10 Best Free-Roaming Games, According To Reddit

Video games can often be tightly focused experiences centered on delivering on intentional pacing and narrative, but they don’t have to be. Some games are at their best when they allow players to simply wander freely and discover the details that the games have to offer. These games often feature large playable areas, and they give the players to tools and opportunities they need to achieve a sense of wonder, relaxation, or discovery.

As technology improves, these worlds and experiences only get deeper and more impressive. These may not be the best games for players with tight time constraints, but they’re the perfect way to spend a lazy evening or afternoon.

Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag

The Assassin’s Creed franchise has gone through several significant changes since 2007. While the games started out as stealth-based experiences, they’ve grown into full-blown RPGs. Black Flag wasn’t as big of a break from the then-set formula as Origins would later be, but the sprawling Caribbean made the fourth mainline game one of the top-ranked Assassin’s Creed games.

Speaking of this title, Redditor DOOMFOOL explains that it’s “One of the few games [they] never used fast travel in.” The diversity of environments from towns to islands and beautiful ocean expanses made it a pleasure to simply walk or sail around.

Red Dead Redemption 2

Red Dead Redemption showed that Rockstar could create more diverse open-worlds rather than only the large cities of the Grand Theft Auto franchise, and its sequel improved virtually every aspect of the game world. RDR2 is one of few games that absolutely nails historical accuracy by presenting players with a sprawling version of the late-19th-century American West packed with details.

The narrative is well-worth playing through, but, as Redditor santichrist expresses, “…every part of [the map] feels lived in.” Whether it be hunting, chasing down bounties, or simply enjoying the diverse biomes, Red Dead Redemption 2 is one of the best free-roam games to get lost in.

Just Cause 3

While many games with large maps take themselves seriously, the Just Cause franchise definitely doesn’t. The games have been met with various levels of commercial and critical success, but they peaked for many with Just Cause 3.

There’s a narrative present that isn’t particularly memorable, but most players prefer to run around and try crazy stunts. Redditor smasherofscreens points out a few of their favorite in-game tools, saying that the “Wingsuit, grapple and a big open world map makes roaming so much fun.” Job postings have hinted that a fifth game is currently in development, but nothing has been confirmed so far.

Pokémon Go

Many games present virtual worlds for players to explore, but few turn the actual Earth into a giant play area. When considering the best free-roam games, LlamaWithAnAttitude simply mentions “Pokémon Go.” Niantic’s mobile game successfully combined the world-famous monster-catching franchise with a real-time overworld that players could traverse to catch Pokémon and defeat gyms.

While there are several games to keep players fit in 2022, few have gotten as many people walking as Pokémon Go did in the summer of 2016. The game is still thriving and receiving regular updates and events.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Most games in the Legend of Zelda franchise have been popular with fans, but few have been received as overwhelmingly positively as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. This 2017 game ditched many of the more linear elements from past games in favor of a wide-open area for players to free-roam.

Redditor FacetiousBeard expresses that “Breath of the Wild seems a solid contender. Pretty much everywhere you can see can be reached, and in several ways.” There’s no doubt that the amazing open map did a lot to cement this game as a modern classic.

Cyberpunk 2077

Cyberpunk 2077 was one of the most anticipated games in history, but its release was marred by missing features, bugs, and game-breaking performance issues. The main narrative may have ended up a bit more linear than some were expecting, but there’s little doubt that the game rewards those willing to wander.

Bchange51 agrees, saying that Night City has “so many backroads that you never have to take in the main game. even secrets on those back roads.” Cyberpunk 2077 has undergone several changes since its launch, and a next-gen patch went live on February 15th, 2022.

The Witcher 3

The Witcher franchise started with a somewhat janky title by inexperienced developers, but its sequel made improvements in almost every regard. However, both games fail in comparison to the popularity and critical acclaim of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

The vaguely-Slavonic setting, The Continent, is notable for its incredible attention to detail, but the Blood and Wine expansion was arguably more memorable. The DLC’s setting, Toussaint, is a beautiful area known for wine and Vampires. Redditor PotentialTrade7569 articulates, “When I first saw that region (forgot the name) I was in awe. I didn’t even ride fast I just took my time to take it all in.”

Skyrim

A decade after its release, there aren’t many gamers who aren’t familiar with Skyrim. This fourth main entry in the Elder Scrolls franchise brought players to the titular frozen north of Tamriel. xXYELINGRELICXx notes the game’s reputation when they say, ” Iconically, Skyrim. Its just the first to my head.”

Skyrim is synonymous with free-roaming for a generation of gamers, and many players remember simply wandering through the game’s mountains, valleys, forests, and caves just as vividly as the actual main plot. The procedurally-generated side-missions ensure that players will never run out of places to see.

Batman: Arkham City

Several great superhero games have been released within the last decade and a half, but there was once a time when they were primarily relegated to maligned movie tie-ins. The Arkham games weren’t the first ones to break that trend, but they’ve become the face of high-quality superhero experiences.

The first title, Arkham Asylum, was fairly linear, but Arkham City gave players a vast chunk of Gotham to freely explore. Tricky-Ad4617 points out the joy of simply moving around, explaining, “Grapple into glide was so smooth and so good.” Arkham City nailed the feeling of being Batman.

Horizon: Zero Dawn

Many games take place in historical settings, and many more embrace science-fiction futures, but few mix the two as well as Guerilla Games’ Horizon: Zero Dawn does. Stetson007 shares their enthusiasm for the game world, posting, “In my book, it’s horizon: zero dawn. Still can’t wait for forbidden west here real soon.”

It’s possible to ignore much of the open world in Zero Dawn, but those that are willing to free roam are rewarded with stunningly diverse vistas and beautiful, intimidating Machines. Horizon: Forbidden West will drop players into an even larger area to explore on February 18th, 2022.

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