What is the best open world game ever made? (Red Dead Redemption 2 Discussion)

[marvelvscapcom2]

What is the best open world game ever made and why is it Red Dead Redemption 2?      My main question is what is your pick for best open world game in your opinion?  But also I want to touch on everyone's thoughts on Rockstar and most especially Red Dead 2.  As it's truly blown me away


But in all seriousness this is a tough question for me because open world "sandbox" games are one of my favorite genres and I grew up on GTA style games.  It was easily GTA 5 for me until RDR2 came out and now RDR2 just kicked the door down on my top 10 all time list's party and is giving everyone else dirty looks.  Shoving aside last of us and hanging out at the bar with super mario world  .   It's a rare breed of game that only comes once a decade imo. 


WORLD



I mean it's world for one is flawless.  It's bustling with activity.  So huge in scope but so filled with enviroments, animals, strangers.  It feels extremely alive.  Some small towns pack more things to do and more excitement then some games entire worlds.   BOTW for example while amazing and i'm not knocking that game at all,  sometimes it has the size but not the depth.  Sometimes you can rome for a while without seeing much but land or maybe a random enemy spawn.   But with red dead, you got random guys asking for your help,  prisoners breaking free,  bounty hunters,  poker games, saloon brawls,  that guy with the raccoon on his head that tries fighting you for no reason.   It's just always something.  I haven't had much of a dull moment yet.



GRAPHICS

Now it's leaps and bounds ahead of GTA V imo but that's obvious due to age.  In fairness I do think some games have slightly better visuals (Forza Horizon 4) but none that have a world as detailed and as large.   Red Dead's detail far outweights just the surface graphics.  From the little nuances, animations and the way the enviroment interacts.  It's a class act visually.


Attention to detail

The way the horses balls shrink due to the cold, and you have to oil your gun or it gets gunked up.  The way everything is just like real life but somehow still doesn't seem to be a pain in the ass the way BOTW was with the weapons breaking.  It felt even more in depth but somehow still fun and not breaking the video game feel.


Setting and story telling



Honestly,  Rockstar is just subhuman at this point with immersing a player into the world.  You feel like a outlaw.  You simply do.  Not to quote IGN lol.   But I am Arthur Morgan when i'm playing the game.  I'm the baddest outlaw of all these parts and the god damn O'l Driscol swine will pay. 

The 1899 representation feels so genuine.  So unfiltered.  No SJW shying away from the obvious race tensions, slavery, woman inequality and animal cruelty that existed in those times.  It's smack in your face and it's raw.  It's passionate from the developers.  and it's well done without pandering.


What a specimen of game.  One that will go down in the archives as one of the greatest open world games and one of the best games of all time in my opinion


My main question is what is your favorite open world game of all time.   But my side question is your thoughts on Red Dead 2.  I hope all of you get the chance to enjoy it like I have .   


Rockstar is god. 

[Agozer]

Having not played Red Dead Redemption 2 yet, I will obviously mention the Witcher 3.

[kamikazekeeg]

If Breath of the Wild had more depth to it, more actual dungeons and such, I'd say that one is way up there mostly due to the freedom of it all.  Loved exploring every nook and cranny in that game.  I'd also pick something like one of the modern Fallout games just for myself personally, despite some of the issues they have.  I love exploring in them.

I've already talked about RDR2 around here before, so I won't say much on it, but the Red Dead world is really high quality and definitely well designed, I just ended up finding the game getting boring a lot of the time and I'm someone that has a lot of patience for tedious elements in a game.  It's not Grand Theft Auto 4 awful, but it lacks some things and has some clumsy design decisions.  Won't ever be a favorite to me, but it's still a good game for sure.

[burningdoom]

If Breath of the Wild had more depth to it, more actual dungeons and such, I'd say that one is way up there mostly due to the freedom of it all.  Loved exploring every nook and cranny in that game.  I'd also pick something like one of the modern Fallout games just for myself personally, despite some of the issues they have.  I love exploring in them.

I've already talked about RDR2 around here before, so I won't say much on it, but the Red Dead world is really high quality and definitely well designed, I just ended up finding the game getting boring a lot of the time and I'm someone that has a lot of patience for tedious elements in a game.  It's not Grand Theft Auto 4 awful, but it lacks some things and has some clumsy design decisions.  Won't ever be a favorite to me, but it's still a good game for sure.

This.

I would add Skyrim to BotW as being more interesting and fun to be in.

[kamikazekeeg]

If Breath of the Wild had more depth to it, more actual dungeons and such, I'd say that one is way up there mostly due to the freedom of it all.  Loved exploring every nook and cranny in that game.  I'd also pick something like one of the modern Fallout games just for myself personally, despite some of the issues they have.  I love exploring in them.

I've already talked about RDR2 around here before, so I won't say much on it, but the Red Dead world is really high quality and definitely well designed, I just ended up finding the game getting boring a lot of the time and I'm someone that has a lot of patience for tedious elements in a game.  It's not Grand Theft Auto 4 awful, but it lacks some things and has some clumsy design decisions.  Won't ever be a favorite to me, but it's still a good game for sure.

This.

I would add Skyrim to BotW as being more interesting and fun to be in.

Yeah Skyrim is up there for sure, I just personally have more of an attachment to the Fallout universe for all the scifi stuff compared to swords and magic fantasy, but Skyrim is another pretty good world and feels great exploring.  That's what matters most to me usually, is that I'm rewarded with something really neat for exploring, whether it's lore, or unique weapons, or just a cool location.  It's why I don't put stuff like GTA too high, because you aren't really rewarded for exploring in general.  RDR2 is much the same as I did a lot of exploring, but didn't get much out of it compared to just what I would find traveling normally to places.

[bikingjahuty]

Breath of the Wild gets my vote, hands down.

[98dgreen]

Skyrim with a close second and third going to New Vegas and the Original Red Dead Redemption.

[Cartagia]

I actually think that as an open world game Skyrim leaves a little bit to be desired - there's a lot of content but the world itself is pretty bland and samey.  All grays and white and rocks.  Too drab for me.  And not a ton of memorable characters.

RDR2 probably immerses you into the world better than any game previously, but that immersion comes at a cost: The pacing of the story can get lost.

GTA V suffers from having the game divided into the three narratives.  GTA IV has a way better story, but feels empty.  Vice City was fantastic, but age has not been kind.

The Ubisoft games (Assassin's Creed / Far Cry) are all fun enough, but always feel to be lacking something.  Breath of the Wild and Horizon: Zero Dawn took that formula and perfected it.

If I had to choose I would probably go with the OG Red Dead Redemption.

[burningdoom]

The original Legend of Zelda is a more fun open-world than Red Dead Redemption 2.

[masamune]

The original Legend of Zelda is a more fun open-world than Red Dead Redemption 2.

You must be joking. The original Zelda for the NES was and still is a fun game to play, but I wouldn't pick it over the Witcher III, Red Dead Redemption 2, Dark Souls III or the like.

[burningdoom]

I would pick Legend of Zelda over Red Dead Redemption 2, 100% true.

[oldgamerz]

There is a lot of open world video games out there, but for some, the older ones still are just as fun as the new. I mean whoa there a heck of a lot of open world games out there today But I am also including games like Donkey Kong 64, Mario 64, Spiro The Dragon Series, Pokemon Series, and nearly every RPG ever made. I do consider some of the 3D platformers open world games too at least to some extent, right?

[kamikazekeeg]

There is a lot of open world video games out there, but for some, the older ones still are just as fun as the new. I mean whoa there a heck of a lot of open world games out there today But I am also including games like Donkey Kong 64, Mario 64, Spiro The Dragon Series, Pokemon Series, and nearly every RPG ever made. I do consider some of the 3D platformers open world games too at least to some extent, right?

I wouldn't count any of those as "open world games" at all, not in the same way you would say a GTA, Skyrim, Assassin's Creed, Breath of the Wild, etc...Sure they offer more freedom than other more linear games, but they aren't really open world.

[shfan]

It's a bit like asking "what's your favourite dental procedure?" in my case, I can't stand open world games by and large. They're long on huge empty landscapes and short on actual content, quickly becoming tiresome. I can get away with Saints Row because it's genuinely funny and being a cockney gangster is even funnier, Oblivion's main quest is OK, aside from that I've pulled up the ladder.

[chrismb]

Open world games are one of my favorite genre of games tbh.
My favorite is by far Red Dead Redemption , even today it's still a stunning game and everything about the map is just mind blowing to me. This game is one of the only game where I can literally not find one bad thing to say about it.Red Dead Redemption 2 is also on the same level however i'm not yet finished with the game and haven't seen everything yet. The GTA games also have amazing maps but San Andreas and GTA V have the best ones imo. GTA V's city is probably one of the most realistic and well designed modern city I've ever seen.Watch Dogs 1 and 2 are 2 extremely underrated games imo and definitely one of my favorites open world games. Some other open world games that I really liked are the Assassin's Creed serie, Mafia 3, Sleeping Dogs, Bully, and Infamous Second Son.
For some reasons I tend not to consider games liek Dragon Age Inquisition, Mass Effect Andromeda or The Witcher 3 as open world games since they have multiple worlds that aren't linked together.