By Vlad Mazanko
Thread 2
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Open-World
Related
6 Great Open-World Games That Are Too Short
15 Open-World Games With The Best Side Quests, Ranked
7 Best Fantasy Games With Extensive Lore
Highlights
- Immerse yourself in open-world games for detailed environments and engaging side quests, each offering unique and memorable experiences.
- From monster hunts to political scheming, explore diverse quests in games like The Witcher 3 and Red Dead Redemption 2 for endless surprises.
- Delve into the rich worlds of Cyberpunk 2077, Kingdom Come: Deliverance, and Fallout: New Vegas for dark settings, medieval challenges, and post-apocalyptic adventures.
Playing open-world games solely for the main plot can feel entirely different from trying to complete every single side quest. In many cases, completing an open-world game to the fullest can take players over 100 hours, while sticking to just the story provides a much shorter and more focused experience. It depends on how well the game engages players, making them want to explore everything it has to offer and pursue every small unfinished task, or leading them to try just the first few quests to know what to expect and lose interest in pursuing side activities.
Related
The 5 Best Open-World Games That Fill Their Worlds With Detail
These 5 Open-World games do an amazing job of immersing the player through creating richly detailed environments, great side quests, and much more.
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While many open-world games get criticized by players for copy-paste activities and too many pointless fetch quests, some titles are known for their hand-crafted, unique, and memorable quests that you don't want to miss. Below, you'll find some of the open-world titles known for their great quest variety, unexpected turns, and varied approaches that don't push you to a single solution.
1 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Emotional Stories Every Step Of The Way
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
RPG
Action
Adventure
Systems
- Top Critic Rating:93/100 Critics Recommend:95%
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch , PC , PlayStation 4 , PlayStation 5 , Xbox One , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S
- Released
- May 19, 2015
- Developer(s)
- CD Projekt Red
See at Amazon
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is renowned for its excellent side quests, many of which can be more engaging than the main missions in other games. While there is some valid criticism about how many quests require players to use the witcher's senses for detective work, players are still left with a diversity of stories and activities rarely seen in RPGs of such scope.
Among the usual monster hunting and detective quests, players in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will engage in horse racing, card games (any Gwent lovers here?), theatrical plays, goat escorting, emblem paintings with a troll, political scheming, sea adventures, bureaucracy stories, and even modeling. CD Projekt Red is known for its meticulous approach to quests, and this game remains one of the best examples of varied quests in open-world RPGs.
2 Red Dead Redemption 2
A World That Feels Genuinely Alive And Unpredictable
Red Dead Redemption 2
Action
Adventure
Systems
- Top Critic Rating:96/100 Critics Recommend:94%
- Platform(s)
- PS4 , Xbox One , PC , Stadia
- Released
- October 26, 2018
- Developer(s)
- Rockstar Games
See at Amazon
Red Dead Redemption 2 is still unmatched in the industry in many aspects, such as its realistic Wild West world capable of generating unpredictable stories around the player. With its simulated wildlife system and some of the most naturalistic NPCs ever created in video games, Red Dead Redemption 2 can lead you into an unexpected adventure even when simply riding between small towns.
Related
10 RPGs With The Best Companion Quests, Ranked
Companion quests in RPGs are industry standard, but while some games treat these quests as filler, others are so good they rival the main storyline.
The game is packed with unique situations that Arthur Morgan can find himself in, but what's even better is that in many cases, players can resolve them without resorting to violence. From saving a drowning man with a lasso, getting drunk and robbed in a saloon, helping strangers bitten by a snake or hit by a falling tree, to treasure hunting, gambling, visiting Native Americans, or simple civilian robbing - there's a convincing and unpredictable nature to every small quest that players can do in Red Dead Redemption 2.
3 Cyberpunk 2077
Dark Setting Opens Up Exciting Possibilities
Cyberpunk 2077
RPG
Action
Systems
- Top Critic Rating:76/100
- Platform(s)
- PC , Xbox One , Stadia , PS4 , PS5 , Xbox Series S , Xbox Series X
- Released
- December 10, 2020
- Developer(s)
- CD Projekt Red
See at Amazon
Cyberpunk 2077 largely follows in The Witcher 3's footsteps, delivering unique side quests and missions driven by memorable characters and one-of-a-kind situations. What sets these two great open-world RPGs apart are their distinct settings, allowing the studio to explore many topics and themes that weren't possible in the Witcher universe.
While Cyberpunk 2077 may seem to have fewer side quests and jobs for players to tackle, there are some hidden gems that will stay with players long after they finish them. From the mysterious Peralez spying questline, with its intriguing sense of vagueness, to finding a unique gun with an AI personality, making VR videos of crucifying a convicted sinner, looking for a missing boy, or even street racing, Night City offers a wealth of side stories for V to get involved in if players pay attention.
4 Kingdom Come: Deliverance
The Harsh Everyday Reality Of Medieval Life
Kingdom Come: Deliverance
RPG
Systems
- Top Critic Rating:72/100
- Platform(s)
- PS4 , Xbox One , PC , Switch
- Released
- February 13, 2018
- Developer(s)
- Warhorse Studios
See at Amazon
Few games have captured the mundane beauty of medieval everyday life as well as Kingdom Come: Deliverance. With unparalleled authenticity in everything from real-life distances between nearby villages to gameplay mechanics, including a hardcore combat system and horse riding, Kingdom Come: Deliverance is an experience not everyone can appreciate, but for those who do, there are few competitors to its unique strengths.
Related
6 Great Open-World Games That Are Too Short
Not all open-world games need to be long; here are some short but sweet open-world titles that gamers can still have a blast with.
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Don't make the mistake of expecting the Kingdom of Bohemia to offer only grounded or mundane quests; there are plenty of surprises and even comedic twists on your journey. From sabotaging an execution and getting drunk with a pastor to exposing a charlatan and finding a cure to heal sick villagers, Deliverance knows how to make even the most ordinary tasks intriguing and immersive.
The realistic aspect of the game also impacts every quest, allowing players to fail them if postponed for too long or accidentally killing the wrong person during another storyline.
5 Fallout: New Vegas
The City Of Dreams Surrounded By A Post-Apocalyptic Wasteland
Fallout: New Vegas
RPG
Systems
- Platform(s)
- PS3 , Xbox 360 , PC
- Released
- October 19, 2010
- Developer(s)
- Obsidian Entertainment
See at Amazon
Fallout: New Vegas is often considered one of the best entries in the entire Fallout series, largely due to its memorable setting and the sheer variety of its quests. Exploring the vast Mojave Desert is a thrilling experience on its own, with plenty of settlements to visit and vivid stories to get involved in along the way. However, it's when players finally reach the sprawling and dangerous city of New Vegas, filled with various characters, that the game opens up to its fullest potential.
From intricate crime stories, like searching for a missing son with dozens of branches and possible solutions, to more straightforward but equally captivating activities, such as photographing wasteland landmarks or exploring abandoned vaults through environmental storytelling, and even to sending ghouls to space, nearly every step in Fallout: New Vegas sets you on the path to a memorable story you can later share with friends. Not to mention that players always have the option to go in guns blazing during any mission.
Brimming With Exploration, Adventures, And Deceptively Simple Errands
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
RPG
Action
Adventure
Systems
- Top Critic Rating:81/100 Critics Recommend:83%
- Platform(s)
- PC , PlayStation 3 , PlayStation 4 , PlayStation 5 , Nintendo Switch , Xbox 360 , Xbox One , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S
- Released
- November 11, 2011
- Developer(s)
- Bethesda Game Studios
See at Amazon
The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is a game beloved by several generations of players, and even 13 years after its launch, it still manages to draw tens of thousands of players daily across various platforms. With its captivating setting and deep lore, Skyrim offers a great sense of adventure, inviting players to explore ancient caves and ruins or embark on impactful character-driven questlines with satisfying conclusions, something that even Starfield does not always manage to deliver.
Related
15 Open-World Games With The Best Side Quests, Ranked
RPGs offer side quests on top of the main story. Here are the open-world games with the greatest secondary quests.
From nostalgic quests that bring back fan-favorite characters from previous entries, like Oblivion's Sheogorath, the Daedric Prince of Madness, to murder investigations, drinking contests, joining secret brotherhoods, helping vampires and werewolves, and engaging in politics, Skyrim holds countless secrets for players to uncover and unforgettable adventures to experience.
7 Grand Theft Auto 5
Talking To Strangers On The Streets Can Lead You Anywhere
Grand Theft Auto 5
Open-World
Action
Systems
- Top Critic Rating:92/100 Critics Recommend:92%
- Platform(s)
- PS5 , PS4 , PS3 , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , Xbox One , Xbox 360 , PC
- Released
- September 17, 2013
- Developer(s)
- Rockstar North
$21 at Amazon
In true Rockstar fashion, Grand Theft Auto 5 is filled with small, missable side quests that players can tackle while playing as Trevor, Michael, or Franklin. Some of these side stories are unique to certain main characters, while others can be completed by any of them. These quests can be initiated by simply talking to strangers on the streets of Los Santos or receiving a message on a mobile phone. The best part is that players often have no idea where such seemingly unimportant activities will lead them.
For example, by stopping at a street food merchant while playing as Trevor, players can experience a sudden alien invasion filled with insane action. Meanwhile, playing as Michael might lead you to join a mysterious cult. Not to mention the various side activities available in GTA 5 to pass the time and play some minigames. Without a doubt, players can expect even more adventures and activities in the upcoming GTA 6, which is scheduled for launch sometime next year.
More
7 Best Fantasy Games With Extensive Lore
These fictional worlds offer the deepest and most complex backstories for each and every element, and they are a real treat to immerse yourself in.
- Video Games
- Open-World
- RPG
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