The Best Open-World Games To Play If You Want An Escape From Reality

Open-world games are better than most other genres at giving fans a chance to truly get lost in their worlds. A good open-world game is one that creates a truly immersive and engaging realm worth exploring, either because of thoughtful design or intricate procedural generation. When done right, fans can sink hours into these massive virtual landscapes.

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A lot of people play open-world games for escapism, using these titles as a chance to get away from the real world for a while and get deeply immersed in an otherworldly quest. Here are ten games that are particularly easy to get lost in.

Travels Of The Dragonborn

Released

November 11, 2011

ESRB

M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol

When Skyrim launched in 2011, it made a big splash, and it’s had an undeniable influence on the open-world genre for over a decade. The vast realm of Skyrim is full of things to discover, from towns full of quests to caves and sinister Draugr tombs. Random encounters with the terrifying dragons prowling the skies keep players on edge throughout their exploration process.

The massive number of dungeons and discoveries that fill the game’s map means that players will have a lot to keep them busy, even when they’re not actively doing quests. Fans can easily lose hours wandering the various dungeons of Skyrim and amassing a list of side quests to pursue.

9

Fallout: New Vegas

Lonely Desert Wanderer

Systems

Released

October 19, 2010

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Use of Drugs

Obsidian’s iconic Fallout entry brings fans to the embattled Mojave Wasteland, home of the imposing and intensely valuable Hoover Dam and the glittering jewel of the desert, the New Vegas Strip. Fans must choose a side in a coming war to determine the fate of the Mojave and all who live there.

Fallout: New Vegas is rich with complicated and thought-provoking missions that challenge fans to consider what they think is best for the people around them, often when none of the options sound ideal. In addition to these compelling quests, the Mojave Wasteland is rich with ruins and caves to explore. Striking and eye-catching landmarks like the Novac dinosaur and the eternally-visible lights of New Vegas guide players to the most important parts of the map, ensuring that fans can fully lose themselves in the desert sands and remain engaged the whole time.

8

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2

Double The Heroes, Double The Fun

Open-World

Action-Adventure

Superhero

Systems

Released

October 20, 2023

ESRB

T For Teen Due To Blood, Drug Reference, Mild Language, Violence

2023’s Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 brought the tales of Peter Parker and Miles Morales together, letting fans seamlessly swap between the two web-slingers on the fly and opening up the largest version of the series’ New York City map to date. Between the two Spider-Men, there are plenty of missions to undertake and crimes to stop, as the sinister Kraven the Hunter moves in on the city and the mysterious Symbiote stakes a claim on Peter.

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In true Marvel’s Spider-Man fashion, this entry features smooth and engaging web-slinging, making navigating New York City an absolute delight. The addition of web wings lets the Spider-Men traverse long distances with ease, keeping fans engaged and moving them swiftly between the numerous events and locations that New York City has on offer.

7

Ghost Of Tsushima

A Trip To Japan

Systems

Released

July 17, 2020

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language, Partial Nudity

Ghost of Tsushima takes immersion to a new level with extensive research and historical accuracy on display. The island of Tsushima comes to life through Sucker Punch’s keen attention to detail, but it’s also full of secrets and discoveries for fans to uncover as they fight to liberate the island from the invading Mongol hordes.

Players can collect cosmetics like new hats, sword decorations, and even saddles for their horse, all while pursuing side quests to bring justice and order to a shattered community. Protagonist Jin Sakai can even hunt down ancient legends across the island, giving him a chance to harness mythical power and giving fans a chance to truly lose themselves in the game’s world.

6

Horizon Forbidden West

Life Among The Machines

Systems

Released

February 18, 2022

ESRB

T for Teen: Blood, Language, Use of Alcohol, Violence

The Horizon franchise presents a truly unique post-apocalyptic landscape, populated with strange robotic facsimiles of dinosaurs and beasts. As rogue, godlike AI cores threaten to destabilize the planet, Aloy must journey to bring order to the world. Along the way, Aloy and the players controlling her will be thrust into a vast and immersive world rich with detail and threats.

Fans can lose themselves for hours in Horizon Forbidden West, discovering ancient ruins from the old world and secret devices rich with treasure. The title’s elaborate crafting mechanic encourages exploration and confrontation with the numerous robotic beasts prowling the map, letting fans upgrade their outfits and weapons to better challenge the threats lurking throughout the map.

5

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

A Legendary Journey

Released

May 19, 2015

ESRB

M for Mature: Use of Alcohol, Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content

The Witcher 3 is a truly legendary game, one that propelled the franchise and developer CD Projekt Red into the spotlight in a big way. Geralt’s quest to track down Ciri takes him through a vast and expansive fantasy world full of legendary creatures and challenging, thought-provoking adventures.

Fans can easily lose hours to The Witcher 3‘s open world, as the power struggles and monstrous threats come to life in the setting. The Witcher franchise is one of the most prolific in the modern fantasy space, and The Witcher 3 is a potent example of why.

4

Elden Ring

Lost In The Lands Between

Systems

Released

February 25, 2022

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence

FromSoftware’s first open-world Soulslike drops players in The Lands Between, a vast fantasy realm sundered by the cataclysmic Shattering and crawling with monsters and forsaken knights. This massive landscape is full of secrets, and players can discover hidden dungeons and challenging bosses around every corner of this blighted realm.

FromSoft’s addictively challenging action RPG combat is as strong as ever, giving fans countless weapon types and magical abilities to work with. The endless build variety and limitless opportunities for combat make Elden Ring a veritable sandbox that players can easily spend dozens of hours exploring.

3

No Man’s Sky

A Limitless Universe

Adventure

Action

Survival

Released

August 9, 2016

ESRB

T for Teen: Fantasy Violence, Animated Blood

Despite its somewhat controversial start, No Man’s Sky has evolved into a game that can occupy players for countless hours. The title’s massive procedurally generated universe provides more content than one player could ever experience, even in a thousand lifetimes, and while this scope does lead to some repeated encounters and structures, there’s so much more to be discovered in the game’s nearly endless universe.

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No Man’s Sky has also received some fantastic post-launch support from the developers at Hello Games since its rocky release. New types of ships, planet-bound vehicles, settlement structures, villages, and adventures await dedicated fans, giving them all they need for an endless odyssey through space.

2

The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom

A Kingdom Of Possibilities

Systems

Released

May 12, 2023

ESRB

Rated E for Everyone 10+ for Fantasy Violence and Mild Suggestive Themes

The landmark sequel to Breath of the Wild expanded on the first game’s map in a big way with the introduction of the labyrinthine Depths and a vast field of Sky Islands for Link to freely explore during his travels. Just like the prior game, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom‘s map is rich with detail and treasures to discover.

Fans can also use the game’s elaborate Ultrahand system to craft vehicles and structures to help them traverse the world and solve puzzles. This means that each enemy camp, Shrine, and dungeon in the game’s massive world can be approached in a myriad of different ways, letting players fully lose themselves in this intricate title.

1

Minecraft

Build Anything

Released

November 18, 2011

ESRB

E10+ For Everyone 10+ Due To Fantasy Violence

Minecraft is the ultimate time sink. Since its first public alpha release back in 2009, this title has redefined the gaming industry, giving fans virtually limitless options to explore, mine, and create whatever their hearts desire. With over a decade of updates and development, the game is more of a titan than ever.

Players can spend months on elaborate palaces, cityscapes, and everything in between. If they don’t feel like creating grand structures, the game’s massive procedural world is full of exciting and inspiring discoveries, including NPC villages, sunken pirate ships, and massive lost temples. With a steady stream of new content, there’s always something new to discover in Minecraft.

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