Fittingly, the game that sees you exploring this ridiculously sumptuous environment is more than worthy of its setting. Putting your guns down and going for walks on the towering mountains and windswept fields is well worth a go.ġ4. Just watch out for the robots.įor a game in which the world is built around action-packed set pieces and all-out madness, the scenery of Los Santos and its surrounding mountains are stunning. Bloodthirsty robots aside, the environment is an eerily beautiful 31st Century Earth that has seen nature reclaim much of the landscape. This is a post-apocalyptic world with a twist, with huge, deadly, dinosaur-like robots scouring the land for some lovely humans to snack on. It’s a fun-filled, goofy, fascinating look at life, the universe, and, well… everything! There’s no real point to it, but the fun to be had in controlling anything from microbes floating in the air to entire planets and galaxies themselves is immense.
The atmosphere, the animations, the art-deco, 1950s LA and the intrigue remain insatiably captivating all these years after its release. Keen-eyed readers may spot that we’ve already chatted about this cracking crime noire of a game here, and for good reason. Think you know pain? Try dropping into lava and losing your inventory… You never quite know what you’re getting yourself in to, which keeps things remarkably fresh and can lead to calm, peaceful sessions or ones packed with action in equal measure. It’s a testament to Minecraft’s enduring appeal that, ten years on, legions regularly dip back into its randomly generated worlds. It’s a slow-burner (sorry, pun sort-of intended…), and is a pleasingly sedate change of pace. Not an open world game in the conventional sense, this charming title sees two strangers develop a surprisingly engrossing friendship while you keep an eye on and tend to a beautiful, autumnal-looking forest. Fantasy lovers and just plain old gamers alike will have plenty to love with this action-packed RPG romp.īoy, do we love Firewatch. The most acclaimed game of 2015 and arguably one of the best of all time, this cracking fantasy epic sees you journeying through the magical, fantastical and mysterious world of the Continent. Effectively a 2D, side-scrolling iteration of Minecraft, you can explore randomly generated environments for resources and, well, do pretty much anything you can imagine… Careful though, hours can evaporate with this one.Īvailable on PC, PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch This delightful exploration game is like a small, digitalised chill pill on a screen. From a New York-esque cityscape to a desert via a snow world and another that’s underwater, there is no end to the number of places you can explore and triple-jump through in this ridiculously brilliant game.Īvailable on PC, PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and 3DS When a company as old as Nintendo delivers a banger so brilliant it ranks amongst their very best efforts, you know to sit down and take note. Why? Because it’s the only the game where you can have Gladiator-style foam sword fights, sky-dive, fly a plane, shoot some hoops, play table-tennis and so much more and do so while listening to absolute tunes like this. Yes, we’ve whacked Wii Sports Resort in there. A game that lets you do so in a brilliantly dark, gritty, city-sized insane asylum packed with the legendary caped crusader’s most fearsome foes? Where do we sign? This is a must-have for racing and open world fans alike.Ī game that lets you punch, kick, glide, swoop, soar, whack and crunch wrong’uns as Batman? Sure, why not. Tear Mini Coopers through the gloriously rendered streets of Edinburgh or a Lambo through the Cotswolds. Never have British roads looked better or flown past faster than on this cracking fourth entry to Forza’s open world spin-off series.