With the help of iconic franchises like The Elder Scrolls, Grand Theft Auto, and Fallout, the open-world subgenre of gaming has skyrocketed to the forefront of the gaming industry in recent years. Numerous factors make open-world games so appealing, particularly the level of freedom and the sheer amount of content available, often making the games great value for the money.
The success of open-world games has, unsurprisingly, led to numerous publishers releasing such games, which can often result in some enjoyable titles getting lost in the crowd. The games on this list, which were all released from 2016 onwards, either didn’t get the attention that they deserved upon release or were perhaps unfairly dismissed by fans and critics.
8 Just Cause 4
The latest entry in the Just Cause series didn’t try to re-invent the wheel, opting instead to keep the same over-the-top gameplay that its predecessors were beloved for. Just Cause 4 differentiates itself from the previous entries, however, by ramping up the ridiculous elements of its gameplay even further with frequent extreme weather conditions and bizarre weapons like the lightning gun being thrown into the mix.
Just Cause 4‘s Metascores ranged from 65 to 70, a noticeable drop from the previous three games which scored in the 70s and 80s. Granted, the story and campaign aren’t the best, but messing around with the sandbox side of the gameplay can provide hours of entertainment.
7 Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles
On the complete opposite end of the spectrum to the action-heavy Just Cause 4 is Prideful Sloth’s 2017 release Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles, a game that features no combat whatsoever.
Following a dramatic boat crash, players find themselves on a Breath of the Wild-like island. Yonder‘s gameplay predominantly consists of fetch questing and exploration, which may sound tedious and uninteresting to some people, but for those that want to play a laid back, casual open-world game, Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles is certainly worth checking out.
6 No Man’s Sky
It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly what the perception of No Man’s Sky and its creator Hello Games is in 2021. Some would say that the company burnt all bridges with fans after No Man’s Sky‘s disastrous launch, whereas others would say that the developer has fully redeemed itself for the frequent improvements to the game that have greatly improved the product for no extra cost to consumers.
The redemption arc that the game has been on is why No Man’s Sky has found itself leaving articles with “overrated” in the title and winding up on ones such as this. The fact that many Cyberpunk 2077 owners are hoping that the game ends up like No Man‘s Sky is one of the most telling factors as to how far the space exploration game has come.
5 The Witness
The Witness is the latest release from game designer Jonathan Blow, who is best known for the classic indie puzzle-platformer Braid. 2016’s The Witness is a common case of fans and critics being divided on a game, as many critics loved The Witness, including IGN who included the game in their Top 100 Video Games of All Time list, but many consumers were very vocal about their dislike.
This dislike is exemplified by the game’s user scores on Metacritic, which are as low as 6.9 on Xbox One. Granted, the tricky puzzle game won’t appeal to everyone, but the creativity and ingenious design of the line puzzles and beautiful open-world ensures that The Witness can be classed as underrated, as it deserves to be considered among the best open-world and best puzzle games of all time.
4 Eastshade
Eastshade Studios’ indie adventure game Eastshade is the second game on this list that begins with players being involved in a boat crash that takes them to an island. Much like the aforementioned Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles, a boat crash isn’t indicative of the gameplay in Eastshade, as the pace soon shifts to a more relaxing and meditative one.
Eastshade puts players on a beautiful, immersive island and lets them explore and paint the scenery around them. Painting isn’t all that the player can do, however, as there are numerous NPCs to interact with who often provide side quests.
3 Death Stranding
Death Stranding was released in 2019, making it Kojima Productions’ first game since their public breakup with Konami — which caused the ending of Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain to be rushed, and Silent Hills to be canceled.
To say that Death Stranding was divisive upon release would be an understatement, as struggling to traverse the game’s rocky and bumpy terrain was enough for some people to completely dismiss it. The game certainly didn’t deserve such dismissal, as although the gameplay is understandably not for everyone, Death Stranding provides a memorable adventure that will encapsulate many people.
2 Watch Dogs 2
In many ways, Ubisoft’s original Watch Dogs game was reminiscent of another title from the French company, the original Assassin’s Creed; in the sense that both games were rough around the edges, but clearly had tons of potential.
Watch Dogs 2 doesn’t manage to instantly capture its predecessor’s potential like the classic Assassin’s Creed II did, but it still provides a fantastic open-world experience that will appeal to fans of Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto V.
1 A Short Hike
Adam Robinson-Yu’s A Short Hike was released in 2019 and is another game on this list that prioritizes laid-back exploration over intense combat. A Short Hike tasks player with exploring its map to find golden feathers, which will help the player to scale the world’s peak.
Like any good open-world game, there are also a ton of side ventures to partake in, such as fishing, racing, and competing in the unique beachstickball mini-game. The indie title was awarded one of indie gaming’s most prestigious awards, the Seumas McNally Grand Prize from the Independent Games Festival Awards.
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