Highlights
- Open-world games strive to stand out from the crowd by incorporating hidden tombs and underground ruins, adding a sense of history and discovery to the gameplay.
- The Elder Scrolls series and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt have extensive underground areas and ruins that offer rich lore and challenges for players to explore.
- Assassin’s Creed and Hogwarts Legacy feature ancient and alien tombs or hidden rooms that require specialized keys, offering players the chance to uncover ancient knowledge and artifacts.
Open-world games are self-explanatory. They let players explore gargantuan environments with unbridled freedom. The formula encourages travel and exploration, with the developers practically daring fans to unveil the whole map. That said, the true adventure can lie beneath the surface.
10 Open-World Games That Lived Up To The Hype Against All Odds
Given how homogenous the genre has become, it can be truly difficult to develop an open-world game that really stands out from the crowd.
Some open-world games involve delving into tombs and other ruins. These instances infuse the world with a palpable history. Moreover, they’re arguably better at conveying a sense of discovery due to being hidden from plain sight. Because of that thrill, a healthy helping of tomb-raiding is essential to any open-world odyssey.
Special Mention: The Tomb Raider Series
The name should give it away. The recent Tomb Raider titles have gone for an open-world/Metroidvania approach, but Lara Croft still dives headfirst into lost civilizations in search of adventure and knowledge. The most elaborate examples occur in the main narratives, such as an underwater Russian city or an Inca metropolis hidden in the jungle. That said, these aren’t the only secrets in the sandboxes.
The titles also have a handful of optional tombs. Cut from the same stylistic cloth as the main catacombs, these contain challenging puzzles surrounding ancient structures or machinery. Lara must use her perceptive mind to find a way forward. Likewise, fans must think like a Croft to find the treasure. Otherwise, they end up like the place’s former occupants. Judging by the brittle remains littering the floors, it’s safe to say that they didn’t have much success.
The latest Tomb Raider games are not open-world, but they allow players to explore the world at their own pace.
6 The Jak Series
The Precursors’ Tombs
Jak 3
- Released
- November 9, 2004
The Precursors are a major focus in Jak & Daxter. The characters in this fantasy world are always seeking to harness the powers and technology that these mythical beings left behind. Reaping those rewards often involves exploring subterranean temples. The first game’s underwater city and Mar’s Tomb in Jak 2 are particular highlights. They are fraught with intuitive puzzles, perilous platforming, and dormant monsters. Explorers should stay on their toes amidst their awe.
The most impressive example is in Jak 3. A remote temple in the Wasteland leads to a series of catacombs. These stretch deep into the planet and have hidden entrances at the most unexpected points. Not only can the heroes use them to return from exile, but they witness technology more advanced than any seen before. The Precursors were truly ahead of their time. It’s easy to forget that they’re really a bunch of orange rats.
Jak 2 & Jak 3 are closer to traditional open-world games, while the first title is an action-adventure platformer set in fairly open areas.
5 The Horizon Series
The Cauldrons
The Horizon setting may seem prehistoric, but it’s actually far into the future. After rogue machines become the dominant force on the planet, the Zero Dawn program ensures humans can start again on a restored Earth, albeit in a primitive state. Aloy encounters “Old World” structures, but these are just modern buildings which are decayed and overgrown. The visuals really put into perspective the human race’s place in the planet’s lifespan.
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Good characters are a huge part of good world-building. These standout NPCs are just one way that Horizon: Forbidden West makes its world feel real.
That’s doubly so for the Cauldrons. These are advanced facilities built into caves and underground tunnels. The streamlined, neon aesthetic stands in stark contrast to the rest of the world, but Aloy still finds the remains pf various machines and accounts of long-dead humans. Their holographic displays and video logs paint a vivid picture of a technological society collapsing in on itself. The whole ordeal is a chilling twist on the usual tomb-raiding exploits.
Tombs Filled With History
Skyrim
- Released
- November 11, 2011
It takes a while to traverse any Elder Scrolls sandbox, but even longer than the travel time is the history. Tamriel and its disparate kingdoms date back hundreds of years. Players can read all about it in the games’ countless tomes. Alternatively, they could seek it out themselves.
The untamed fields and mountains are home to several secret passages. These contain the best weapons and spells, but they also come with a myriad of challenges.
Intrepid heroes might run against a puzzle barring the way forward, or they may combat a restless spirit from the nearby crypt. These experiences all arise from the rich history in the aforementioned books. Because of that, fans never know when they’ll stumble on one of these caverns. That unpredictability makes players feel like trailblazers – a feeling essential to Elder Scrolls.
3 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Cities Built Upon The Ruins Of Cities
Humans may be the dominant force in the Witcher world, but other species still have a strong influence. That manifests in the architecture. Geralt explores numerous ruins in the wilds of The Witcher 3. They’re all that’s left of the elegant Elven structures that once filled the Continent, but they’ve fallen into disrepair and monster infestations. That said, signs of the Elves’ existence remain. These signs are visible due to Geralt’s enhanced witcher senses. He might spot a faded blood trail, detect a faint aroma from their labs, or read shredded writing from a corpse’s journal. Fans get a more complete picture as a result.
That said, the mysteries aren’t limited to the wilderness.
They also lie in cities. The current residents built their societies overtop of the old Elven cities. By following sewers or other underground passages, Geralt can find ancient rooms and artifacts, often with magical traces of former tenants. These places have better craftsmanship than what’s on the surface, which is all the more reason to seek them out.
2 The Assassin’s Creed Series
Ancient & Alien Tombs
The past obviously plays a huge part in Assassin’s Creed. These open worlds consist of iconic settings throughout human history. That alone would be enough for fans, but within these bygone sandboxes lurk even older locales. Each map sports a few hidden rooms or tunnels. They usually lie within churches or similarly storied structures, and they typically require specialized keys to access. Players can then get the knowledge, armor, and weapons of previous generations, but they must prove their worthiness. Of course, the other tombs are a different story.
7 Ubisoft Open-World Games With The Best Stories
Ubisoft is well-known for creating iconic open-world games, but which of them feature the best stories?
In every AC campaign, the protagonists explore environments left behind by the otherworldly Isu. The massive chambers and angular architecture are downright alien. Granted, they’re mostly locked except during main missions, but their uncanny enormity is enough to impress. Like the human catacombs, they positively ooze history.
1 Hogwarts Legacy
Hogwarts’ Founders
Despite being a contemporary series, Harry Potter‘s Wizarding World is hundreds of years old. Fans get a taste of that longevity in Hogwarts Legacy, which gives them free rein over the eponymous school and the surrounding countryside. The castle is rife with secrets. Thanks to magic, they can hide behind literally anything, from a suit of armor to a bathroom sink. These disguised doors take players to the glamorous chambers once frequented by the Hogwarts founders themselves. They leave behind clothing, equipment, and artifacts, all of which improve the player’s spellcasting prowess. With goodies literally around every corner, fans are loath to leave.
Those who tear themselves away have numerous other adventures waiting. The woods, meadows, hills, castles, and villages each have their secrets. Unsuspecting students could easily tumble into a family crypt or a goblin mine. Much of magic is about what’s invisible. These unseen networks are fitting for that theme.
