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Open-world games are some of the most exciting video games, becoming the ultimate form of immersion, second only to simulators. In open-world titles, players can get lost in an artificial world full of virtual characters and perform actions they wouldn’t dream of doing in real life.
In most open-world games, players have the freedom to go about anywhere they wish to, leaving the main story on hold and go exploring the game's world to their heart's content. Such curiosity is rewarded with unique loot, new side-quests, or sometimes just a furious enemy that is too hard to defeat.
If you’re someone who spends most of their virtual time in open-world games and is looking for some titles to keep you busy this September, then this is just the place for you. This feature will look at ten of the best open-world games worth replaying this month.
Note: This article reflects the writer's opinion.
10 open-world games to get into in September 2022
1) Red Dead Redemption 2
An open-world game suggestions list is not complete until one mentions Red Dead Redemption 2, so I thought it best to get the obvious out of the way first. Serving as a prequel to 2010’s Red Dead Redemption, this action-adventure title follows the story of the Van der Linde gang and their efforts to survive in a world that holds no place for them.
The game is set in the late 1800s, as the Industrial Revolution catches up to the American Wild West. The gang of outlaws, led by Dutch Van der Linde, seeks to make one last heist to get enough money to see them safely out of a life of crime and possibly help them relocate to Tahiti.
Not only does the game feature an extraordinary story, a tremendously detailed open world, and great visual shots, its characters and their arcs are some of the best in video game history. Arthur Morgan is one of the most likable protagonists ever created for a video game, and Roger Clarke gave a phenomenal performance as the character.
2) Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
If you love Assassin’s Creed, then there’s little reason not to get into the world of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla once more. This is the latest title in the Assassin’s Creed series so far and will possibly be the last RPG game before developer Ubisoft launches Assassin’s Creed Infinity, which is set to be a live-service game.
In Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, you’ll take on the role of Eivor, a Viking estranged from her home in Norway and seeking to form a kingdom of her own in eighth-century England. Thus, the open-world game is primarily set in a condensed map of England, where players must raid villages, siege forts, and form alliances with other Vikings.
Valhalla has a good balance of older Assassin’s Creed elements, such as blending in with crowds, eagle vision (named here as Odin Sight), and a greater emphasis on stealth, along with the more recent RPG aspects. The iconic hidden blade returns after its absence in Odyssey and is a formidable instrument for stealth attacks.
3) Dragon Age: Inquisition
BioWare is well known for its expansive world-building, well-written characters, and a great story; nowhere is this more evident than in Dragon Age: Inquisition. This fantasy open-world game came out in 2014 as a sequel to Dragon Age II and is the third major installment in the Dragon Age series.
You will be taking on the role of an Inquisitor caught in an explosion resulting from opening a strange portal above the land of Thedas. Tasked with closing the portal, the Inquisitor will head out into the world, forming allies and recruiting them to their party to assemble the dream team that will eventually save the world.
If you enjoy epic fantasy adventures, you can’t miss out on this open-world fantasy title, especially with such a story that will keep you invested at all times. A sequel to the game has been announced, Dragon Age: Dreadwolf, which is currently in development under BioWare.
4) Horizon Forbidden West
The sequel to Horizon Zero Dawn, one of the best open-world games ever made, is Horizon Forbidden West. The game came out in early 2022 in February, around the same time as Elden Ring, and yet managed to make waves and show the video game industry how a good sequel should be done.
Aloy returns as the protagonist, taking the story to a new area of the post-apocalyptic world seen in these games. Known only as the Forbidden West, Aloy must retrieve a backup copy of the AI Gaia to prevent the world from being destroyed by its degenerating biosphere.
Forbidden West makes small quality-of-life changes to the original game and adds various new skills and abilities for Aloy to use. One of the best new features is the ability to tame a Sunwing, a flying creature, using which Aloy can soar through the skies, which makes travel in this open-world game much more enjoyable.
5) Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain
If you enjoy stealth games, then Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is probably something you’ve tried before. So why not get back into it once more? Playing as Venom Snake, you’ll have access to a large open environment where you can employ various tactics and abilities to take down targets.
Phantom Pain features some of the best stealth mechanics in video game history, and as an open-world game, it allows players to approach any objective in their own way. The various gadgets, skills, and abilities are just tools in your belt, and you can choose which ones to employ in various scenarios.
This freedom of expression is what saw the game rise to such prolific status, and it's a shame that the series shut down at the height of its prime. While rumors of new Metal Gear games do occasionally pop up, fans of the series eagerly hope for some official news regarding the series and its revival.
6) Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered
I expect PC players to have finished with Marvel’s Spider-Man by now, so why not give the remastered version a go in September? Carrying over all your gadget upgrades, unlocked suits, and no worries about collectibles, this time around, you can fully focus on the story and maybe even have a fuller experience because of it.
The same goes for PlayStation users, as this is just too good a superhero game to be left alone for too long. Featuring one of the best Spider-Man stories in modern media, the game lets you completely embrace the feeling of being Spider-Man, including all the rough jerks and bumps along the way.
One of the best features of this open-world game is the world traversal, which is done via Spidey’s iconic web-swinging. While for first-timers, it might need a little getting used to, once mastered, it is a surreal experience to zip around the city of Manhattan, soaring through rooftops and skimming the jam-packed streets.
7) Cyberpunk 2077
Cyberpunk 2077 is an open-world game set in the futuristic metropolis of Night City. Set during a time when body augmentation using technology is a common practice and nearly everyone has a chip in their heads, this game takes the cyberpunk genre to a new level, especially in a video game setting.
Despite having a disastrous launch, Cyberpunk 2077 has become a phenomenal video gaming experience after numerous fixes, updates, and patches from developer CD Projekt Red. With many new features that make end-game content much more enjoyable, now is the perfect time to revisit this title if you have been put off by it before.
This week, a new patch for the game, Patch 1.6, will add new content inspired by the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners anime from Netflix. In addition, a new expansion titled Phantom Liberty has also been showcased, which is set to be released in 2023.
8) Ghost of Tsushima
Set in ancient Japan, during the beginning of the Mongol invasion, Ghost of Tsushima is an open-world game that follows the story of protagonist Jin Sakai. Jin is an honor-bound Samurai who becomes responsible for his people as the Mongols invade the island of Tsushima after conquering the kingdom of Goryeo.
Posed with unassailable odds, Jin must decide whether he should disregard his Samurai rules and become a dishonorable ghost and strike from the shadows to take out large numbers. This decision ultimately falls to the player in how they approach enemy encounters and which path they mostly follow, the path of the Samurai or the Ghost.
As an open-world game, players have the island of Tsushima at their disposal, which they can traverse on horseback or foot. In addition to the main story, many side objectives can be found in the world, generally as requests from NPCs. Various secret areas and collectibles are also hidden around the map.
9) Fallout 4
If you’re a Bethesda head and have grown tired of restarting Skyrim, maybe give Fallout 4 another go. While it might not be hailed as the best game in the series, it is still the best-looking title (we don’t talk about Fallout 76) and has about as much potential to be an engaging game as Skyrim is set in a post-apocalyptic Boston.
Playing as the “Sole Survivor,” you’ll emerge out of Vault 111 in search of your missing baby. However, like in all open-world games by Bethesda, that objective can take a back seat because you’ll probably be immediately drawn into a richly crafted world filled with interesting characters and mutant monstrosities.
As in Skyrim, you can create your own legend and do whatever pleases you. Play the role of the hero by liberating synths with the Railroad and being the good Samaritan, or be a self-serving character by looting and shooting everything in sight; the virtual world is your oyster.
10) Elden Ring
FromSoftware’s first true open-world game came in the form of Elden Ring early in 2022. Despite some skeptical rumors before its launch, the game managed to wow nearly everyone who played it, despite being one of the most challenging games of the year. It is, after all, a Soulsborne game.
The open-world game format did not hamper developers FromSoftware from telling another compelling tale of dark fantasy. Although, not much about Elden Ring is dark as the story and even the world is alluring and attractive, especially when compared to the likes of Dark Souls and Bloodborne.
Featuring the most extensive map in any FromSoftware game so far, Elden Ring contains five huge explorable areas, each of which is further divided into different areas and consists of sub-regions, dungeons, and caves to fool around in. It will be a while before you run out of things to do in Elden Ring.
