full to the brim with breakneck action, letting players engage in high-speed chases, carry out stunts where they jump from one car to another, and slowly work through a plot that gets better and better with each mission.

Undercover cop Wei Shen displays a ton of nuance in his personality that makes him quite likable as his personal feelings and professional work start clashing. The combat is one of the best parts of Sleeping Dogs, letting players take out enemies in a brutal fashion with a combat system that is very much inspired by the Arkham series but features enough originality to set it apart from the Caped Crusader’s adventures.

2 Yakuza 0

Both Kiryu And Majima Utilize Elements Of Orthodox Martial Arts In Their Wild Fighting Styles

Yakuza 0 lets players witness how Kiryu and Majima blossomed as characters to become two of the most iconic gangsters in the Yakuza franchise. Players get to switch between three combat styles for each character, letting them use an unorthodox offense to deal with enemies.

Kiryu’s Rush style has a huge focus on boxing, while Majima’s Thug style features its fair share of moves inspired by various martial arts — along with some underhanded tactics to get the jump on opponents. Every combat stance is a blast to use in battle and lets players decimate hordes of enemies in style.

1 Batman: Arkham City

Bruce Wayne Is A Seasoned Martial Artist And Uses These Skills To Beat Down Numerous Thugs

Most Batman fans are aware of Bruce Wayne’s skills across various martial arts and how he employs them to take on the goons threatening Gotham at night. This is reflected in the combat system of the Arkham games, with the second Rocksteady title (Batman: Arkham City) considered by many to be one of the best open-world video games of all time.

Not only is it a huge improvement over its predecessor, but the story is one of the very best featuring the Dark Knight. Descending on foes from the shadows and taking them out with Batman’s expertise in close-combat skills helps the combat system remain fresh till the very end.