Since the turn of the millennium, ‘open world’ has become one of the biggest buzzwords in gaming. Whenever something gets announced that promises players the freedom to explore a whole city, continent or world, our ears instantly prick up with anticipation.

Open-world titles offer a unique kind of escapism that just can’t be replicated by equally competent, yet linear releases, and whilst bigger doesn’t always mean better, we still instinctively attribute a lot of value to it.

Despite the genre having been around for a while, there’s still something magical about being able to say, “I’m just going to go in a straight line in that direction and see what I find”, and whether said world is packed with quests, towns and random people to rob and murder, or is just a sprawling empty wasteland with nothing but beautiful scenery, the allure of the open world is always there.

As a way of celebrating the expanse of open worlds, here are the ten of the biggest in gaming so far, ranked in order of size in square miles (MMOs not included).

which one is your favorite?


source: twitika.com

10. Fallout 4 – 43mi2

Squeezing in at the lower end of the list is Bethesda’s latest adventure in post-apocalyptic America. The Boston Wasteland is the biggest map in the Fallout series, and yet is notably smaller than the open worlds of recent rival RPGs.

But where this world really shines is not in its raw landmass, but in how brimming it is with interesting events, quests, and the sense of adventure whichever way you go. Unlike many open worlds, the Commonwealth doesn’t feel like a cut-and-paste job, and even though it is very much a wasteland, feels like a beautiful and lively one, meticulously crafted to reward you for exploration and curiosity.

The map also does a great job of contrasting the urban and rural wastelands, and while you can skip across the countryside relatively quickly, working your way through the ruined city area is slow and treacherous. The Boston Wasteland is an excellent example of a decent-sized map designed to feel much larger than it is.

9. Dragon Age: Inquisition – 45mi2

There are no exact measurements for the Dragon Age: Inquisition map available right now, but its approximate size can be worked out by the fact that all of Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age 2 would fit into one of its massive zones – of which there are around 15. When joined together, these zones combine to feel slightly bigger than the 39mi2 Skyrim map, and should take many months to explore fully.

Ferelden is a much more diverse world too, spanning stormy coastlines, murky swamplands, idyllic rolling hills as well as barren desert landscapes. Some people may complain about the lack of spontaneity and random events, and the distinctly ‘zoned’ feel of the world, which is made of many seemingly unconnected hubs accessed by a large map in the war room.

But despite these complaints, the diversity of landscapes in the world captures the feeling that you’re exploring an entire continent, which is the developers’ intention.

8. Grand Theft Auto V – 49mi2

At a glance, GTA V may not look as impressive as the multi-city map of San Andreas. It is, after all, just one city surrounded by miles upon miles of hillbilly backwaters, woodlands and deserts.

But nostalgia is a funny thing, and the reality is that the GTA V map is around twice the size that of San Andreas, with Los Santos alone being the size of the whole northern desert part of San Andreas’ map. That’s because GTA V is the best attempt yet in video games to accurately mimic the design of a real city, unhindered by the technological limitations which forced San Andreas to use clever design tricks make the world feel far bigger than it was.

The level of detail in GTA V is incredible, and Los Santos is, like its real-life counterpart LA, a sprawl of interweaving freeways, ghettos and beaches. There’s so much going on that you’d happily just while away the hours wandering around and watching the city go about its business without your murderous interventions.Or you can get out into the countryside, take the gondola up Mt. Chiliad, and take in the spectacular landscape within which Los Santos itself looks like a mere speck.

7. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – 84 mi2

Among the many achievements CD Projekt RED can brag about with the third (and probably final) entry in The Witcher trilogy is the spectacular map size, which is among the biggest and most dramatic in video games.

The Witcher 3 world is split into several different zones, but each of these feels like a richly detailed, self-contained region with its own character and history. Much of the landscape and architecture is inspired by medieval central Europe, mixing up vast open plains, fields, villages and moody, atmospheric forests that stretch for miles.

But of all the beautiful areas in this huge world, the one that most stands out to me is the Skellige Isles – an archipelago filled with rugged mountain ranges, dark pebbled beaches, and a distinctly rougher feel than the rest of the land (which says a lot). The Witcher 3 map is not only huge, but dripping in a deep sense of history and lore, enticing you to explore it for months.

6. Arma 3 – 104mi2

Arma 3’s massive island of Altis sounds absolutely spectacular, and it’s not a half-bad place for sightseeing either – a vast, realistic Greek island filled with pretty rolling hills, arid fields, and tranquil Greek villages.

Colossal though Altis is, it’s also the first example on this list of an open-world ‘wasteland’. Sure, there’s a definite appeal to just bombing around the countryside, aggravating the local cops then fleeing from them, but there are almost no people to interact with, no cars on the roads, and after a few hours it feels like an awfully lonely place.

There is definitely a certain appeal to running around the place with a squad of buddies, carrying out tense, tactical missions around the gorgeous landscape, but a smaller world with more character inevitably has more lasting appeal.

5. Just Cause 3 – 400mi2
Sticking very much to the blueprint set by its predecessor, Just Cause 3 moves the action over to the fictional mediterranean island of Medici but keeps the map the same size – which is fine, as it really didn’t need any expanding.

True to the series’ tradition, the Medici archipelago is absolutely gorgeous, and is exactly the kind of place you’d happily go on a budget European holiday to (if the idea of supporting a murderous dictatorship doesn’t prick your conscience too much). It’s all azure blue waters, lavender fields and sleepy towns nestled on clifftops, reachable by winding rural roads. Explore other parts of the world and you’ll venture into deserts and snowy mountain ranges, proving that you can have diverse landscapes on a single seamless map.

With that said, most of the pleasures are surface-level, and down on the ground the locals don’t have much personality. But that’s never the intention of Just Cause 3, and the locals’ vapidity means that you won’t feel guilty when you tie them to two buildings using your tethers, then use the new ‘tighten’ button to catapult them into a mountain.

4. Test Drive Unlimited 2 – 618mi2

A game map may not feel quite as colossal when you’re bombing across it at 80mph in a car rather than on foot or horseback, but the satellite-modelled islands of Oahu and Ibiza here are still impressive in their scale – if little else.

Between the two islands, there are nearly 2000 miles of road for you to traverse, but you’re free to go off the beaten track at any point, bounding over the sun-kissed countrysides of both beautiful settings.

A downside of open-world driving games is that you never feel quite as attached to the world in them as you do in an on-foot game. You want to hang out with the locals, wander into the occasional building, and in Ibiza’s case check out a fully accurate interior of one of its legendary super-clubs, but you’re locked out of all these things – experiencing the world mostly through the screen glass of your car (you can wander around on foot a bit in TDU 2, but it’s so mechanically poor that you’ll quickly retreat to your car seat).

In fairness, for all its flaws Test Drive Unlimited 2 is packed full of features and events to get involved with, so there is plenty of incentive to explore the island, partake in races… and whatever else it is you can get up to when you’re mostly glued to a car steering wheel.

3. Fuel – 5,560mi2

How big is too big for an open-world game? This post-apocalyptic open-world racer certainly flirts with answering that question, offering one of the biggest sandboxes in video game history.

At the best of times, the game looks and feels awesome, as you bomb across desolate, ruined fields with burning oil fields in the distance, bounce over undulating sand-dunes on your quad-bike, or weave among the ruined trees of a deforested region. But for all those moments of brilliance, the majority of the world does feel like a cut-and-paste job, and the races and challenges littered around the map just don’t do enough to engage you.

Kudos to CodeMasters for their ambition, as the game does offer the occasional sublime moment (see adrenaline-inducing image above), but overall Fuel feels more like a therapeutic sandbox than an actual game.

2. The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall – 62,000 mi2

Even though each successive Bethesda RPG seems to be getting incrementally bigger than its predecessor by a few measly miles, it’s hard to see any of them reaching the terrifying scale of the second game in the series, Daggerfall.

Sure, the majority of the world was just procedurally-generated wilderness, but you can’t help but be a little bit in awe of it – it really doesn’t look bad for a game of its time either. You could spend hours lost in the auto-generating Dragontail Wilderness, the Ravennian Forest, or in one of the game’s endless number of labyrinthine dungeons – a single one of which could probably fit all of Skyrim inside it (not necessarily a good thing, given how confusing they can be).

We’d probably say that procedurally-generating a giant world would be a bit lazy if Bethesda did it today, but the technological limitations of making a game in 1996 meant that this was the best way to create a convincing fantasy continent, which continues to far outsize any game in existence today.

1. METAL GEAR SOLID V

Was hoping to see watchdogs and far cry 4 make the list

Nothing on MGS V?

HyDef:
Nothing on MGS V?

will write on it asap...

trux:
Was hoping to see watchdogs and far cry 4 make the list

they are not on the top 10 list based on gamesradar.

lycann:
will write on it asap...

Alright man.

me wey dey think say GTAV to top the list, means i havent played games o!!!

HyDef:
Nothing on MGS V?

maybe he hasnt played the game.. I'm still playing the game myself

Drezin:

maybe he hasnt played the game.. I'm still playing the game myself

I have not played it...

I want just cause 3

All these only on PS4?

Adeyemi0:
All these only on PS4?

most of them are on Xbox and pc

lycann:
most of them are on Xbox and pc

Please what PC spec can handle most of these games,i like game so much but not capable of the consoles....

lycann:
I have not played it...

you should... its a great game.... until.. i wouldnt want to drop spoilers... but its really Nice... the cut scenes are so badass

Adeyemi0:

Please what PC spec can handle most of these games,i like game so much but not capable of the consoles....

any corei5 6gb ram and high vrsm should be okay.

Drezin:

you should... its a great game.... until.. i wouldnt want to drop spoilers... but its really Nice... the cut scenes are so badass

wow will check it out...

lycann:
any corei5 6gb ram and high vrsm should be okay.

Thanks for your time but this kind of system will cost much..

Adeyemi0:

Thanks for your time but this kind of system will cost much..

Drezin:

you should... its a great game.... until.. i wouldnt want to drop spoilers... but its really Nice... the cut scenes are so badass

lol... thats the price

Adeyemi0:

Thanks for your time but this kind of system will cost much..

yeah,..but its not necessary to get a new one..

Skyrim didn't make the list shocked.

Me self shock! Hell bent on vexing my frustration!

pcguru1:
Skyrim didn't make the list shocked.

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