15 Best Open-World Video Games Of The Decade

1. The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild

Though it's inevitably going to be compared considering it just beat it out to the top spot of this list, The Legend of Zelda placing higher than Red Dead Redemption 2 is emblematic of just how malleable and versatile open world games can be.

Breath of the Wild's version of Hyrule is treated like one big level, and like Death Stranding it's all about the journey rather than the destination. Though they're simple, Breath's mechanics all compliment each other and make it so no two players will ever get through its world in the exact same way.

A lot of games pitch you as an adventurer, but few follow through on that as well as this Nintendo masterpiece. This is a hostile world that's out to get you, but piece by piece you conquer it, from the lush fields of the early game to the volcanic mountains found hours later.

It's the freedom that the game gives you to experience its world that's so special. If you want, you can try to defeat the final boss as soon as you pick up the controller, but Nintendo trusts you to make your own judgements, to explore at your own leisure, and conquer this world on your own terms while having a tremendous amount of fun along the way.