Top 10 Best Open World Games PC
When it comes to the top open world games, the number of contestants equals the breadth and extent of the realms they cover.
Being dropped into a massive map is always exciting, whether you’re a die-hard fan of the best RPGs where exploration reigns supreme, solving mysteries in one of the best adventure games, or aiming down your sights and getting into all the nail-biting, bullet-flying action that the best FPS games can provide.
A combination of all of these elements, as well as others, may be expected in the greatest open world games.
The titles on this list all contain vast territories to explore, each surrounded with distinct quirks and backstory to give the impression of genuinely alive, breathing digital worlds that you’ll want to return to again and again. But, with so many interesting open world games on pc to explore, where do you even begin?
That is where this list comes in. We explored the length and width of open world games to find the finest of the lot, so you can save time and money when planning your next big excursion.
Modern classics and some of the biggest video game releases of the last year are included here. Prepare your map; let’s delve into the best open world games pc ever.
List Of Best Open World Games PC Right Now
Rank | Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore |
1 | Elden Ring | 25 February 2022 | Action-RPG | 10 | 96 |
2 | Red Dead Redemption 2 | 26 October 2018 | Action-Adventure | 10 | 93 |
3 | Dragon’s Dogma 2 | 21 March 2024 | Action-RPG | 8 | 86 |
4 | Horizon Forbidden West | March 21, 2024 | Action-RPG | 9.3 | 88 |
5 | Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain | 1 September 2015 | Action-Adventure | 10 | 91 |
6 | Baldur’s Gate 3 | 3 August 2023 | RPG | 10 | 97 |
7 | Hitman: World Of Assassination | 11 March 2016 | Action-Adventure | 9 | 87 |
8 | The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim | 11 November 2011 | Action-RPG | 9.5 | 96 |
9 | Ghost of Tsushima | 17 July 2020 | Action-Adventure | 9 | 87 |
10 | The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 18 May 2015 | Action-RPG | 9.3 | 93 |
Ranking Factors
Review/Ratings
In deciding which of the open world pc games out there are best you play right now, reviews and ratings can be most helpful. In this case, games with a metascore and or steam rating of above average across several platforms mean that the game’s reception was positive.
Graphics
Appealing graphics and tracing brings the possibility to enjoy the open space. This is true when tricky features such as realistic visualization, dynamic lighting and rich textures enhances the games.
Gameplay
Interactivity and concept that is unique important also including the attractive plot of each character. A game that has a good blend of exploration, combat and story telling is always memorable.
Map Size
The size and complexity of the game space and affect depend on them. A large, open space with clear design full of activities and hidden things contribute to replayability.
10. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt’s environment is divided into a succession of tiny open-world zones, yet each one has enough complexity and character to feel like a single unified realm. Whether you’re tracking beasts across the battle-scarred plains of Velen, exploring the cobbled streets of Novigrad, or skulking through ancient woodlands, CD Projekt Red has created a world that feels both authentic and fantastical, resulting in one of the best single-player games ever.
And your journey through these harsh environments is regularly rewarded with fresh tasks, characters, animals, and encounters. In The Witcher 3, you never want to speed around the map for fear of losing out on a fresh and fascinating adventure, and what better compliment could there be for an open-world game? We just have a teaser trailer for The Witcher 4 that shows a medallion, so you’ll have to make do with the greatest Witcher 3 modifications for the time being. The Witcher 3’s next-gen update does an outstanding job of building on an already beautiful game, adding several quality-of-life enhancements and next-generation gaming PC capabilities.
Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore | Download Link |
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt | 18 May 2015 | Action-RPG | 9.3 | 93 | Link |
9. Ghost of Tsushima
Ghost of Tsushima appeared on the scene in a blaze of color, wind, and katanas. Jin Sakai is a teenage samurai and the improbable survivor of a devastating Mongol invasion on his clan. To repel the Mongol invasion and exact revenge on warlord Khotun Khan, Jin must reconcile his samurai training with the dirty ways of the ghost. It’s a traditional vengeance narrative in the vein of Akira Kurosawa and Masaki Kobayashi, with a Kurosawa mode to recreate the sensation of playing through a genuine old-school samurai film.
Between bursts of dynamic stance-driven combat and suspenseful showdowns with love-to-hate enemies, you may freely explore Ghost of Tsushima’s open environment. Write a haiku at a peaceful meditation area; follow a fox to a hidden shrine; free a village from robbers. Our Ghost of Tsushima review describes it as a “masterclass in open-world game design” – a “painter’s vision of feudal Tsushima” that gives fresh life to the most conventional open-world gaming elements.
With reasonable Ghosts of Tsushima PC requirements, the four-year wait for the version may have been torturous for some open-world fans, but the director’s cut is definitely worth it. It not only features director commentary, but also Iki Island DLC, performance enhancements, and an online co-op option.
Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore | Download Link |
Ghost of Tsushima | 17 July 2020 | Action-Adventure | 9 | 87 | Link |
8. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Skyrim keeps the usual open-world gameplay experienced in the Elder Scrolls games. The terrain may be explored freely in both first and third person perspectives. Skyrim offers the option of traveling by riding, running, or strolling. When a new place is discovered, it is included on the map. From now on, the site may be reached quickly.
Eighteen distinct talents are used to interact with the world. Some talents are designed expressly for fighting, such as the weapon-based One-Handed and the magic-based Destruction. Other, more passive, talents allow for the creation of things, such as Smithing or Enchanting. When any of these eighteen abilities is used to their full potential, they level up. Skills level up as well, and the player’s total level is determined by the levels obtained in each skill.
Skyrim uses the radiant artificial intelligence technology developed for Oblivion, which has been enhanced to allow characters to “do whatever they want under extra parameters.” The updated system allows for more interaction between characters and their surroundings; characters can now perform tasks like mining, milling, smithing, potion-making, cooking, and other menial labors, and they will continue to do so if the player speaks to them while they are working.
Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore | Download Link |
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim | 11 November 2011 | Action-RPG | 9.5 | 96 | Link |
7. Hitman: World Of Assassination
Hitman: World Of Assassination may not come to mind as a classic ‘open world game’, but it does contain everything of Hitman 2 and 3’s content in one mega-package of mini-sandboxes. You command Agent 47, a bald guy with a barcode on the back of his skull. He’s adept at garroting people and making remarks while doing it, and it’s up to you to use the garrote, as well as exploding rubber ducks, to assassinate high-profile individuals.
What makes Hitman such an excellent open world game is the flexibility you have from the start. Each Formula One racetrack, Italian village, or beautiful manor residence has several ways to cleverly finish off the bad guys. There is also a demo available on Steam.
Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore | Download Link |
Hitman: World Of Assassination | 11 March 2016 | Action-Adventure | 9 | 87 | Link |
6. Baldur’s Gate 3
There’s a lot to say about Baldur’s Gate 3. Perhaps we should say up front that it has challenging turn-based combat based on Dungeons & Dragons’ D20 system, so it is not for everyone. But if you’re okay with it, the fantastical world of BG3 is a genuine treat. The maps are massive and fold in and over themselves, full of mysteries and strange individuals who are just as likely to urge you to steal an egg or find a lost child as they are to have sex in a barn. It’s worthwhile to embark on a difficult quest to save Faerûn so you may continue running about the region.
After waking up on the debris of an exploding ship, you cautiously investigate, discovering temple ruins, a rocky shoreline, and a secret druid grove. There are sun-dappled trees and a camp of partying goblins. Did someone place an order for a busy metropolis with ports and fortresses? Consider a swamp or the Underdark, a subterranean area filled with bioluminescence and living mushroom people. There’s a cursed area enveloped in life-leeching fog, and in its center is a similarly doomed castle. There’s a vampire fortress and a lair in real hell. The realm of Baldur’s Gate 3 has almost everything you could imagine for a fantasy epic.
Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore | Download Link |
Baldur’s Gate 3 | 3 August 2023 | RPG | 10 | 97 | Link |
Also read-
5. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
Metal Gear Solid was always praised for its intricate stealth mechanisms, but Metal Gear Solid V expanded that complexity to (many) massive open areas. Sneaking over Afghanistan’s sun-scorched mountains is both an imaginative exercise and a test of your stealth talents.
Yes, you may opt to go the long way around an enemy outpost. If you are dull. But why not ride your horse straight through it, avoiding combat by hiding behind your faithful steed’s body? Or shoot the soldiers with a tranquilizer rifle before transporting them to their home base with a large comedic balloon?
Sure, the environment of MGSV is delightful, but it’s the whimsical things you can do there that make it genuinely unique. Every return to enemy territory presents a new chance for expressive decision making. The game is quite unique, combining elements of an immersive sim with a stealth sandbox.
Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore | Download Link |
Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain | 1 September 2015 | Action-Adventure | 10 | 91 | Link |
4. Horizon Forbidden West
Horizon Zero Dawn was one of the first games to transcend PlayStation exclusivity and make it to PC. Thus, we get a taste of the sequel as well. The Horizon series, set a thousand years in the future after renegade robots transformed everything alive on Earth into fuel, begins after things have stabilized for some time.
An advanced AI system has been creating robots to replace some of the missing animals and nurture the earth, while humans have re-evolved into separate tribal communities with their own traditions and customs. In Forbidden West, you travel to California, where you will find redwood forests, rocky deserts, luscious rainforests, and snowy mountains.
There are also new large robot dinosaurs to chase, such as enormous brown bears and massive snapping turtles. The ruins of the old world are still present, allowing you to climb and leap about the skyscrapers that were once San Francisco, or explore the subterranean remains of Vegas.
When combined with a day and night system and some incredibly stunning water that fills the land with emerald green and blue rivers and ponds, you get an open world in which you can truly get lost.
Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore | Download Link |
Horizon Forbidden West | March 21, 2024 | Action-RPG | 9.3 | 88 | Link |
3. Dragon’s Dogma 2
The original Dragon’s Dogma was nearly a cult hit, and Dragon’s Dogma 2 maintains the magnificent heritage of fantasy craziness. What distinguishes DD2 from other fantasy worlds with dragons and ogres is that all journeys are dangerous.
You must actually plan ahead.If the voyage takes more than a day, you will have to travel at night, which is when things become truly dark and hazardous. That’s when the scariest beasts emerge. Even if you pay for a cart, you may be assaulted by an ogre, but at least the cart has guards to protect you and your crew.
The point is that, while Dragon’s Dogma 2 is not a tactical game, you must approach travel extremely carefully if you want to succeed. And due of the game’s rules, there’s a potential that when you get in town, a gigantic bastard dragon may simply saunter up to the gates. It’s wonderful!
Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore | Download Link |
Dragon’s Dogma 2 | 21 March 2024 | Action-RPG | 8 | 86 | Link |
2. Red Dead Redemption 2
Red Dead Redemption 2 may appear to be a too obvious option for our list, but it is clear for a reason: it is excellent. And gosh, its open universe is an incredible achievement that transports you completely. The variety of flora and animals, hooves crunching in the snow, sitting on a clifftop and watching a herd of bison graze. It might not be as densely packed as, say, Elden Ring, but that is not Rockstar’s goal here.
The game is more of an orchestration of action, which is unusual for open world games. You’ve got expertly planned heists, as well as a slow-burn plot that chronicles Arthur’s gang’s rise and fall as once-aligned motives shift. There is relative freedom to relax – at least early on – and enjoy the delights of having a bubble bath, hunting a gator, or even rolling a possible buy about in some out-of-the-way shop in a little town. RDR2 is unique.
Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore | Download Link |
Red Dead Redemption 2 | 26 October 2018 | Action-Adventure | 10 | 93 | Link |
1. Elden Ring
Elden Ring is an open world RPG set in the Lands Between, where gangly animals seek to slay you. Except it’s a very great planet. One that softly leads you in the proper route while also tempting you to explore destroyed forts, tight-knit caves, or mind-blowing elevators. Without sounding overly dramatic, you have probably never seen an open world as thick as Elden Ring’s.
Elden Ring is unique in that it allows you to experiment not only with your spectral steed but also with your character’s design. Want to become a samurai? Sure. Do you want to be a mage-knight hybrid? Absolutely. It’s the first From Software game that actively pushes you to go into the unknown if you’re stuck on a difficult challenge. You never know what you’ll find, and more importantly, how – if you can escape being crushed by a rock giant or whatever – whatever it drops or unlocks will help you go on.
Game Name | Release Date | Genre | IGN Rating | Metascore | Download Link |
Elden Ring | 25 February 2022 | Action-RPG | 10 | 96 | Link |
FAQ’s
What is the best PC Open World game?
According to many gaming opinions, “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” is widely regarded as one of the best open world PC games due to its vast, immersive world, deep lore, and engaging RPG mechanics, even if its graphics are considered dated by modern standards, making it a popular choice for many players. However, based on our ranking, Elden Ring is far and away the finest game ever.
What is a fully open-world game?
In video games, an open world is a virtual environment in which the player can freely approach objectives, as opposed to a world with more linear and structured play. This category includes notable games such as The Legend of Zelda (1986), Grand Theft Auto V (2013), and Minecraft (2011).
Which is the most open world game in the world?
Guild Wars Nightfall can be considered the most open-world game ever as its map size is over 15,000 square miles giving too much freedom.
What is the #1 game in the world?
Looking just at the number of active players globally, PUBG is currently at the top of the most popular games list, with over 100 million people enjoying this Battle Royale classic.