Open-World Games With Unusual Leveling Systems

Many open-world games include a leveling system of some sort even if they are not straightforward RPGs. These games are usually longer than linear adventures, so players want some sort of progression to help them feel stronger as the story goes on.

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The games below shake up the typical formula of accumulating experience points by defeating enemies or doing quests. They have different leveling systems for a variety of reasons, but they all prevent players from simply grinding out kills to become extremely powerful. Leveling up in these games encourages players to engage in their unique systems and see more of what the title has to offer.

5

The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild

It Is All About The Shrines

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March 3, 2017

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Nintendo EPD

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Nintendo

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Mighty

The 2017 Legend of Zelda title went fully open-world, letting players explore and play around in a new version of Hyrule without borders. The world is fully interactive, with players encouraged to experiment with the environment and its various systems.

Players increase their stamina and health by finding and completing the shrines spread throughout the map. Each shrine is a puzzle, combat arena, or other challenge. Link’s stats only become better through these shrines. Other stats are determined by armor and weapons.

In addition to the Shrines, enemies in the world also scale and change depending on the player’s progress. Factors like the weapons, the number of Shrines found, the number of chests opened, and the number of Divine Beasts freed all determine how strong or weak the enemies are on the open-world map.

4

Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree

Balancing The DLC With The Main Quest

Not only does FromSoftware make some of the most celebrated video games of the past twenty years, but the studio is also known for releasing DLC expansions just as good as the main game. Shadow of the Erdtree, the 2024 DLC to 2022’s Elden Ring, was met with a better reception than most full-length games of the same year.

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To help balance the game and prevent players from being overpowered from the start, Shadow of the Erdtree has a separate leveling system that only works within its world. Players find Scadutree Fragments while exploring the new area. They use them at a Site of Grace to increase their attack power and defense.

This status effect does not influence stats outside of the DLC, however. While some might not like the leveling system that depends on a collectible, it prevents anyone from entering the DLC overpowered and helps balance the new content for all.

Level Up By Engaging With The Skills

Every Elder Scrolls game except the debut entry has had a unique leveling-up system based on how one plays versus simply collecting experience points. Each game from Daggerfall on makes minor tweaks, but 2011’s Skyrim has the smoothest version of the progression system.

Where Morrowind has players picking major and minor skills to lock them into a build right away, players in Skyrim level up regardless of the skills they improve. Each level-up also unlocks a perk on the constellation chart.

Part of why Skyrim is so universally appealing is due to how organic its leveling-up system feels versus the planning required in a title like Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind.

2

Fallout 4

It Is All About Perks

Even though Fallout 3 switches from an isometric perspective to a first-person one, the leveling system and distribution of stats are still recognizable. Fallout 4 takes a different turn with its leveling and gets rid of the deeper stat system familiar to most RPGs.

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Players still gain experience points and level up, but they do not earn stat points to distribute. Instead, leveling up allows players to either upgrade one S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stat or unlock a perk.

Many of the perks include abilities that were once used for stats like proficiency in a weapon type or lockpicking and hacking. It lacks nuance and fine-tuning but makes more sense for Fallout 4’s more combat-focused direction.

Recruit Soldiers To Upgrade Mother Base

Metal Gear Solid 5 feels like a big leap from Metal Gear Solid 4. That is because it is really an expansion of the systems introduced in the portable titles Portable Ops and Peace Walker. Unlike the other mainline entries, players do not earn better equipment by simply finding it out in the field.

Venom Snake has to evacuate enemy soldiers and their vehicles via the fulton system. Once they are brought back to Mother Base they join Snake’s team and are assigned to one of the departments. Their skill and the number of soldiers in a particular field affect that department’s level. In an action game that is not about killing everyone in sight, it is smart that players progress not by eliminating enemies, but by evacuating them from the field.

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