I’ve played some Skyrim, Spider-man, and the Arkham games. Are there any similar games you’d recommend? I don’t have a super-advanced computer so things like the most recent Balder’s Gate are right out.
Assassin’s Creed has been around a long time and has like a dozen titles. I’d recommend starting with AC2.
Mad Max I will recommend to anyone. Fantastic game. Melee combat is very Arkham-like. Driving combat is like Twisted Metal, but better. You’ll do both about equally. Some of the most fun I’ve ever had in a video game I had in this game.
The Far Cry series is more of an action-FPS than an adventure game, but they’re mostly good. I’d start with Far Cry 3. Stories are not really related between games so you don’t need to play the previous games to understand anything.
Saint’s Row offers a cartoony, tongue-in-cheek version of GTA-like gameplay that emphasizes fun over realism. Not for everyone.
Watch Dogs has some interesting mechanics and a shrunk-down but somewhat accurate version of Chicago.
If you want truly wide-open gameplay with zero handholding whatsoever, there’s always Kenshi. It’s brutally difficult in a real-life kind of way. Super grindy.
I don’t know what hardware you’re running but these are all relatively old games.
I love this game so much.
I like that game too but enjoyed Watch Dogs 2 more (more lighthearted tone, moved to San Francisco but similarly accurate).
Ooo, I have tried Saint’s Row the Third, and it’s fun as heck.4 and Gat Out of Hell were meh.
Spiderman and Arkham are pretty similar but Skyrim is a fully different genre. Which type are you more interested in, and what’s the most recent/demanding game you’ve been able to run smoothly?
Yeah, I get that they were trying make “Saints Row but with superpowers!” and that’s exactly what they did make, but the superpowers kind of made everything else obsolete. No reason to use a vehicle if you can just fly, or weapons if you can just blow up everything on screen with your mind. The entire game was basically a cheat code.
They’re not new at all, but the Red Dead Redemption games are fantastic open world games set in the Old West.
They’re published by Rockstar games, so they’re sort of GTA-like in terms of the mechanics. They have beautiful visuals - the landscapes are really pretty and help the game be immersive.
A good question. I suppose it’s more the open-world adventure-ing type. I’ve tried Shadow of War as well, and the Nemesis/conquering part is fun, though I know it’s unique to that game.
Most recent…replaying Arkham Knight. I have a couple of older games I’ve played more recently, so not “demanding.”
Check out:
Horizon: Zero Dawn
Ghost of Tsushima
Both games are masterworks, similar to what you’ve described though a bit more RPG focused than Spiderman or Arkham.
Red Dead Redemption, mentioned above, is also great. But it (and ghost of Tsushima to a lesser extent) are very deliberate games in terms of pacing. They encourage you to take your time.
Neither is brand new but they still might be too much for your PC. Steam refunds are helpful for that, though.
And Legion is more of the same, in London. Some character-specific abilities, like the street magician’s mind control, are fun as hell!
I’ve beat both 2 & Legion and still visit San Francisco, more often than London. Messing with the various street gangs is more fun.
I like Legion, I bought it and own it. I think the lack of a central protagonist meant I didn’t become as invested in the game as I did the previous ones. But there is so much flexibility.
You want to talk about “open world”, how about the ability to bounce between many different characters in the process? That’s a whole other level of “open”.
Not just an ability; recruiting specific character types are required to advance the plot. Recruiting a construction worker to gain access to their heavy drone is an early one.
There’s also a remarkable level of depth to the population of London. It’s all randomly generated so would vary with each playthrough but you can encounter a relative of someone you rescued – thereby liking London’s DedSec – a relative of one of your recruits, or a relative who DedSec killed…
I tried Legion but it really strained my computer from what I remember.
Give the first or second game a try, then. There’s nothing quite like hacking into vehicles to launch them from the top of of Lombard Street (at Hyde) and seeing how far they can get before crashing.
I think I spent as much time intentionally causing chaos by hacking cars and other things as I did actually advancing the game in Watch Dogs 2. One evil thing I did was trick police into thinking a citizen was wanted and then scaring the citizen into running away while I hacked the cops’ communications. The cops assumed it was the suspect who was guilty and would respond with hostility.
I did that often to characters who were rude to me or smacked into me while driving or whatever.
They’ll do that whenever they get hacked and have no reason to suspect you. Amusing to watch them running around, trying to figure out where the culprit is. If they do try to arrest someone, I’ll hack their vehicle and send it speeding off somewhere so they forget about the arrest.
LOL I have done that too.
I’ve said before but Watch Dogs 2 revealed a true depth of evil I never knew was in me.
I remember repeated attempts to jump Lombard in a SledgeHammer in Vette! but never quite clearing the full length.
A good one I’ve played and enjoyed in the past is Prototype. Sort of evil-superhero-y. It hits a bit different after COVID, though.