Do you ever lose yourself in a video game? The characters, storylines, and worlds can feel so real that it’s hard to pull yourself away. Sometimes the worlds are so large, so expansive that instead of losing yourself, you end up getting yourself lost. If that kind of open world experience has your name written all over it, then check out these 15 best open world RPGs for PC gamers:
15. Elden Ring
Whee, Torrent, whee!
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/JldMvQMO_5U
Elden Ring comes in at number fifteen simply because it’s brand new, but I have a feeling that heaps of praise will be coming its way by mid-March. Combining director Hidetaka Miyazaki’s Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and Sekiro pedigree with George R. R. Martin’s fantasy writing (you know, the guy who wrote A Song of Ice and Fire, aka Game of Thrones) seems like a guaranteed formula for success. Hoards of gamers are sure to be spending hours on end exploring the huge open world that is the Lands Between - I know I will.
14. Far Cry 5
You can BEARly see the helicopter...
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/Z7KHdMrg_Cw
This first-person action-adventure shooter with several RPG elements gives players the chance to roam around a fictional open world set in the US state of Montana. If you’re a fan of the Far Cry series, you’ll be familiar with most of the gameplay mechanics, but this installment, first and foremost, allows for a customizable playable character as well as some realism tweaks like bullet drop on long distance shots. Brand new players to the series are likely to get more out of the game, though, because veterans will find it’s mostly more of the same (although that’s not a bad thing if you’re a fan).
13. Cyberpunk 2077
Wait, is he smoking in 2077?
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/Te9CxZmVIQI
Cyberpunk 2077 has been shrouded by negativity since its release, but RPG fans who want to shake off the dust of the typical fantasy setting and grime it up in a world that originated in the Cyberpunk tabletop RPG system should give this game a chance. Players guide their fully customizable character, V, through the massive setting of Night City, a futuristic world reminiscent of Blade Runner. With the bugs that plagued the game’s early days cleared up, Cyberpunk 2077’s narrative shines, making it a worthy use of your game time (not to mention it features John Wick himself, Keanu Reeves).
12. Dying Light 2
Get that parkour!
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/SriU07JopNA
Dying Light 2 took the success of its predecessor and turned it up to eleven. This action horror role-playing game takes place in an open world zombie apocalypse where your parkour savvy character, Aiden Caldwell, has to contend with sluggish daytime zombies who become things of nightmare when the sun sets. While the story offers a variety of choices that lead to different endings, the day/night survival mechanic is the real x-factor that makes it a game worth checking out.
11. Nier: Automata
Greetings, shrubby Iron Giant!
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/ekI2q9C4uOA
If you’re looking for a fast-paced mishmash of gameplay styles in your open world RPG selection, Nier: Automata might be the choice for you. For example, the game moves seamlessly between a hack-and-slash third-person point of view to an overhead side-scrolling platformer, often without the player even really noticing the difference. That, coupled with multiple endings for the rich, machine versus android war story, will keep you coming back again and again.
10. Kingdom Come: Deliverance
It's literally the feather in his cap...
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/x5-ianWLZik
Kingdom Come: Deliverance is the open world role-playing game equivalent of what every Renaissance Fair wishes it could be. The developers worked with experts on the Medieval period to ensure historical accuracy in everything from weapons and combat to clothing and architecture. Where many games do an excellent job of taking the player on an adventure in another world, Kingdom Come: Deliverance is truly like going back in time.
9. Assassin's Creed Valhalla
Time for storming the castle!
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/oW1HNqoAGeE
The Assassin’s Creed franchise has a long and storied history of producing immersive, engaging gaming experiences, and Vahlalla may be their best effort yet. Playing as Eivor Varinsdottir in either male or female form for the majority of the game, you become entangled in the Assassins versus Templars conflict while also fighting alongside your fellow Vikings against Anglo-Saxon warriors. If that alone isn’t enough to sell you on this one, players get a raven companion to scout around for them - so you play as a Viking with a raven; what more do I have to say?
8. Red Dead Redemption 2
That is one pretty horse.
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/dDyeXLYia_Q
Red Dead Redemption 2 is, by nearly all accounts, an open world masterpiece, but it’s not always considered an RPG. At the basest level, the player is taking the role of Arthur Morgan - making the game, at least ostensibly, a role-playing game - but there are also more standard RPG mechanics involved like experience and stat leveling. What really matters, though, in my opinion anyway, is that Red Dead Redemption 2 allows the player to work their way through a masterfully told narrative and make choices that matter; if that’s not role-playing, I don’t know what is.
7. Horizon Zero Dawn™ Complete Edition
Do you think it gets DirecTV or Dish Network?
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/T5Xx3MdqdgM
Horizon Zero Dawn is an open world action RPG where robotic creatures roam a post-apocalyptic Earth. Players take control of Aloy, a master of the bow and arrow, who gets several other weapons and specialty arrows added to her repertoire as you venture through the incredible story. With tons of side quests, challenges, and items to find through exploration, Horizon Zero Dawn will keep even the most avid gamer busy for hours.
6. Disco Elysium - The Final Cut
That is one gritty, lived-in world.
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/yAiaY1YC3F4
If you want a side of video game with your engrossing, “choose your own adventure” detective story, this is the open world RPG for you. Everything about this game is narrative focused, especially the world-class dialogue, making the player develop real, meaningful connections to the characters and NPCs alike. Fans of tabletop games such as Dungeons and Dragons will fall immediately in love with the dice rolling mechanics this game uses for nearly everything. It is truly one of a kind and something every gamer should experience.
5. Fallout: New Vegas
Sin City, baby!
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/HnmPhgfFvzA
When it comes to post-apocalyptic video games, nothing beats the Fallout series, and when it comes to the Fallout series, most fans will tell you nothing beats New Vegas. Between the scenery, the factions, the Courier, and the hours you’ll happily lose getting through the story, New Vegas is an action RPG treasure. And if that’s not enough for you, it has an allstar voice cast featuring Ron Perlman, Wayne Newton, Matthew Perry, Zachary Levi, Danny Trejo, Michael Dorn and Felicia Day.
4. Dragon Age™ Inquisition
This doesn't seem ominous at all...
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/bBPQS7yO6gA
The Dragon Age franchise comprises an expansive universe, and you get dropped smack dab in the middle of it with Inquisition. The scale of the game is evident from the moment you start character creation and notice that there are nearly infinite options for who you’ll play. After that, once you get a handle on the open world around you, you notice how deeply connected you’re already feeling with the characters. Upwards of a hundred hours later, Dragon Age feels like home.
3. Final Fantasy XV
A chocobo and an oasis, what more do you need?
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/DCBbFwdpC6o
Final Fantasy is a must-play franchise for all RPG fans, and with XV, the series finally breaks into the open world space. Granted, the scope does narrow as you get deeper into the game’s story (which is incredibly moving and emotional), but the stunning graphics, amazing as ever soundtrack, and phenomenal characters certainly make up for it. If you’re on the hunt for a new open world experience and have never played a Final Fantasy game before, go pickup XV right now.
2. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition
Just a liesurely walk through an incredibly dangerous landscape...
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/-NhevGw_qBw
Considered by many to be the quintessential RPG of the modern era (though I predict Elden Ring will have something to say about that), Skyrim is a game that should be in every RPG player’s library. It’s hard to pin down what’s so great about this game because there’s no one thing that sticks out, it’s really everything. This is a game you have to experience to appreciate because no matter how you enjoy spending your game time, you can bend Skyrim to your will - just try not to let it consume you.
1. The Witcher® 3: Wild Hunt
Nice view, but what's he doing up there?
Gameplay: https://youtu.be/xx8kQ4s5hCY
If you’re the kind of gamer who read the intro about losing yourself in the world you play in and thought, “Yeah, that sounds like me,” then Witcher 3 should be at the top of your list too. Players don’t take the role of Geralt of Rivia, you become Geralt of Rivia, making choices that matter, slaying terrifying creatures for coin, and spending hours on end riding your trusty steed, Roach, all over the open world continent. This game is massive, engrossing, engaging, challenging, and rewarding. If you haven’t played this game yet, stop whatever you’re doing (you shouldn’t even be reading this anymore!) and start downloading it now.
