Most gamers dread the idea of level scaling in a video game. After all, the best thing you can feel in a good action-packed title is a sense of progression as players wipe out opponents who gave them a tough time. But if level scaling comes into play, it feels like every enemy can stand up to the player and give them a tough fight regardless of the main characters equipment, abilities, weapons and everything else along the lines.
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6 Best Open-World RPGs Without Level Scaling
If you're looking for an RPG where the enemy levels don't scale with the player's, these titles are the way to go.
Thankfully, most games understand that level scaling needs to be done smartly to ensure a sense of challenge without detracting from a player's progress. These titles make enemies tougher but also improve the loot they drop while allowing players to enjoy some passive bonuses that ensure they always feel stronger than most regular enemies without completely weakening them in strength.
Enemies scale up in power but still allow players to enjoy a power fantasy
- Released
- November 11, 2011
- Developer
- Bethesda Game Studios
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion was a great game, but one area where it failed miserably was its leveling system. Players who didn't optimize their build and get the strongest gear would inadvertently make the game harder for them at higher levels, making it more optimal for players to not level up at all. It was a system that made no sense, and Bethesda had to improve this level scaling to allow players to enjoy a power fantasy instead of struggling towards the end of the game.
thankfully, Skyrim was a great improvement in this regard. Enemies still scale to the player's level, but a suite of bonus abilities combined with a satisfying loot creep ensures that players will stay one step ahead of regular enemies throughout the adventure. This makes certain moments incredibly satisfying, like when players finally wipe out a giant that had been sending them soaring for hours whenever players tried to take on this imposing foe.
4 The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild
A secret system tracks Link's strength and scales enemies accordingly

- Released
- March 3, 2017
- Developer
- Nintendo EPD
- OpenCritic Rating
- Powerful
Breath of the Wild is one of the best open world games fans can get their hands on. Nintendo's efforts to modernize The Legend of Zelda paid off in spades, with the visual design, simple yet engaging combat, and incredible exploration helping this game stand out as one of the very best fans could check out. There are many reasons why this game is such a huge achievement, and its level scaling mechanics show the genius behind its development.
Instead of levels, Breath of the Wild has a hidden mechanic that measures the player's strength based on the progress they've made, the weapons they've acquired, the enemies they've defeated, and everything else along those lines. The first enemy level is relatively easy to deal with after a point, but as their colors change, so does their equipment and HP. Facing a silver or gold enemy in the game is terrifying no matter how many hours players sink into the game, but players are confident in their skills at this point and love to take on this challenge.
3 Pillar of Eternity
An optional level scaling mechanic is perfect for players who want to enjoy a challenging combat system

- Released
- March 26, 2015
- OpenCritic Rating
- Powerful
Pillar of Eternity is an excellent CRPG with real-time combat that players will get a kick out of. The story is engaging, with its frenetic battles making things difficult to manage early on. However, once players gain enough levels and gain access to a suite of powerful abilities, most encounters become a cakewalk that players can handle without issue. This can be a problem for CRPG veterans who want the combat to be challenging throughout the experience, which is why the game's optional level scaling is a godsend.

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5 Final Fantasy games with the best leveling system
Grinding is a common part of the JRPG formula, and thus Final Fantasy games, but these amazing leveling systems keep things engaging.
Players don't have to worry about mindlessly blitzing every encounter. Instead, they must tactically approach every situation, especially when it comes to some of the game's most challenging bosses. Words cannot describe how engaging the combat becomes with this level scaling, and the best part is that players who want to enjoy a power fantasy can choose to keep it away. It's an option more RPGs should have, changing the way players view difficulty in their video games.
2 Cyberpunk 2077
Update 2.0 introduces level scaling to make battles engaging in each region
- Released
- December 10, 2020
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
Cyberpunk 2077 had a lot of issues when it launched, but CD Projekt Red fixed many of those issues and then some with each update. It made an amazing turn that has led to some people calling Cyberpunk 2077 one of the best RPGs of all time, which was unthinkable when the game launched. With the launch of Phantom freedom and Update 2.0, a huge change was added to the game that improved its combat even more.
Instead of enemies being stuck at a certain level, they scaled along with V to create a consistent challenge. This meant that the gang members were not randomly strong or weak, making it a consistent challenge. Along with this, players could explore Night City however they wanted instead of being limited to exploring certain regions before getting stronger. This, along with the reworked weapon system, ensured that the combat would feel satisfying without being too easy or difficult at illogical moments in the story.
1 Dying light
A sense of challenge is maintained without detracting from a player's development
Dying light
Open-World
Survival horror
- Released
- 27 January 2015
- OpenCritic Rating
- Equitable
Dying light is an excellent parkour action game that lets players jump around rooftops and take on zombies with fun melee combat. The title was a surprise hit and did a lot of things right to stand out as an excellent open world game. One thing this game got right was level scaling, which steadily increased the challenge without making things too unfair for the player.
Zombies had more health as players progressed through the story, but they won't feel like health sponges as long as players are diligent about acquiring powerful weapons. This ensures that these undead enemies won't be a walk in the park, forcing players to loot and buy better weapons to take out their enemies in style instead of hacking away at a zombie over and over again with a weak, ineffective weapon.

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