Biggest upcoming Open-World game with Sci-Fi setting

For those who love open-world sci-fi games, 2026 and the years ahead promise to be exciting. Developers are hard at work building huge worlds among the stars, in futuristic cities and under alien waves. The variety in this lineup is unmatched. A player can explore a retro-futuristic version of the Soviet Union and beyond. Another adventure involves piloting a customized spaceship through a galaxy containing thousands of unique planets.

Some games introduce time manipulation mechanics that allow users to rewind battles or see how their choices affect people decades later. And then there are those who focus on pure survival against terrifying creatures deep underwater on a new planet.

Atomic Heart 2

Same retro-futuristic Soviet aesthetic as the first game, but now with a global focus

• The story continues after the first game as a mechanical rebellion spreads far beyond the original Soviet borders.

• This sequel shows how advanced technology has collapsed society on a global scale.

While the first Atomic heart focused on a secret Soviet base called Facility 3826, the developers have confirmed Atomic Heart 2 will be on a global scale. In fact, Mundfish CEO Robert Bagratuni said the game is “bigger and bolder” than its predecessor. The sequel is being built with Unreal Engine 5 to handle these much larger, more detailed open spaces.

The story continues to explore the dark side of technology and the mess left behind after the first game's end. Players can expect the same mix of fast-paced shooting and more threats, but the encounters will take place in more varied outdoor locations. The game doesn't have a set release date yet, but the idea of ​​exploring a retro-futuristic open-world game that expands beyond the Soviet Union is very exciting.

Last Sentinel

A Cyberpunk Tokyo story

• Set in a future version of Tokyo that looks incredibly real and brutal.

• The team includes people who worked on Grand Theft Autoso the city is built to feel dangerous and rich in culture rather than just being a big blank map.

There's a new company making big budget open world games, and they're off to a strong start. Lightspeed LA, a studio headed by Steve C. Martin, who worked on games like Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemptionmake an open world cyberpunk game called Last Sentinel. It takes place in a rebuilt, futuristic version of Tokyo. The goal of Last Sentinel is to mix the gritty feel of a future dystopia with a deep story.

The team hasn't shared many details about the game, but the history of the people making it suggests that the game will be highly polished and carefully built. The protagonist is Hiromi Shoda, who lives in a world that feels both culturally rich and dangerously high-tech. Unlike many open world games that only focus on how big the map is, Last Sentinel focuses on a unique setting that takes its style from graphic novels and serious sci-fi movies. The developers want to make the player feel fully involved in the game and create a version of Tokyo that seems truly alive instead of just a place to travel to.

Cinder City

Searching for a loved one in a hi-tech destroyed Seoul

• Follows a father's search for his daughter in a futuristic version of South Korea's capital.

• Fast-paced, large-scale tactical shooting in two open worlds.

Formerly known as Project LLLCinder City is an MMO tactical shooter made by BigFire Games. The environment of Cinder City is modeled after a futuristic version of Seoul, where highly advanced 22nd century technology is mixed with the ruins of today's world. Although the game has some giant robot enemies, it is mostly a third-person shooter where players play as a human soldier known as a knight.

Cinder City is basically about a father who is searching for his daughter in a world that is falling apart. The game uses two large open world maps that are about 14 kilometers when added together, according to BigFire Games CEO. While players can hijack large mechs or ride motorcycles, that's only a fraction of the fun. Players can participate in massive battles, as BigFire Games' CEO also hinted that up to 200 people participated in playtests. According to NCSOFT, this MMO tactical shooter should hit consoles and PC sometime around the second half of 2026.

Subnautica 2

Co-Op Survival Under The Sea

• Players can finally bring up to three friends to help build bases and survive in the scary deep waters.

• The developers are creating a brand new planet with fresh monsters and dark underwater areas to explore.

Subnautica 2 is the sequel to the hit game from 2018, and it changes some important things. The biggest news is that players can now play together with up to four people. For the first time, players don't have to face the dark depths alone. They and their friends can build bases, drive submarines and scream together when a giant creature appears.

Set on a brand new planet, this game promises brand new plants and animals to find (and get eaten by). Early videos have shown new Leviathan creatures and massive underwater areas that go from calm plains to terrifying, deep zones. The game has unfortunately been delayed by KRAFTON until 2026. If players loved the sense of discovery and fear in the first game, Subnautica 2 is ready to make that feeling much bigger and shareable.

Chrono Odyssey

Bend time and space to save the world in a fantasy MMORPG

• Fight to stop a dark force from erasing the history of their world.

• Players can freeze the hands of time as they explore Setera and the deep dungeons.

The developers at Chrono Studio are building a massive online adventure where the environment itself reacts to the passage of time. IN Chrono Odysseyplayers are soldiers fighting back against a dark corruption called the Void, which is slowly erasing the history of the world. Players cannot fully enjoy what Setera has to offer without acquiring the Chronotector machine. This device gives the player the power to manipulate the flow of time during active gameplay. So, for example, during a difficult fight, a player can freeze an enemy in mid-air or rewind their own character's movements to avoid an attack.

There are different classes available, including the heavy Berserker and the fast-moving Assassin. The game allows players to switch between multiple weapon types instantly while in the middle of a fight.

Free Stars: Children of Infinity

Explore a galaxy full of alien threats

• Play as a captain and explore a galaxy filled with hundreds of star systems and fun alien species.

• The game mixes ship battles with resource gathering, and the aliens remember whether you were nice or mean to them.

For those who love classic sci-fi games like The Ur-Quan Masters, Free Stars: Children of Infinity will be a lovely sequel to look forward to. IN Free Stars: Children of Infinityplayers take on the role of a spaceship captain on a journey to a little-known part of space.

The “open world” here is actually a galaxy full of hundreds of star systems and thousands of planets. Players can land on planets to find resources, talk to strange alien races to make deals, and fight in fast-paced top-down ship battles. The ship combat system, called Super Melee, is back with over 30 different starships, each with their own special powers. The game's Steam page has an expected launch for 2025, but whether that will happen remains to be seen. This is the game for anyone who wants a space adventure that looks like the 1992 classic Star control 2.

StarRupture

The Galactic Factory Builder

• The core of the game mixes survival and factory building, requiring players to set up huge, automated production lines on the enemy planet.

• A star causes massive waves of fire and heat that regularly destroy the surface, so players must quickly build strong shelters to survive.

StarRupture is a survival and base-building game that will be released on January 6, 2026. This is an open-world sci-fi experience designed for solo play or for a group of up to four players in co-op mode. Players are dropped on the dangerous planet Arcadia-7 as convicts tasked with extracting resources for powerful corporations.

The main idea of ​​the game is for players to build quickly and defend their base. Players must do more than just survive. They need to build long lines of machines and belts to find materials and make new tools. As a player's factory grows larger, new dangers appear. First, angry aliens attack the bases in large groups. Players must use automatic weapons and shields to fight them. Second, the star, Ruptura, emits extreme heat. This happens often and forces players to run to safe places or all their hard work will be lost.