Incredible Open-World Games You Won't Believe You Missed

Updated July 4, 2026 by Mark Sammut: We've added a few more games – The Saboteur and Echo Point Nova – along with removing two of the more well-known titles.

The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim, Grand Theft Auto 5and Far cry 3 are some of the most important open world games of the early 2010s. They helped shape the genre, leading to sequels, spinoffs, and spiritual successors. Open-world games are some of the most popular right now, but even dedicated fans run the risk of slipping up every now and then.

Since open world games are long and usually take around forty to eighty hours, it is seemingly impossible to play them all. So while these experiences may have slipped by the first time around, they're still worth playing even if they may not have scored as well as some of the aforementioned greats.

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Red Faction: Guerrilla

Make or break

Red Faction: Guerrilla is the perfect game for anyone looking to let off some steam. Set on Mars, players join a resistance movement to take back the planet from corporate overlords, with a hell of a physics system. Players can use any kind of weapon to destroy buildings in their revolution, and watching a building topple over dozens of hours below is just as satisfying as the beginning.

Mars might not be the prettiest open-world environment, but it's a great sandbox to play in. While the original game is showing its age these days, the 2018 remaster offers enough improvement to be made Guerrilla fun for everyone, not just those with great memories from playing in 2009.

Echo Point Nova

Photography With Style

Greylock Studio created two amazing FPS games: Chipped steel and Echo Point Nova. Although structured very differently, both titles emphasize movement, speed and style, challenging you to effectively take out enemies in creative ways. Chipped steel consists of short levels that must be completed within a set time; conversely, Echo Point Nova drops you onto an open map with floating islands and lets you do your own thing.

Honestly, I prefer Chipped steels mission-based system, but Echo Point Nova is still an incredible open-world indie shooter with controls that just feel great. Lasting less than 10 hours, the FPS game is short, sweet and addictive.

The saboteur

Pandemic's final masterpiece

As Pandemic Studios' last game, The saboteur represented one hell of a swan song for a developer that excelled at producing top-notch AA open-world titles. Honestly, Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction could qualify for this discussion, but The saboteur is both more underrated and much more accessible these days.

Set in Paris during World War II, you play an Irish mechanic who has had enough and starts a one-man rebellion against the Nazi occupation. While under control, sections of the city are presented in black and white, only for color to splash back in once liberated. While the game loop is relatively normal, the actual progression is so satisfying, as you literally bring life back into the world.

Far Cry Primal

Back to BC

Primal is one of the strangest Far Cry spin-offs, taking place thousands of years before modern society was established. As a tribal hunter, players travel through the prehistoric era hunting all sorts of strange animals, such as saber-toothed tigers and wooly mammoths. The story and weapon system may be missing from other entries, but the historical value is second to none. It's worth checking out for this reason alone, as there aren't many similar games on this scale.

Apparently, Far Cry is such a great feature that none of its games can really be described as underrated or overlooked, especially anything released after the third entry. However, Primal can actually be recommended to people who aren't fans of the core games, that play differently enough to stand on their own two feet.

Dragon Quest Builders 2

Build me up buttercup

It seems that no game can ever compete with Minecraft in terms of popularity, but if more players checked out Dragon Quest Builders 2can reach it Minecraft heights. The characters and monsters are more detailed, but the world is built from the same basic building blocks.

Players can dig and forage for materials to their heart's content to create new equipment and rebuild the community. Dragon Quest Builders 2 has two advantages in front Minecraft. There is a story, which is a bit cliche, but at home too Dragon Quest fans, and the battle is more engaging.

Immortal Fenyx Rising

Kid Icarus 4*

Immortal Fenyx Rising was Ubisoft's attempt to make a light-hearted action-adventure game on the scale The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wildbut in a Greek-inspired fantasy world similar to a lesser-known Nintendo property, Kid Icarus. Players can create their character and then drop into a world of mythical monsters like cyclops and minotaurs to fight and explore freely. This is one of the best examples of a game that came out at the wrong time, at the end of the year in December 2020.

Although hardly problem-free, Immortal Fenyx Rising is just a nice game that mixes hack and slash combat with puzzles and exploration quite well. It doesn't necessarily excel in any one area, but it doesn't drop the ball on anything either (well, the humor of the story is polarizing). Unlike so many modern Ubisoft open-world games, Immortal Fenyx Rising doesn't overstay its welcome, lasts about 20 hours.

Cat Quest 3

Kitty Connections

Overall Cat Quest series is something that gamers might not think will be fun because it looks like it's aimed at young kids, and it's. But the games are so relentlessly charming that anyone can enjoy them, and the two sequels even feature co-op.

Cat Quest 3in particular, is a great game for open world enthusiasts who also enjoy pirate adventures. Players will get their ship relatively quickly and can sail across the world and even participate in ship battles. On land or in dungeons, players can hunt for loot in action-based battles, and the game supports two-player couch co-op.

The good life

Transforming countryside

The good life is a Swery65 game, the same mind that sparked the fans Deadly premonitionanother underrated open world game. While the story isn't as weird, the premise is certainly strange. As reporters, players will arrive in a seemingly sleepy village in the countryside, where they will soon gain the power to transform into a dog or a cat.

With their free time, players can investigate the citizens for clues that lead to a murder and other suspicious activities, in either their human or animal forms. The good life has a slow life element to it, while managing to weave an air of mystery and suspense.

Sand Land

Anime Fallout

Sand Land was the last major project of the father of Dragon BallAkira Toriyama,before his untimely death. Set in a world without water, an alliance of humans and demons come together to solve this problem once and for all.

Players can engage in action-based battles with the demon prince protagonist, Beelzebub, or they can control a number of vehicles, such as tanks and robots. The inventive gadgets, machines and quirky characters will delight Dragon Ball fans and even Fall-out fans who have been looking for a more action-packed post-apocalyptic experience.

Mad Max (2015)

The Phantom Game

Mad Max

7/10

Released

September 1, 2015

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Mad Max came out at the wrong time twice. Initially, it wasn't released alongside the biggest summer movie of 2015, Mad Max: Fury Road. Then, when it finally launched, it was next door Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain. Mad Max seemingly couldn't win, and while it's not as action-packed as the movie, which it's tied to, it's still the best game based on the franchise to date.

There are great car battles, a world full of sick, and the gunplay isn't bad either. In fact, an argument can be made for it Mad Max has the best vehicular combat of any open-world game, and it's worth the price of admission on its own. Although naturally barren due to the environment, the wasteland is still a blast to explore and drive through.