Most of thegreatest open-world gamesin the genre’s history, likeGrand Theft Auto V,The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt,andRed Dead Redemption 2,are connected by the fact that they’re alldriven by one or more narratives. For many people, the stories are the best part ofopen-worldadventures, as it keeps them emotionally invested and encourages them to progress in the game.
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However, not everyone is a fan of heavy-handed storytelling in their open-world games, as they’d rather spend their time simply exploring the world, completing its objectives, and perhaps even formulating their own narrative. These games are few and far between, but there have been just enough released over the years to keep players busy.
10Subnautica
A few screenshots and a glance atSubnautica’s cover art will give most people the impression that the game is going to be a relaxing adventure similar to games likeEndless OceanandABZÛ.However, it will soon become apparent that things aren’t as they seem when players boot up the game and are immediately on the wrong end of a ship crash, leaving them stranded in the middle of an alien ocean.
The game has a few narrative segments, though most ofSubnatica’s runtime is spent freely diving into the ocean’s depths, trying to uncover materials while avoiding deadly creatures like the aptly named Reapers.
9Shape Of The World
Sometimes gamers just want something to play where they can switch their mind off, which is exactly what Hollow Tree Games’Shape of the Worldoffers. The procedurally generated world hasstunning artistic visualsdripping with creativity and artistry, ensuring that there is never a dull moment when traversing the environments.
A note from the game’s Steam page summarizes the game best: “Immersion, exploration, and contemplation form the core of Shape of the World. This is a place to get lost in, a relaxing world for you to spend 1 to 3 hours meandering at your own pace, observing and unwinding.”
8Terraria
Originally released in 2011, the 2D adventure sandbox gameTerrariais still going strong today. The game has constantly been compared toMinecraftover the years, not only for the crafting and mining gameplay but also for how the two games are among the most non-linear ever released. Re-Logic’s game hasn’t been able to reachMinecraft’s eye-wateringsales figures of 200 million+, but it impressively exceededthe 30 million mark in 2020.
Terrariahas a fair amount of lore that can be researched, but it is completely optional.
7The Legend of Zelda
For the sake of variety, it makes sense to include at least oneretro titlein this list, and considering that most open-world games wouldn’t have existed withoutThe Legend of Zelda’s influence, it would seem unfair not to pick it.The Legend of Zelda’s map certainly doesn’t compare in size and aesthetics to the huge open-world maps of today, butThe Legend of Zelda’s world is so well designed and filled with so many secrets that most players wouldn’t have it any other way.
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The game was a pioneer of the open-world genre in how it gave virtually no sense of direction or help; the players can complete dungeons in any order that they chose, except for the final one. Although it certainly shows its age,The Legend of Zeldais still thoroughly enjoyable today.
6Burnout Paradise
From one revolutionary open-world title to another,Burnout Paradisewas instrumental in paving the way for modern open-world games, particularly those set in busy US cities. The shift was controversial at the time; fans of the series andarcade street racingas a whole were unhappy as they thoughtParadisewould mark the death of street racing games, which up until now they have been correct about.
However, the vast majority ofBurnout Paradiseplayers evidently enjoyed the open-world, asproducer Matt Webster has previously statedthat data showed most players were simply cruising around the open-world map without partaking in events. This data was almost certainly instrumental in the racing genre’s shift in direction away from arcade-style games.
5The Long Dark (Survival Mode)
Following a warm reception to an alpha version of the game which was released in 2014,The Long Darkfinally released in full in 2017 on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One before coming to the Nintendo Switch in 2020. The game has since had an episodic story mode release, but the popular survival mode is still intact.
The Long Dark’ssurvival modetakes the word “survival” very literally, as players need to keep stock of realistic factors such as their thirst, hunger, and body temperature. Players also need to keep their eyes out for the potentially deadly wildlife, which randomly spawns in each new game to ensure players never feel too safe.
4A Short Hike
Developed by Adam Robinson-Yu,A Short Hikeis a simplistic open-world adventure that requires players to collect feathers to reach the game world’s peak. There are also numerous side activities to indulge in, such as fishing, searching for treasure, and competing in the “beachstickball” mini-game.A Short Hikewas awarded theIndependent Games Festival Awards' Seumas McNally Grand Prize, which has also been won by classic indie titles likeMinecraftandFez.
The game isn’t entirely devoid of story, though outside of the opening and final cutscene, there’s very little in the way of narrative.
3The Witness
The Witnessis apuzzle gamedesigned byBraid’sJonathan Blow. It solely features line-puzzles, which may make the game sound too one-dimensional, but the puzzle-designers were able to cram tons of creativity into the squares, ensuring that it doesn’t become tiresome by the time players reach the end.
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The Witnessputs players on a wonderfully designedMyst-like island, which they are free to explore in any direction once leaving the short tutorial area. The game’s story is predominantly told through gameplay and environmental clues, while audio logs, secret videos, and a secret cutscene offer further perspective.
2The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
The most recentLegend of Zeldatitle joins the first game in the series on this list for a very similar reason to the first. Nintendo decided to go back to its roots withBreath of the Wildand consequently let players tackle the game in almost any way that they chose. Players need to complete the tutorial stage and defeat Ganon to complete the game; everything in between is totally up to them.
As for the story,Breath of the Wildis very hands-off. Although there are numerous cutscenes and story moments in the game, the vast majority are optional and can be completely ignored, a design choice likely inspired by the soulsborne series.
1Minecraft
The ultimate non-linear experience,Minecraftlets players explore its worlds in any way that they like. There’s no direction, no cutscenes, and no story, makingMinecraftone of the most non-linear and least story-driven games ever released.
This nonlinearity is likely whyMinecrafthas become thesecond highest-selling video game of all time, as theopen-world sandboxlets players create their own stories and their own adventures with tons of different possibilities, ensuring that the game never grows tiresome as long as players are willing to use a bit of imagination.
