Open world games like Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild they are some of the best. However, they are controlled experiences, as players don't get to have much say when it comes to telling Venom Snake's or Link's story. They can take different actions and make alternate gameplay decisions, but overall their stories will end like any other player's.
However, these other open world games are different. They feature branching storylines or karma systems to make their characters, created or otherwise, stand out. Players cannot literally create their own story in these examples, but they can pave their own path so that the story of their gameplay is always unique.
Baldur's Gate 3
Traction stories
Baldur's Gate 3 is full of possibilities from the beginning of the game to the end. It all starts with character selection, as players can choose a race, background, and then fully customize their experience. After that, it's up to the players who they choose to ally with, who they want to fight with. It's a massive turn-based tactical RPG that begs players to create their own experience and then try it all over again with a whole new path.
Fallout: New Vegas
More Like Faction: New Vegas
Fallout: New Vegas begins with players getting shot in the middle of the desert and then waking up next to their bed, groggy from the whole experience. Without any sort of gate, the entire wasteland will be open for players to explore. There is a karma system that follows decisions, more so than others Fallout games, there are factions to ally with. Will players choose to be a savior in the desert, ruthless, or something in between?
Open
Gods among the mushrooms
Open
7/10
- Released
-
February 18, 2025
Open is a first-person action RPG with a character creator where players can input a large amount of data, from divine origins to special traits. Players take on the role of an emissary who is sent to a foreign country plagued by disease.
Players can align with multiple factions and allies, all of which have valid motivations and reasons for existing. Admitted companions will help players ground themselves in the world, advocate for the best path forward, but they don't have to listen to them, as everything is always up to the character's choice.
Hogwarts heritage
A hocus pocus
Hogwarts heritage will give fans what they've been wanting ever since Harry Potter the series began in 1997. Players will be assigned to a lineage (although they can hand-pick if they wish) which will dictate class allies. The main story progresses in a linear fashion, but there are choices as to whether players want to be academic, average, or downright ugly.
More than the school, players have access to the grounds around Hogwarts. There they can explore, accept quests from random NPCs, and switch monsters with magic. It's not the most extensive set of options, but there are enough to make players feel like they're starting to tell their story within Harry Potter universe.
Cyberpunk 2077
Create your cyber journey
Cyberpunk 2077 is a futuristic cyberpunk story in which players can decide their story to become rich. Their character model and background can be dictated, but regardless, players start out in ruins with high ambitions.
Night City is a large place with many opportunities, from main quests to side missions, plus there are wastelands outside of the city. Players can even decide how cybernetic they want their body to be. Playing with minimal parts will make it harder, while a full cyborg will open more doors for you, literally and figuratively.
Final Fantasy 14
The Ultimate Life Sim
Final Fantasy 14 is an MMO set within Final Fantasy universe and genre is a good way for everyone to express themselves in myriad ways. In addition to character customization, including different races, players can sign up for several classes called Jobs, which expand over time.
Starting out as a Gladiator puts the player on a different path than, say, a Thaumaturge, and there are so many branching Jobs to follow. Final Fantasy 14 it has an almost endless amount of options and content that will keep players occupied until the end of time, or at least until the next MMO.
Rise Of The Ronin
The Life of a Tramp
Rise of the Ronin is set at the end of the samurai era, after Japan has begun to loosen its borders and let in foreigners and new technology. Players can feel conflicted as a lordless samurai, a ronin, and choose to nobly follow a righteous path or pave their own path through bloodshed and corruption. They can also choose to be less samurai and more ninja, relying on stealth to sneak around enemies or kill them from the shadows. As a pilgrim, the beautiful Japanese landscape awaits players to create their story.
Dynasty Warriors 9
Forge Your Empire
Dynasty Warriors 9 has a staggering amount of player options as an open world game and is the first entry in the series to be this expansive. Players can choose to take power across multiple dynasties and conquer a land, one fortress, and one kingdom at a time. They can stick with their chosen character and standard weapon or play with allied characters as well as choose and control different weapons. It may not be the prettiest open world to explore, but there's no denying that the opportunities in it will provide players with a good customizable story.
