Despite the fact that I am a long-time sufferer of open-world fatigue and also happen to be one of the most staunch critics when it comes to games that fill their world with mundane map marker chores. I still find myself drawnto these vast, open-ended adventuresbecause, when done right, they truly are spectacular.
9 Open World Games With Diverse Biomes
Explore vast worlds with environments, both strange and familiar.
This means that I tend to dig deep into this saturated genre to find the deep cuts —the games that try something new within the space —and feel a little more experimental.
This approach often leads to these games attaining cult status at best and relatively unknown status at worst. However, I aim to change that by highlighting some truly remarkable open-world games. These may be hidden gems, but they shine brighter than most.
10Paradise Killer
A Classic Whodunnit
Paradise Killer
When you think of detective games,you think of very tailored, methodically crafted, and compact experiences. After all, to create a grand puzzle worth engaging with, the developer needs to give themselves the ability to control the player’s experience.
But when it comes to Paradise Killer, you’re in charge of the investigation, for better or worse. Playing as Lady Love Dies, you’ll need to investigate a mass murder case by exploring the vapour-wave town, talking to potential suspects, and uncovering clues as you go.
But here’s the thing, you may call it a day anytime you like, and give whatever verdict you like. The game won’t tell you if you’re right or wrong; you just need to accept your decision as fact.
Which is perhaps why so many players will comb through every inch of this world to find their version of the canon ending. It’s an indie masterpiece, and it won’t be this developer’s last time mentioned on this list.
9Smushi Come Home
An Amanita Adventure
It was a toss-up between this one and Mail Time for my pick of the mushroom-focused open-world indies to highlight. But, credit where it’s due, Smushi probably has a little more substance.
Smushi is a wholesome and cozy exploration game that feels like Breath of the Wild in many ways, minus the stakes and the danger. It’s all about exploring at your leisure, helping forest creatures in a bind, and solving simple puzzles while you glide around in style.
Alongside being cute as a button, the game is also deeply relaxing, just the right amount of challenging, and mechanically tight enough to keep things feeling fresh throughout the short run.
It’s a short and sweet open world experience, and one I would recommend to anyone who considers themselves a fungi or gal.
8Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip
How Much Is Taxi Fare To The Moon?
Tiny Terry’s Turbo Trip
When you ask a kid about their wildest dreams, they probably say something along the lines of ‘I want to be a princess’ or ‘an astronaut’ or ‘a fire-breathing dragon’. But rarely does a kid ever get to live that fantasy.
Terry is a kid with follow-through, as he decides that he wants to take his little taxi cab and kit it out with so much turbocharge that he can propel himself into space. Which you’re able to help him do by exploringthis GTA-style world, gathering junk as you go.
The writing is irreverent and hilarious, the mini-games and collect-a-thon activities are addictive, and the experience doesn’t suffer from bloat as you can roll credits in a matter of hours.
Sure, it’s a little bit wonky, but I assure you that’s part of the charm. Terry’s trash-fuelled adventure is an excellent one, and if even one more person jumps into this title, then I’ll have done my job.
7Loddlenaut
Save Our Seas
Loddlenaut
I’m a big fan of open-world games that convey a message, and Loddlenaut is a game that aims to promote the importance of sea preservation. But don’t worry, it’s not a preachy, virtue-signal-heavy game. It’s just a chill experience that naturally pushes this message.
In this title, you’ll swim around on the sea bed and try to clean up a deeply polluted open world. You’ll need to recycle junk, clear debris from the seabed, help plant life grow, and take care of the little axolotl creatures called Loddles that call this habitat home.
It sounds like a lot of chores, and in a way, it is. But it’s a very cathartic and therapeutic process that’s surprisingly engaging and addictive. Plus, as soon as you feed a Loddle their favorite treat, you’ll do anything to make them happy again.
Find Your Calling
Despite the fact that this game has one of the most expansive indie open-worlds, has such a striking art-style, and has been featuredas a monthly PS Plus game,I still find it staggering how few people have heard of Sable.
This game is, much like the aforementioned Smushi Come Home, a game that takes the framework of Breath of the Wild and strips away the perils of combat. Instead, you use your glider to explore the vast desert and help NPCs in a bid to discover your true calling.
You can explore at your own pace, can go anywhere you like right from the moment you hop on your glider, and as soon as you have the masks to justify making a particular life path your calling, you can lock that in and carve out your destiny.
The gliding is a rite of passage that everyone should go on. I will caveat this by warning that the game does have some mild performance issues. But if you can look past those, then you’ll be rewarded with one of the best indie open-world adventures on offer today.
Elden Ring Lite
You might be under the illusion that Elden Ring is the only Souls open-world in existence. Well, allow me to burst your bubble, as Brume offers a pocket-sized open-world Soulslike that offers all the Soulslike staples, only boiled down to their simplest form.
This minimalist, atmospheric indie offers an experience that is little over two hours long if you stop to smell the roses. But every minute is enjoyable as you fight enemies with the same focus on caution and precision you employ in FromSoft titles.
Plus, it has the same enigmatic, environmental storytelling that most Souls games employ as well. If you’re looking to just tip your toe into the Souls genre, there are few games that let you do that with as much success as Brume. So, all you souls-curious folks, give this a go.
4A Monster’s Expedition
Simple Mechanics With Lots Of Mileage
A Monster’s Expedition
It’s rare that you get an open-world puzzle game, and even when you do, the open-world aspect is usually an illusion. But, occasionally, you get a game likeThe Witness or Islands of Insightthat makes this format a prominent feature. Something that A Monster’s Expedition also does.
This game is a very simple, cozy premise milked for all it’s worth, as the player will need to navigate from island to island, cutting down trees and rolling logs to create paths to move onto the next.
The order of islands is yours to choose; there are loads of optional paths to explore, and there is a story of humans and monsters to uncover as you go.
It’s classic top-down block puzzles with a twist, where the path is yours to carve out. But, critically, the puzzles are also a blast to complete with just the right amount of challenge without leading to frustration.
It’s island-hopping ingenuity, and it’s a phenomenal puzzler worth checking out, especially if you are an open-world fan.
3Completely Stretchy
Stick and Swing
Completely Stretchy
Do you remember those gross little slimy, sticky, stretchy hand toys that you would get as gifts in magazines and in dollar stores back in the day. Well, in Completely Stretchy, these are your hands, and they are how you get around.
Using these stretchy appendages, you’ll stick and swing all over the Grombi Isles as you complete quests, embrace the bizarre nature of each bespoke region, and collect the Elektros to restore power.
It’s an incredible cathartic platforming experience, but one that also offers an open world to explore with quite a lot of substance and charm.
We won’t deny for a second that this is about as weird as an open-world experience gets, but if you’re into all things surreal and stupid, then this will be a blast for you.
2Season: A Letter to the Future
Time Waits For Nobody
Season: A Letter to the Future
I’ll admit, I’m cheating a little bit here, as the opening stages of Season are rather linear. But, once you get to Tieng Valley, things have a very clear open-world vibe, so allow me this one.
Season is one of the most incredible atmospheric games I have ever had the pleasure of sitting down to play, with a focus on storytelling, exploration, and sound design.
Your role is to capture history before the passage of time wipes the slate clean and washes away the relics of the past, which essentially leads to you wandering the valley, drinking in the sounds, snapping photos, talking to whatever locals still remain, and then making a scrapbook for future generations.
It’s a staggeringly well-presented game that you can engage with at your own pace, seeing as much or as little of the Valley as you like before pushing on and letting time wash away what was before.
It’s a game that feels like tingly ASMR in spells, boasts a wealth of memorable moments, and is a modern walking (or cycling) sim that’s well worth checking out.
1Promise Mascot Agency
Restore Your Family’s Honor
Promise Mascot Agency
You all may think less of me, but I have never once played a Yakuza/Like A Dragon game. But, if they are anything like Promise Mascot Agency, I may just have to make the effort to do so.
This game is about as surreal as it gets, as you, a disgraced Yakuza family member, are banished to a cursed town where you will need to revive a doomed mascot agency business.
Weird enough premise, but there’s also the fact that these weird sentiment mascot creatures aren’t in costumes, and you need to get around exclusively in a banged-up pickup truck that can inexplicably fly and shoot rockets.
It’s a game where, if you can suspend disbelief and embrace the stupidity, rewards you in turn with a GTA-esque open-world adventure punctuated by bizarre moments and japanese game show vibes.
It’s from the same guys that kicked off this list with Paradise Killer, so experimental, surreal design is to be expected, but of the two, this one is definitely the weirdest. But also, the best of the two in my eyes.
