Top 30 Best Open World Video Games of All Time

When it comes to open worlds, no games do it better. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at the open-world titles that gamers never want to leave. Our countdown of the best open world video games includes “Elden Ring” (2022), “Batman: Arkham City” (2011), “Ghost of Tsushima” (2020), “The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim” (2011), and more! Which open world do you return to all the time? Let us know in the comments.
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#Gaming #VideoGames #Games #Nintendo #PlayStation #Xbox #PC

[@WatchMojo]

Which open world do you return to all the time? Let us know in the comments. For more content like this, click here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h3rOo4qHaLmrf5Y Play our Daily Point Battles to earn MojoPoints and qualify for CASH BATTLES! Check it out: WatchMojo.com/play

[@PhilBowes]

Top ten worst toys

[@vanessasandoval96]

WatchMojo Can you make a video of top 20 fighters from Super Smash Bros Brawl Ultimate

[@vanessasandoval96]

What if video games had their own tv show by Nintendo Switch Sega Rovio and Mojang Mario - Mario Luigi peach Daisy Rosalina bowser bowser jr DK Yoshi Zelda - Zelda Link BOTW/TOTK Revali Daruk Impa Mipha Splatoon - Inkling female male 1 2 Squid Sisters Off the Hook Deep Cut Kirby - Kirby DeDeDe meta knight bandana Dee Marx Magolor Adeline ribbon Taranza Susie Elfin Pokémon - Some from 1-9 Ash Dawn Lillie Gladion Kukui Cynthia Sonic - Sonic tails knuckles Amy shadow rouge silver cream Angry Birds - Red Chuck bomb Matilda blues Terence Hal Stella bubbles ice bird silver Melody Minecraft - Steve Alex zombie Enderman creeper skeleton spider villager iron golem pig horse Animal Crossing- Isabelle Tom Nook and others

[@tvblue3010]

Horizon Forbidden West.

[@zakirstocks9514]

*Tears of the Kingdom, Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Super Mario Odyssey, Splatoon 2 & 3, Pokémon: Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl, Pokémon: Sword & Shield, NieR: Automata, The Simpsons: Hit & Run, Genshin Impact, Resident Evil 4 Remake, Final Fantasy VII Remake & Rebirth and SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake*

[@EdwarWelderCreed]

Can we get some time stamps? Oh hell I'll do it my self. 0:30 Dragon's Dogma 2 1:24 FF 7 Rebirth 2:25 Forza Horizon 5 3:25 Dying Light 4:25 Death Stranding 5:20 Sleeping Dogs 7:05 Cyberpunk 2077 8:08 Genshin Impact 9:02 Far Cry 3 9:49 Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl 10:35 Subnautica 11:24 Just Cause 2 10:24 Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor 13:02 Simpsons: Hit and Run 13:40 Ghosts of Tsushima 14:33 Marvle's Spiderman 2 15:33 Horizon Forbidden West 16:35 Elden Ring 17:30 Nier Automata 18:22 Fallout New Vegas 19:02 Assassin's Creed 4 Black Flag 20:10 Batman: Arkham City 20:58 Red Dead Redemption 2 21:42 Metal Gear Solid 5 Phantom Pain 22:45 Minecraft 23:23 GTA 5 24:05 Skyrim 25:08 The Legend of Zelda: Tears of The Kingdom 26:26 The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt.

[@lilwayne4100]

Thank you!

[@A_A_K_01]

Thanks

[@TheWolfofWallStreet99]

Cry me a river

[@calvinfoo]

You can try insert a new line in every new timeline. Anyway, good job. Generally I hate open world games without a proper story or ending.

[@Llamazing69]

You absolute legend!

[@-locke-6051]

Zelda Breath of the Wild to me is the greatest open-world game of all time. I'll never forget the first time I played it. It changed gaming forever.

[@ciankeane6485]

Its not

[@partzrivalcamaya845]

@@ciankeane6485another one that can’t understand english.

[@AnxMa]

I recently re-played Arkham games and am still in awe how amazing City is. The design of Gotham brings back memories of Animated Series. The one in AKnight was just too polished, modern and shiny. I recently created on my channel a small tribute to Kevin Conroy using the classic BtAS toys, pretty cool if I may say so myself :) November will mark the second anniversary of his passing.

[@MadeOfBrknParTz]

Right you are, ur tribute is very cool, superb editing btw. I miss Kevin Conroy too, still can't believe he's passed away.

[@CBrown]

Skyrim is the only one of this list that I find myself repeatedly going back to. While the main story isn't as good as it could be, the versatility that type of game affords in character build puts it over the top for me

[@NeoDarkrai0]

for real Skyrim needs number 1 slot also racing games don't count as open world cars cant swim climb do thing etc useless besides roads

[@StevenArch]

Breath of the Wild truly changed my perspective on gaming

[@alexl.4362]

Why

[@Gor85]

I played link to the past. Hours and hours with mom😊

[@pyrocore]

Just demonstrates you had limited exposure to games before that. BotW does nothing new, and is overhyped by adult children who never grew up. Like every Nintendo game released in the last 15 years.

[@NoName-cn3cp]

Calm down

[@TheWolfofWallStreet99]

Explain yourself

[@mattjereza6541]

how is cyberpunk so low in it’s current state 💀 its a masterpiece now

[@SWOTHDRA]

Nope

[@adamparr6464]

SKYRIM, TEARS OF THE KINGDOM & THE WITCHER 3 Are definitely my Top 3.

[@ContendCreators]

If the switch had just cause 2 on it, and it was properly promoted, it would probably sell more copies than every open world on it already, including Zelda

[@PAINt0theMAX]

​@@ContendCreatorsyeah just cause 2 is underrated it should be on switch

[@rpgfan1187]

My favorite open world game is actually Ultima V: Warriors of Destiny (1988). That game was incredibly innovative, boasting a day/night cycle, NPCs with their own schedules, dynamic lighting, and a feeling of never being truly safe, even in villages. Like some of the other games in the franchise, you can tackle many of the objectives in whatever order you wish, and the game doesn't just feed them to you like modern games do. You're left to your own devices and must discover what you must do by talking to NPCs and exploring the world. Best of all, everything in the game world feels purposefully placed, and it doesn't suffer from the bloat and reused content that plague many other open world games. Ultima V (and much of that franchise, in general) is an overlooked masterpiece and easily my favorite game of the 80s.

[@neleno7204]

Cyberpunk 2077 in 23rd position lmaooo no you are really clowns at WatchMojo, no chance you actually played the game 😂😂

[@lifeinthehands6972]

1)Gta 5 2)Gta San Andreas 3)Gta 4 4)Rdr2 5)Gta Vice City 6)Gta 3 7)Witcher 3 8)Fallout NW 9)Witcher 2 10)Skyrim 11)Fallout 3 12)Just Cause 3 13)Witcher 2 14)Fallout 4 15)Spiderman 2 16)Arkham Knight 17)Spiderman 18)Arkham City 19)Prototype 20)Sleeping Dogs 21)Mafia 3 22)Just Cause 2 23)Ac4 24)Ac2 25)Far Cry 3 26)Cyberpunk 27)Ac Origins 28)Ac Odyssey 29)Far Cry 5 30)Prototype 2

[@kenterminateddq5311]

I'm surprised that the GTA series nor Skyrim ranked at number one. However, 26:27 is the right choice by WatchMojo.

[@adamhoward1408]

Top 20 or 30 watchmojo lists that didn't age well

[@ContendCreators]

I would remove half the games since theyre rpgs without any wanted system and put Just Cause 2 or 3 No. 1

[@DrewRandIsCool]

Breath of the Wild is the greatest open world game ever made

[@DaNewACKisBACK]

I'm pleasantly surprised Sleeping Dogs is on this list, LOVE that game!!

[@Animeguy300]

I would love to play Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth again

[@luciomarx]

Death Stranding was the only of this worlds I left real fast... I mean, it's beautiful, but the premise of being a delivery man, gathering deliveries, pilling and adjusting it in your back... just wasn't for me

[@ragingriver9012]

Elden ring at 12 is criminal it’s the best video game of all time

[@laparkagames9277]

MGSV has one of the best gameplays of all time.

[@jackraider1039]

I'm sorry. Red Dead 2. Hands down, best game of all time

[@user-fi3yp2bo3f]

In your opinion,for me its witcher 3 man

[@jackraider1039]

@@user-fi3yp2bo3f Oh a CD project red type. Respect

[@Palix-je9cy]

Absolutely, it’s so much more quality in it than Elden Ring or Tlou or Witcher. It has the best story you can imagine, the best and most lived in open world with so much to find and explore. Amazing characters and the best Main Charakter ever made.

[@houssineaich7014]

​@@user-fi3yp2bo3f Witcher 3 is in fact the BGE

[@clarence3238]

This list is genuinely awful.

[@RVREGTAG]

Agreed

[@Ozz131]

It's not, Witcher 3 is number 1, that immediately makes it a credible list.

[@clarence3238]

@@Ozz131 Witcher 3's combat in mind numbingly boring, 2 hours in and I couldnt get interested in any part of this game. The most overrated game ive ever bought.

[@AkiKinabalu]

@@clarence3238 I've played and completed all sub missions and gears etc. It was good but no enough to make me play again. The ecosystem and missions are too predictable and not lively more like heavily scripted. Still my top 10 games of all time but not top 5 personally.

[@tjbullard4243]

@@clarence3238Definitely a hot take😂 Witcher is one of those games that will never be replicated again!

[@joermnyc]

First Watchdogs’ open world version of Chicago was pretty awesome, my wife initially thought it was a movie! I’d also say in the open world version of Seattle from Infamous: Second Son.

[@dhero9638]

what do they think none of the borderland's games deserved to be on list?

[@landrym1624]

Genshin Impact in front of Cyberpunk 2077 in terms of Open World, I immediately left this shit video.

[@00001sarthak]

RDR2, Cyberpunk 2077 Ultimate edition, Ghost of Tsushima , Days gone, Spider-Man. ( cyberpunk might have launched bad but it never lacked in immersion and storyline but now it’s at another level.) Sandevistan one of the most exciting mechanic ever. Even side stories are so engaging. Night city is a character itself can’t wait for the sequel.

[@TheRingoism]

Skyrim Is very overrated but It does deserve to be on this list, Oblivion and Morrowind are much better open world games personally.

[@houssineaich7014]

True, Morrowind especially that had a true raw Open World that by design forces you to master its locations.

[@Gor85]

Many great ones.Ghost of Tsusthima,Simpsons hit and run,Lika a Dragon,Sleeping Dogs,Shadow of Mordor,Spider Man 2,Arkham City is fantastic! Watched walkthrough many times. It's paused in Penguins place. I love Grand Theft Auto😀Played since he was little man. Played 1,23,Vice City.San Andreas very little. Legend of Zelda is always fantastic! 😀Witcher looks great too. Really good😀Great video😀

[@ARIXANDRE]

Death Stranding is a thing of beauty. Crossing an Icelandic inspired America, and setting up my zipline to the tune of Low Roar was a breath or fresh air for me. ❤

[@akirashamma5092]

The Legend of Zelda tears of the kingdom should've been number 1, its by far the best open world game of all time.

[@leoliokurata9629]

Cyberpunk 2077, 23rd position? Open world? I stopped the video.

[@thebalderthor4884]

😂 Skyrim wasn’t number 1 so you made the right choice.

[@tjbullard4243]

Witcher III at #1 makes so much sense, it truly is one of the greatest and most beautiful games I’ve ever played! The Characters, the story, the visuals….Triss Merigold🤩. Literally a masterpiece!

[@amonrodriguez3518]

This can’t be the first time they’ve done this countdown lol. They are out of ideas and always posting stuff asking us what to do next…

[@user-hz4bk3ii2w]

Genshin Impact and Fallout New Vegas and Red Dead Redemption 2 and Minecraft and Grand Theft Auto V and The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim return to all the time on the PS3 or on the PS4 or on the phone

[@razaabbas7212]

I believe that Sonic Frontiers was not on this.

[@dankairgadam8841]

1. Fable 2 2. Fallout 3 3. The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion 4. Grand Theft Auto 4 5. Red Dead Redemption 2

[@PAINt0theMAX]

You should check just cause 2

[@PMD-Insight]

Next do Top 100 Most Evil Characters Of All Time and include characters from literature such as Judge Holden, AM, Morgoth, And The Qu

[@haroldvillarante8649]

1.RDR2 2. WITCHER 3 3. HORIZON ZERO DAWN 4.god of war 4

[@davidparkes7741]

"They honestly haven't needed to release a new one yet." (About GTA) Yeah.... No. 6 can't come soon enough.

[@zakirstocks9514]

I'll definitely take *Tears of the Kingdom, Genshin Impact, Kirby and the Forgotten Land, The Simpsons: Hit & Run, Marvel's Spider-Man 2, NieR: Automata, Batman: Arkham City, Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag, Super Mario Odyssey, Splatoon 2, Splatoon 3, Pokémon: Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl and Pokémon: Sword & Shield* as My Top 14 Open World Video Games

[@Zeddyboi86]

God of War: Ragnarok has a much better open world than Spider-Man 2. The only real advantage Spider-Man has is insanely entertaining travel mechanics.

[@Slayde.Wilson]

Did anyone play L.A Noire? I think its the best Rockstar open world game.

[@johnnymartinjohansen]

Imo, it's garbage. Typical scenario: your partner says: "it's just a short ride". Reality: driving for an eternity and the dude can't shut his f*cking mouth. There's a reason why it's on sale so often. And if you think anyone is rating it above RDR2, you're delusional.

[@jackinthebox1993]

Better than RDR2?

[@geetanshusaini3684]

Just cause 2 is a masterpiece truly nostalgic ❤

[@CarloPrivat]

couldnt agree more with no 1 pick

[@Jake-nt3tg]

Idk dude, Cyberpunk being that low on the list (assuming they're numbering them from the 30th to 1st in "how good of a game it is" ranking, is wrong. Cyberpunk is easily a top 10, if not 5 best open world games of all time. The characters (other than rdr2) are unmatched. The world itself is beautifully crafted. The missions are unique, the weapon variety feels endless. The in-depth systems make the game feel different nearly every playthrough. Especially after the update

[@whoopsi2288]

No shadow of the colossus?

[@Hermo93]

A ranking of games in open wornd and Cyberpunk is also low? Yes, I know a crappy video when I do.

[@gaia7240]

To be fair the game is gorgeous and the story spectacular, but the open world you interact with it only when beating someone, it can get boring

[@victoriasrandomstuff]

Skyrim is my all time favorite. Oblivion (not on list but predecessor) is great too. New Vegas is also amazing. I own subnautica, cyberpunk, and red dead but have not played them. Another great game is Valheim. It's like Skyrim, dark souls and minecraft had a baby. Give it a try.

[@oriperetz7890]

Finally sleeping dogs gets some credit

[@Dawg476]

I can’t believe we didn’t get a sleeping dogs 2 😢

[@darthfencer412]

Elden Ring not in the Top 10?!?!?!

[@iustin-gabrielcostache]

Tiers of the kingdom is my favourite game ever as well as rdr2 but this was a great video!!!!!

[@BlenderStudy]

Thank you for the update, WatchMojo..!! I think the best one ever is GTA Online. I only played co-op from the beginning because I hated dying due to bad people around the map. I recently started to help out other players with Autoshop missions from mobile phone mission selector. I learned how to level up fast and collect $2+ million/day by playing Cayo Perico heists, my combined level is 600+ in Xbox One and PC, and the GTA game wealth is far over 100 million. :P

[@arizothwow1]

This list is why watch mojo not relevant anymore.

[@timb1319]

No Uncharted 4, a thief's end? Shame on you

[@howlkingu]

Because it's not an open world game and i don't think FFVII rebirth is an open world game.

[@JustMuuperiod]

Uh and exactly WHY DID YALL LEAVE OUT FABLE 2 or 3?!

[@brickzoneanimations8395]

I know this is not on the list but to me Super Mario Odyssey and Sonic Frontiers are the best Open World games in my opinion

[@iammiller5478]

Watch mojo not being a gaming channel but creating better list than IGN, gameranx and mojoplay is crazy 😱

[@zacharymc745]

Video suggestions: TOP 20 BEST MULTIPLAYER/CO-OP GAMES OF THE DECADE/CENTURY TOP 10 MOST UNDERRATED VIDEO GAMES OF THE 2010S ANOTHER TOP 20 BEST YEARS IN VIDEO GAMES (ex. 1980, 1981, 1982, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2009, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2022, or 2023)

[@GamerFunOriginallyAarush]

Minecraft is such a great example!

[@kish45]

It’s a real crime Sea of Thieves isn’t on this list since it technically is an open world game.

[@johnsesia9050]

I'm now in my fifth month of working on Tears Of The Kingdom, with no signs of slowing down. At time of writing, it's looking to overtake Nintendo's (not Activision's) Ice Hockey as the single game that held my attention the longest before I was done with it.

[@PAINt0theMAX]

Play Just Cause 2 if you want a good open world and Twilight Princess if you want a good zelda. There is no reason to play the outdated, unimpressive(even for the system) "game" that is ToTK

[@Deezhan]

Red Dead Redemption 2 not being #1 is crime against humanity.

[@Gamingninja55123]

Cyberpunk behind Genshin Impact no what disastrous notice, you didn’t play the game at all

[@datsapaddlin]

A next Gen GTA needs to just have multiple cities like San Andreas or the Witcher 3 and it will be the perfect game.

[@VinRoo1989]

Shadow of Mordor didn't have a ''giant land''. You can run across the entire length of each map in 10-12 minutes or so. It's not like it's GTA 5 or Far Cry 5 or something like that WatchMojo.

[@brunodelobel93410]

Skyrim behind GTA V 🤐

[@jeremiahsmith8987]

ayo gang I'm ngl. Having Minecraft at 5 is criminal. Ya'll lowkey picking favorites. U got Marvel's Spiderman2 at 14 and Elden Ring at 12 come on bruh Tighten Up.

[@dreamguardian8320]

Should've added Kingdom Hearts and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order and Survivor to this list.

[@houssineaich7014]

Neither of them are Open Worlds

[@questionmark05]

The division series. Just because of the world and how close it is to real life while still being post apocalyptic.

[@xxxjajajaja9840]

They didnt have outer wilds or kingdom come, but they had a racing game tisk tisk

[@happyroggerhappy]

No Kingdome Come but Dragons Dogma 2? OMG...

[@prthm0043]

putting elden ring on 12th is a crime .... not to mention cyberpunk 23rd

[@houssineaich7014]

Witcher 3 deserves the top spot obviously but where is OUTER WILDS in there ????

[@toallin5146]

Elden Ring and Breath of the Wild are way better open worlds than The Witcher 3 and Skyrim

[@toallin5146]

MGSV fucking sucks by the way

[@SuryaGupta-te7fq]

my god there really is nothing new to play while waiting for gta6. I am in shambles

[@yannispirou101]

Rebirth and Elden Ring that low is objectively wrong lol

[@jimmymurphy898]

Rdr2 for me easily. Look I know the realism isn't for everyone but i absolutely loved it. From the immersive world, to the graphics and gameplay and of course Arthur Morgan. Arthur is the best videogame character ever imo.

[@DeoAlong]

Far Cry 3, 4, 5 and New Dawn are all time favorites for me.

[@nbanow9612]

There was a Hulk game when I was a kid I used to play it was open world and holy crap I remember it being so dam fun!

[@jadeplanet]

I think Ghost should have been swapped out with Sekiro

[@tychodragon]

Very good list and we are luck to have so many amazing worlds to explore and I want more For all the blunders of ubisolft tho id say they have some incredible depictions of open worlds. I still cant get over odyssey. Exploring Ancient Greece is mind blowing. But all in all Bethesda's open worlds still fee the most alive. Nothing compares to how interactive they are.

[@BubblyJubbly]

Damn, no mention of Infamous or Infamous 2?

[@ContendCreators]

They prefer RPGs to Open worlds even in lists not about rpgs

[@PAINt0theMAX]

No taste behind this list

[@taylankonsey3907]

RDR 2 NO.1 BUTTON HEREEE!!! Read dead 2 is the greatest game ever

[@cem2830]

Elden Ring is 12th? LOL

[@omegaspawn2474]

It’s a great game I’ve sunk about 160+hrs into the game, but tbh it’s not as amazing as people simp for it.

[@pekomsneko7667]

not surprised they said genshin has better open world than cyberpunk gahaha

[@CrazeeAdam]

I mean the open world itself is great. But there's been better. I think 12th is a little low. But no higher than like 9th or 8th maybe?

[@ContendCreators]

You should see Just Cause. Its the only true open world game (its the only one that actually does the formula right) and its even further.

[@brobro9169]

Its a watchmojo list don’t be surprised

[@Anebrd]

skyrim and new vegas

[@magstheonlyone]

Really hype for GTA6 and the next Elder Scrolls

[@thebeatlesloveisallyouneed]

Arkham origins and maybe even knight deserves to be on here!

[@AndreaDoesYoga]

🎮 Amazing list, really loved revisiting these open-world classics! 🌍

[@jamesgardner5253]

Gta 5 is great but maybe 6 might end up taking its spot on this list

[@ROCKONplaceboforever]

Red dead redemption 2 one of the best ones still I replay it all the time good list 🎮👏

[@anthonyv.4935]

sleep dogs under rated gem. they need a part 2

[@adhityasaputra9024]

I love Open World Game, i can play hundred hour to explore that world...maybe GTA is the first open world and the reason i love that genre...and i never regret buy that kind of game in day one $60 or $70

[@ContendCreators]

If you want to explore an open world then try just cause 2

[@joev4591]

Totk and Botw are both better than Witcher 3

[@Iceblinkx]

cyberpuke only 23? hello

[@haroldvillarante8649]

Rdr2 at number 7 💀

[@doan4534]

Bro tried to sneak up Genshin fr 😂😂

[@kubek]

I think Carmagedon was first oper world racing game.

[@DereckMc360]

minecraft should atleast be top 4 or top 3 and legend of zelda tears of kingdom and gta 5 should be the opposite, it should be switched

[@SorrowlessZB]

Woo! Phantom pain mentioned>>>€.

[@daniellewis4154]

Avatar frontiers of Pandora deserves to be on this list. You might argue that is it derivative of far cry but it successfully captures what it feels like to be a Na’vi. It’s open world is gorgeous both in day and night