Open-World Games That Are Immediately Fun

Open-world games, especially those in the AAA scene, can often be bloated with too many mechanics and underlying systems. Some titles also become bogged down in dramatic narratives that slow the pace of the game.

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Open-World Games With Subtle Storytelling & World-Building

These excellent open-world games deliver masterclasses in subtle storytelling and world-building.

These open-world games can often be front-loaded with exposition and lengthy tutorials, resulting in a dreadfully slow pace right from the start. However, others have learned to grab the attention of players immediately by giving instant control, drip-feeding game mechanics, and holding back on exposition.

8

Slime Rancher

Accessible Mechanics & A Small Open-World

Slime Rancher is a small-scale open-world farming sim in which players grow crops and take care of bouncy, personified balls of slime. The gameplay is familiar, and easy to learn, but hoisted up by a colorful open world that’s a joy to explore.

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Great Open-World Games That Aren’t Overwhelming

Players can enjoy these open-world games without feeling overwhelmed, a delicate balancing act that the following titles nail.

The game’s design hinges on the Vacpack, a multipurpose tool that allows players to vacuum fruits from trees, pull vegetables from the ground, and, of course, capture slimes. This tool is intuitive and, more importantly, immediately provides players with a fun way to interact with the world.

7

Outer Wilds

An Exploration Game That Gets To The Point

Systems

Released

May 28, 2019

Developer(s)

Mobius Digital

The lack of gameplay mechanics in Outer Wilds may turn some players away, but it takes no time to show players exactly what the intended experience is; players are introduced to a variety of quirky characters from the offset, and it’s not long before they’re thrust into the cockpit of their spaceship and sent off to adventure with little direction.

Flying through the galaxy with complete freedom and immersive, intuitive controls provides an immediate sense of control. Furthermore, the small scale of the open world ensures that players will quickly come across new locations, often invoking a wonderful sense of discovery.

6

Dredge

A Tactile Fishing Game That Gives Players Immediate Control

Although the game mechanics of Dredge are tremendously simple, it benefits from giving players almost immediate control; in the game, players are able to sail across a small open-world archipelago, partaking in accessible mini-games and interacting with the nearby townsfolk. The simple gameplay loop of sailing, fishing, and inventory management is solidified within minutes of playing, immediately giving players a taste of what makes Dredge so addictive.

The day/night cycle helps tremendously with this, naturally segmenting the experience and providing clear dividers between gameplay elements; daytime is for fishing, but the night brings a slew of Lovecraftian horrors that must be avoided. This ebb and flow make up for much of Dredge, with new mechanics drip-fed to players throughout, and the game does a brilliant job of showing players the experience they’re in for from the very start.

5

Gloomwood

An Immersive-Sim With A Cold Open

Although its world is tremendously small in scale, consisting of a single interconnected city, Gloomwood excels with its championing of player agency. As an immersive-sim, players are offered a great deal of freedom from the very start of the game, able to overcome obstacles however they see fit through exploration and experimentation.

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Focusing its efforts on stealth gameplay and inventory management, Gloomwood stands out with its Victorian setting and survival-horror elements. The atmosphere, controls, stealth, and immersive-sim nature of the game are all set up with an excellent cold open, which immediately drops players into the deep end.

4

Elden Ring

A Short Tutorial That Quickly Opens Up A Punishing World With No Restraints

Systems

Released

February 25, 2022

Similarly to the Dark Souls games, the opening hours of Elden Ring benefit from the game’s enigmatic world and to-the-point tutorial. It doesn’t take long to learn the basic controls of Elden Ring, especially for those familiar with FromSoftware’s Dark Souls games, as the challenge is more about learning the telegraphing of enemy attacks.

As in Dark Souls, Elden Ring almost immediately gets players familiar with the difficulty they’ll be facing on the regular. For those who enjoy a challenge, this is almost immediate, and the game simultaneously gives players mini-bosses and plenty of easier enemies to battle in the interim. Furthermore, Elden Ring’s open world provides players with an immediate sense of awe, which quickly transforms into boundless discovery.

3

Terraria

An Open-World Side-Scroller That Teaches Through Play

This open-world survival-crafting game is immediately fun thanks in large part to its nature as a 2D side scroller, streamlining the process of exploration by providing fewer options. This allows players to immediately start exploring and quite quickly discover new biomes, creatures, and resources.

Terraria also benefits from intuitive controls and a user interface that allows players to learn on the job. The crafting in particular is tremendously accessible, allowing players to quickly see what they’re able to build at any one time.

2

LEGO: The Lord Of The Rings

A Familiar Setting & Accessible Gameplay With A Quick Pace

Fans of Peter Jackson’s The Lord Of The Rings films will most certainly find in this LEGO adaptation an immediate sense of nostalgia and familiarity. Taking players on a journey that parallels the films, LEGO The Lord Of The Rings offers players immediate joy with its open-world exploration, intuitive controls, sense of humor, and frequent references.

As with all LEGO games, LEGO The Lord Of The Rings takes almost no time to learn how to play, allowing players to get straight to the fun. The open-world environments of Middle Earth are also likely to provide players with instant joy as they explore the familiar nooks and crannies of its iconic locations.

1

Fallout: New Vegas

A Brisk & Immersive Tutorial That Opens Into A Wild Wasteland

Systems

Released

October 19, 2010

Fallout: New Vegas benefits from a truly simple, but utterly intriguing, story set-up; a quick cut-scene informs players that they’ve been shot in the head, and moments later they’re in a doctor’s office creating their character. The immersive character creation provides a suitable introduction to the world and prevents the multitude of options from becoming overwhelming, and best of all, it takes very little time to wade through before being thrown into the open Wasteland.

The introductory town of Goodsprings also gives players immediate access to the player agency that drives Fallout: New Vegas and its various quests. There are a multitude of characters to meet, enemies to battle, and sides to take, and all in the opening hours of the game.

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