Have you ever needed a day to get completely immersed in a game to make life's worries go away? For many, a good open world game is the perfect escape from reality as they can often offer endless ways to while away hours from leveling up to exploring every nook and cranny. Open-world games are great, and there are so many out there today on all consoles.
Best game about exploring the unknown
Step into the unknown for fame, fortune, and adventure in these exploration-focused games.
While there are definitely some great examples worth considering, there are also lesser games that promote a sense of escapism. Either way, be it immersive or so monotonous that players can turn their brains off, these games are amazing.
The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild
A world of wonder
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has virtually no limits to what players can do, as it starts up quickly, and the world is gorgeous, especially when playing on a Switch 2 now. It's easy to pick a spot on the map to travel to, for a mission or something, and then be locked out for hours.
Soon enough, time flies and it may be time for bed. This is one of the most immersive versions of Hyrule yet, with the locations to see, the smart combat and the mesmerizing visuals.
Donkey Kong Banana
Sometimes you have to crush
Sometimes players may need to bring out some aggression, and Donkey Kong Banana is the perfect solution. Set in multiple open biomes, players have free rein to tear up the world in any way they want, from punching to throwing explosives.
Besides the destruction, it's also pretty fun to explore and look for secrets like collectibles, level skills, or grabbing a flat earth and surfing around. It's a game so fun that players will forget they're even holding a controller.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
An affordable housing market
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is a simple life-sim game that starts off slow, but once players get their plot established, they'll be golden. Players can build a house and then learn recipes to craft furniture to place inside or outside their residence.
They can plant things like apple trees and then trade the fruits of their labor for cash on their island or visit a friend's to maybe get a better deal. Every day brings a new task, just like real life, and the monotony of it all can be satisfying just living in the moment.
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag
Shiver My Timbers
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag
- Released
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October 29, 2013
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag wasn't the first game in the series to feature sailing, but it's the first to focus so much on it and the lives of pirates. Although there is a typical assassin based plot to follow, it is not the best part of the game.
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The freedom players will have on the high seas of the Caribbean is unparalleled. It's even better when sailing to the tune of crewmen singing sea chants like “Dead Horse” or “Fish in the Sea”, which will fully immerse players into being a pirate in the 18th century.
Red Dead Redemption 2
Life in the Old West
For those who prefer cowboys to pirates, Red Dead Redemption 2 is the perfect simulator. Set in 1899, life for outlaws and the classic old west is fading, but players, as part of the Van der Linde gang, are willing to give it one last hurray. Players can get into lots of mischief, from robbing banks to trains to just wreaking havoc on a city.
Alternatively, as Arthur Morgan, one of the members, players can try to be a changed man and refrain from criminal activities. Either way, there's no better western out there to make players feel like they've traveled back in time.
Marvel's Spider-Man 2
Your superhero escape
Sometimes players want to be a superhero without having to dress up and pretend in front of a mirror, and Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is a good video game option. As either Peter Parker or Miles Morales, players can patrol New York City to stop random crimes to feel like the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.
They can also follow the plot and get into some classic Spider-Man stories involving Kraven the Hunter and Venom. Best of all, the web swing feels natural and will be the reason players prefer to use it over fast travel.
The legacy of Hogwarts
You are a wizard, player
Since the films began to be released in 2001, there have been accompanying Harry Potter video games, and most of them haven't been fun. The legacy of Hogwarts Finally changed all that by giving players the freedom to create their own Hogwarts student to attend the school long before Harry Potter lived.
Players can attend classes, learn spells, meet friends, and explore the school grounds on foot or with a broom. That's all a Harry Potter hell can wish and more, minus being able to use magic in real life.
Fantasy Life in: The Girl Who Steals Time
Too many lives to name
Fantasy Life in: The Girl Who Steals Time is an action RPG with a class system called Lives. Unlike most class-based RPGs, players aren't stuck with one as they can freely change on the fly.
Games where the world reacts to EVERYTHING you do
These gaming experiences react to what you do, with immersive worlds and detailed characters that evolve based on your decisions and actions.
Lives also fall into different categories, all of which level up in different ways. A combat class, like the Paladin, levels up by attacking enemies, a craft class, like the Chef, levels up by making dishes, and the gathering class, like the Woodcutter, levels up by chopping wood. But players feel like roleplaying that day, there is a life for them.
Tetris effect
PSVR's selling point
Tetris effect was originally released for PS4 with an option to play it in VR via PSVR accessories. Although it is good as one Tetris game, it is a transformative experience that is indescribable unless players experience it in VR. The puzzle blocks pop, the music flares and the background images will glue eyeballs to the screen and plunge players into a dream-like trance.
It's calming, good for the brain and just an absolutely creative endeavor that manages to combine multiple types of media well. Tetris Effect: Connected is also a great game, expanding on the original and adding multiplayer, but the VR version on PS4 is still the WAY to play.
No Man's Sky
To infinity and beyond
No Man's Sky is the game for all types of players who want to start a game and have it never end. The game uses procedurally generated worlds to create planets that players can manually fly to in their ship and then land on.
They can scan plants and animals, build bases, meet friends or create some chaos with patrolling drones. While action is part of the experience, it's an overall chill space sim for anyone who dreams of going into space one day to explore the great unknown, if that day ever comes.
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