The Best Open-World Games That Let You Conquer Areas

Open-world games feature many gameplay loops to stand out in a market full of sandbox titles vying for the player’s attention. A great way to capture a player’s attention is by compelling players to conquer and liberate areas by clearing out enemy forces, sabotaging their equipment, or fulfilling any other objective they’re assigned.

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Conquering areas is a classic hallmark of the open-world genre that many games mess around with. For the most part, these titles will keep fans engaged as they acquire powerful equipment and clear out hostile zones in style.

8

Mafia 3

Lincoln Takes Over Territories And Hands It Over To One Of Three Underbosses

Released

October 7, 2016

ESRB

M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Game Experience May Change During Online Play, Intense Violence, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs and Alcohol

Unlike the first two games, Mafia 3 involves its fair share of open-world busywork where players liberate areas and take over the districts of New Bordeaux. This can get repetitive after a point, but ties in nicely with the game’s masterful story.

The game also lets players assign these districts to one of three underlings, including the returning Vito Scaletta from Mafia 2. While these criminals threaten Lincoln that they’ll leave if not given the power they deserve, all players need to do is distribute their acquired territory equally to keep all the mafia bosses satisfied.

7

Saints Row 2

Conquering The Districts Of Stilwater Is A Huge Part Of The Gameplay Loop

Open-World

Third-Person Shooter

Released

October 14, 2008

ESRB

M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Use of Drugs

While players love the overtly goofy and chaotic approach of later Saints Row games, long-time fans agree that Saints Row 2 is the best game of the lot. It’s a shame that this title received a poor PC port and robbed many fans of experiencing a quality title in the series that struck a balance between its serious and goofy moments.

The city of Stilwater makes a return as the 3rd Street Saints acquire territory and take out viral gang members. Conquering these regions and increasing the gang’s infamy is a crucial part of the gameplay loop and something fans will love to engage with time and time again.

6

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

CJ Leads A One-Man Assault Throughout Los Santos To Capture Territory For The GSF

Released

October 26, 2004

ESRB

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

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is one of the best games in the series in the eyes of many. Players love controlling CJ as he comes back to Los Santos and rejoins the Grove Street Families. After a point, players will be tasked with taking over gang territory for the GSF, which makes for some fun arcade-y gameplay as players take out scores of Ballas and Vagos.

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While this progress is reversed after some events, players eventually come back to Los Santos and must take over as much territory as possible to make progress in the story. It may sound like a grind, but San Andreas is such an entertaining game that fans won’t mind going through this busywork to make progress and get the revenge they’re been salivating for all along.

5

Assassin’s Creed Syndicate

The Frye Twins Challenge The Various Gangs Of London To Take Over Their Territory

Released

October 23, 2015

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood, Drug Reference, Strong Language, Violence

Given that Assassin’s Creed Syndicate is set in Victorian London, it’s easy to see why Ubisoft found it easy to integrate elements of gang warfare in this title. As the Frye Twins, players lead the Rooks and take over gang territory in London to establish dominance.

These missions are great and culminate in fun duels where players take out tough bosses and conquer a borough for themselves. It’s a shame that Syndicate became the scapegoat for the poor performance of Assassin’s Creed games since it’s arguably one of the better games in the series and a title that fans of the classic Assassin’s Creed titles will have a great time with.

4

Far Cry 4

Ajay Ghale Conquers Territories To Aid The Resistance Against Pagan Min

Released

November 18, 2014

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood, Intense Violence, Nudity, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Use of Drugs

While every Far Cry game features the gameplay loop of taking over outposts and diminishing the enemy’s influence, Far Cry 4 genuinely feels like players are waging a one-man war against Pagan Min to bolster the resistance.

With each victory, players conquer territories using their immense firepower for the resistance to take over. After making enough progress, players storm the halls of Pagan Min’s castle and either let him escape or take him out in a fiery explosion to mark the end of Far Cry 4‘s adventures.

3

Ghost Of Tsushima

Technically, Jin Must Re-Conquer Areas To Liberate Tsushima Island

Systems

Released

July 17, 2020

ESRB

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

Technically, Jin spends a major chunk of his time reconquering areas that the Mongols have taken over in Ghost of Tsushima. He’s a one-man wrecking crew who can use both honorable and underhanded tactics to get his way.

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Liberating regions might seem done to death in the current gaming landscape, but Ghost of Tsushima does just enough to keep fans engaged for the long haul. It helps that the game world looks so beautiful that players will feel compelled to take out the invading Mongols who are threatening the beauty of this island.

2

Middle-earth: Shadow Of War

Players Amass A Force And Use It To Wage War And Conquer Areas

Released

October 10, 2017

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence

While Shadow of Mordor toyed around with the Nemesis system, it’s Shadow of War that expanded the concept to new heights. Players were encouraged to dominate high-ranking members of the orc forces, eventually waging wars to conquer forts and bringing the fight to Sauron.

This made for amazing assaults as Talion led his forces to take out waves of orcs in massive wars that were as engaging as they came. It’s a shame that WB Games felt the need to riddle this game with microtransactions, but that’s a small complaint for what is otherwise an excellent open-world game that more fans need to check out.

1

Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord

The Best Open-World Game For Players Who Want To Lead Armies And Conquer Territories

Released

October 25, 2022

ESRB

M For Mature 17+ due to Blood, Violence

The Mount & Blade series is perfect for fans who want to play open-world games with a focus on conquering areas. Bannerlord is no exception here, with players starting as a humble adventurer who eventually amasses a massive army to wage wars for their liege or even themselves.

The emergent gameplay of Bannerlord coupled with its large-scale wars make it a great video game for fans to sink their teeth into once they grasp the basics of this complex title. Serving under a lord is perfect for beginners to grasp the ropes before they decide to fuel greater ambitions and make the most of the title’s engaging systems.

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Open-world games are great regardless of the topics they cover. Here are some titles in the genre that have a few espionage elements.