Some people loveopen-worldgames for their untethered freedom. However, even these large games generally benefit from some sort of structure. Without a clear goal or progression, some gamers might feel like the game is pointless. The games below all do a great job of drip-feeding content and new areas to make progressing through the story worthwhile.
The trick is to always make it feel like there is something to explore and see even from the opening moments, but to promise more if they continue the story. This also prevents some of the larger maps inopen-worldgames from feeling completely overwhelming to those who might be more interested in story than exploration.
Red Dead Redemptionis one man’s journeyto take down the outlaws he used to ride with in order to reunite with his family. There is a cruel moral ambiguity to it, but John Marston is willing to betray the bank robbers who raised him to see his wife and child again.
The map is relatively small compared to its prequel, but it is not fully unlocked from the start. There is a mission that eventually brings John Marston to Mexico for a new chapter, and then the last act of the game unlocks the northern section of the map. It does not feel too restrictive sinceRed Dead Redemptionis more focused on an immersive experience rather than encouraging exploration and going off the beaten path.
Death Strandingis the second open-world title from director Hideo Kojima, the first beingMetal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain. The map is one seamless area, but players are unable to access it all from the start both because of the story andlimitations set by the game. Players simply do not start out with the necessary tools to traverse the harsh, barren harsh.
Each section of the story brings players to different parts of the map where they connect it to the Chiral Network. After doing so, other players' contributions to the map start showing up, making it easier to travel across. Part of the fun inDeath Strandingis using all the gadgets and structures in the later part of the game to cross areas that once felt so hard to walk across.
Ghost of Tsushimawowed gamers with its gorgeous graphics. It had a lot of the open-world tropes that other titles had, but they were better integrated into the game world. Even the UI felt organic, with wind guiding players to waypoints and objectives instead of an arrow or a line on the ground.
The game world is cleanly separated into three separate chunks, and the subsequent areas open up in each new act. Each area provides plenty to do in terms of side quests and collectibles, catering both to gamers who bee-line through the story and those who do everything.
It is easy to take for granted how bigSan Andreasis today, but it was arevelation for PS2 owners back in 2005.There is a reason it is consistently considered one of the best video games ever made, even if some of its gameplay is not as smooth by today’s standards.
The map is so big, that it is not even a big deal that players have to conquer a sizable chunk of the story before unlocking the final areas of the game. Each of the game’s three areas - Los Santos, San Fierro, and Las Venturas - feel unique with their own architecture and vehicles.San Andreaswas also notable for featuring vast expanses of wilderness in addition to the bustling metropolises.
Grand Theft Auto 3andVice Cityalso lock off their areas behind story missions. However, players unlock the map quicker in these games just because they are significantly smaller thanSan Andreas.
Part ofElden Ring’smagic is how it was able tocapture the awe of exploring an unknown worldin an age where most gamers are smart enough to know what a title was throwing at them. Nothing exemplifies this more than the way the map reveals itself. Players only unlock parts of the map as they find map fragments on the road in front of certain monuments, making it hard to estimate how big the map really is.
One might not even think that the northeastern part of the blank canvas where the map is has land they can access, but then they reach the Mountaintops of the Giants a little more than halfway through the adventure and discover there is a whole other chunk to go through.
Elden Ring’s place on the list does not even consider the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, which has a high barrier to entry. The map there is huge and contains more content than most full-length video games.
