7 Open-World RPGs With Virtually Perfect Worlds

A key element of every open-world role-playing title, regardless of genre, is its world. Without a fantastical landscape, unique design, expansive lore, and interesting characters, RPGs would be bland and boring, and fans of this class of game are looking to dive head-first into a new world with endless possibilities. From chance encounters with strangers in dark and damp dungeons to traversing landscapes not previously seen in titles past, open worlds should catch the player's attention and hold it until credits roll.

What makes a game's environment "perfect" often boils down to personal preference and genre. Fantasy worlds often feature thick forests, grassy plains, and grand castle set pieces, while sci-fi can be gritty and grimy, set in a distant future with dilapidated cityscapes punctuated by eroding machinery. The following RPGs prove that the worlds built within them make them worthy of a playthrough.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2

Realism to the Max

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is set in15th-century Bohemia, a historic constituent kingdom of the Holy Roman Empire. The world created by Warhorse Studios is grounded in realism, something you don't often see in games fixated on medieval times. Environments adhere to historical fact, trading magic-focused worlds full of fantastical powers and dragons for settings closely resembling terrains we'd actually see strolling around a European countryside way back when.

Dusty horse-trodden trails give way to expansive grassy fields dotted with wildflowers, quaint little towns, and solid fortresses that have seen battles and bloodshed. The world feels massive and lived-in, ever-changing depending on the game's circumstances. Even KCD2's maps detailing the Trosky and Kuttenberg regions feature historically inspired layouts, geography, and landmarks, adding immensely to the realism.

Beyond the environment, the combat, situations, and characters encountered in this Warhorse Studios title are superbly written, which directly gets the player invested in the world built around them. A messy civil war fought between King Wenceslas IV and his invading half-brother, Sigismund of Luxembourg, serves as an ever-present backdrop throughout the game, offering historical weight and context to the battles fought and struggles overcome.

Characters will react to players' choices about their avatar's physicality and gameplay, making the experience feel alive. Combat retains realism through a first-person perspective that forces players into tense up-close match-ups. Finally, you must actively take care of your avatar, making sure they are eating, sleeping, and maintaining their gear, creating consequences that hold weight if not managed.

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla

Play at Being a Viking for a Day

Steering away from realism, RPGs are truly at their best when they're untethered to real-world scenarios. Scenes, plot, combat, and characters are inspired by Norse mythology in Ubisoft's Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. The action RPG casts players as Eivor, a Viking raider who allies with Basim and Hytham, members of an ancient group of assassins called the Hidden Ones, in a fight against the Order of the Ancients. As Eivor, you feel like a bonafied Viking, tasked with building up a settlement, engaging in violent combat mostly sans-stealth, and forming alliances to take on foes.

Norse mythology plays a huge role, informing quests, character interactions, and even Eivor’s visions. Situated in a world of Norse myths, gods, and beliefs, players feel like they're part of a culture. The lore is something bigger than themselves, established long before they picked up the controller.

Valhalla transitions from Norway to the Dark Ages in England, recreated in stunning detail. Norwegian landscapes are looming, imposing, and icy, serving as a striking contrast to the warmer, quaint English countryside and bustling villages that players encounter from the "Seas of Fate" quest onward. Making the world even bigger, players are encouraged to seek out mysteries, blue-marked map-side activities that unveil side quests, boss fights, and puzzles. When completed, these mysteries unveil more lore about the world around them.​

Xenoblade Chronicles X

A Brand New Frontier

Xenoblade Chronicles X takes place on an alien planet called Mira, comprised of five continents. After crash-landing on Mira, you are faced with an almost impossible task: map out the vast world. With no other option, players begin to traverse this new and strange land, meeting towering indigens during their exploration. These monsters and the surrounding topography are massive, much bigger in scale than the player's avatar.

This is purposefully designed to make the player feel small and almost insignificant in this vast new world they're tasked with uncovering. The unknown is thrilling, fostering a sense of discovery. Exploration feels tangible and goal-oriented thanks to the game's survey rate mechanic. In short, the world is split into hexagonal grid segments.

If you choose to venture out into the alien world, you could be rewarded with treasures galore. Exploration also fulfills localized site criteria, which, in turn, raises your planetary survey percentage. This is one facet tied to overall game progress. XCX is a grind, but a fulfilling one, rewarding players with atmospheric landscapes that they can uncover without major invisible barriers.

Cyberpunk 2077

Welcome to the Future

Many players flock to Cyberpunk 2077 for the atmosphere of Night City, a sprawling metropolis divided into six districts, similar to New York's boroughs. Players are in Night City for the majority of the campaign, which means the layout had to be something worthy of taking a spell. Urban landscapes feature towering structures illuminated with vibrant neon lighting casting eerie glows across people and buildings.

It's a gritty urban world chock-full of little Easter eggs players are encouraged to uncover as they traverse it. The Badlands stands in contrast to that futuristic metropolis, a sprawling desert-like area that surrounds the outskirts of Night City. The desert space offers players a break from cityscapes for a time. Adding to the immersive experience, NPCs utilize a colloquial language in this universe, since the timeline is set in the distant future.

Characters converse using futuristicisms, also known as street slang, with words like choom, preem, and eddies that make players feel as if they've been transported far from their own time. Everyday items like cars and clothes are also uniquely different from their counterparts in the 21 century, making them feel unlike anything else we've seen in an action RPG before. Weapons are specifically interesting, tailored to the futuristic time period. They boast distinct functionality and built-in mechanics, such as target tracking and high-velocity shots powered by electromagnetic tech. With all that in mind, it's easy to get lost in the world of Cyberpunk 2077.

Elden Ring

A True Choose Your Own Adventure Experience

If you've never played Elden Ring before, well, the world surrounding the game can be quite intimidating. The Lands Between are extremely vast, weird, detailed, and moody. You technically have a map, but it doesn't have many details beyond outlining basic paths when you're first starting out. Stood on their own without hand-holding, players get to build up their maps, traveling as they please without much restraint.

This system rewards curious gamers looking to dive in head-first. Lore, treasures, and chance encounters are hidden throughout the landscape, meaning players will need to scout their surroundings carefully. Heading out on foot or sat sidesaddle on a horse-like creature named Torrent, players are exposed to a variety of layered set pieces. This varies from your standard fantasy woodland setting to hot and oppressive volcanoes, toxic and murky swamps, and gilded, dilapidated cityscapes.

As beautiful as the world is, it's also notably brutal, like many Soulslike titles. Players will encounter tough foes that can and will destroy them if they aren't prepared. That being said, battles are rewardingly hard and not keyboard-smashing, throw-your-PC-across-the-room difficult. After all that grinding, beating bosses in the game feels like a true accomplishment. If players are stuck on a boss, they aren't trapped until you've won. Simply leave, explore some more until you've leveled up and enhanced your gear, then try again.

The story in Elden Ring is easy to ignore, but one we implore players to engage with. It adds depth and meaning to the world, creating a dark and fantastical atmosphere. While players are most familiar with the avatar they created as a part of the banished group of warriors called Tarnished, the story begins long before Tarnished was ever in the picture.

In summary, Queen Marika the Eternal shattered the Elden Ring, which was the source of her authority and power, and since then, everything has descended into chaos. The story has everything one could want from an action fantasy: war, a struggle for power, murder, and battles against demigods.

CrossCode

Nostalgia Personified

Getting back to basics, CrossCode is a retro-inspired 2D action RPG that harkens back to classic titles. When first released back in 2018, it was something of a hidden gem until it was ported to the Nintendo Switch. The indie style is like Stardew Valley if it were truly open-world and featured fast-paced combat. Radical Fish's title features quaint 16-bit SNES-style pixel art with highly detailed landscapes and character designs, fully fleshed out in a colorful, pixelized style.

High-up mountain ranges way above the clouds give way to lush forests complete with a babbling brook and interesting foliage that looks like something pulled straight from another dimension. Our main character is Lea, an amnesiac girl who has trouble speaking due to her condition. She gets herself trapped in a virtual reality MMORPG called CrossWorlds, with her only hope of escape lying in the hands of a programmer named Sergey.

With no other option, the player is thrust into this weird and wonderful world alongside Lea, solving environmental puzzles and engaging in dynamic combat that feels fresh and fast-paced. Characters inhabiting the alien moon are almost all avatars controlled by other gamers playing this fictional game, and they act accordingly. Dialogue is very human and extremely hilarious, while the character sprites are expressive and pleasing to look at.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

A Polarizing Reboot with Undeniable Views

Square Enix’s Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth was one of the biggest games to release in 2024, even if the remake divided many fans. One thing many couldn't deny, though, was how beautiful those 1997 PS1 locations looked, all updated and 3D rendered. North Corel, Nibelheim, Costa del Sol & Corel, Under Junon, and Cosmo Canyon are just a few locales from the OG game that look fantastic, offering players a sense of nostalgia as they traverse areas they once knew by heart all over again, but in breathtaking detail.

Rebirth features standout non-playable characters like Dio, Johnny, and Broden that bring depth and humor to the story. Their dialogue feels fresh and non-repetitive, keeping players engaged. Speaking of characters, players can really bond with their party through a relationship system, represented by a gauge above the characters' heads, which makes the party system feel fresh and new. Players can choose specific dialogue options, attend to requests from party members, and build up affinity to unlock intimate dialogue and unique scenes. It forces players to build rapport with their party, treating them as friends rather than asbackup for a fight.