Two genres of video games might be the most expensive to make: the open-world sandbox and the life simulator. The former requires not only ample open space to explore but also land that is densely packed with content and enough realism to maintain player immersion. Developers making the latter need to take into account hundreds and thousands of optional player activities and make them all fun enough to make up for the free-form lack of structure that the player expects. Only a few studios have the time, talent, or money to make either, but even fewer have the resources to do both simultaneously.

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It's much easier to offer players a top-down perspective and ask them to imagine the details (like in games such as Rimworld or Dwarf Fortress), but it's entirely something else to put the player on the ground, behind the eyes of a stranger. Having to design all the detailed assets and animations for a first-person experience in such a game costs money and resources, but somehow, for the sake of total freedom and absolute immersion, these games have pulled it off.

Medieval Dynasty

A Chance To Homestead In Simpler Times

• Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
• Released: 2020-09-23
• Developer: Render Cube
• Genre: Open World, Strategy, RPG, Simulation

Farming in the morning, hunting in the afternoon, and putting down the foundation for a new henhouse in the evening are all part of a peasant's day, at least in Medieval Dynasty. Across seasons and generations, players will build up their homestead or settlement wherever they please, all while trying to avoid starvation, economic ruin, or camped-out bandits. To do this, they'll need to learn about seasonal crop rotations, the lay of the land, and crafting.

Players would easily get lost in the Medieval Dynasty's huge world without their map. There is so much to explore, with secrets nested in hidden areas, such as mines, treasures, and incredible vistas on which to build the perfect village. Finding the right partner with the right traits is important to building a strong lineage, and of course, not much can get done without a community around to help with the chores and odd jobs.

My Summer Car

An Intricate Vehicle Builder With Surprisingly Candid Gameplay Mechanics

• Platform: PC
• Released: 2016-10-24
• Developer: Amistech Games
• Genre: Survival, Vehicle Simulation

Tongue-in-cheek, raunchy, and, at times, intensely challenging, My Summer Car throws players into the Finish countryside in the 1990s during a crazy summer road trip. The titular car is the main focus of most of the game, and not just the driving of it. Those who enjoy rummaging in the guts of an automobile will love the elaborate complexity of repairing, tuning, and upgrading their vehicle. Doing so requires that the player uses precisely the right tools, parts, and pieces, even down to screw sizes, blurring the lines between immersive simulation, mechanical education, and maddening puzzle game.

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The player's car will break down frequently, especially without being assembled correctly. Parts have to be ordered via mail, and it is quite easy to fail a mandatory car inspection when the time comes. Thankfully, there is a dedicated button for flipping the bird to the inspector (or to anyone, at any time), which won't change the outcome, but it is cathartic (or car-thartic). Between its painfully accurate engine-building sections, cold sauna sessions, cop chases, and lightning-storm-induced permadeaths, My Summer Car offers a bizarrely realistic, often chaotic, and unforgettable ride.

Landlord's Super

A Satirical Blend Of Construction And The Urban, Open-World Survival Sim

• Platform: PC
• Released: 2023-05-25
• Developer: MinskWorks
• Genre: RPG, Simulation

Owning a home may be a real-life power fantasy for most under 40s in this decade, thanks to the impact of the 2008 recession, skyrocketing property valuations, and the ever-increasing cost of rent. Those looking to relive the good old days should try Landlord's Super, which invites players to experience Thatcher's 1980s Britain, where home ownership was par for the course and when many of today's most successful British landlords got their start. Players go from living in a trailer home to lording over an empire of fully-customizable and highly lucrative rentable properties, thanks to a little "graft."

Everything is done by hand in Landlord's Super, including laying down bricks, putting up furniture, taking a break in the pub with smokes and a pint of lager, and negotiating paperwork discrepancies with the local council. Players must manage their avatar's needs by filling up with pub snacks and booze to keep them going while they do odd jobs and build stuff across the town of Sheffingham. However, if they fail to manage their consumption, they could end up spending the night in the local police station with a hefty fine to pay off.

Sengoku Dynasty

An Immersive And Impressively Detailed Recreation Of Japanese Fuedal Peasantry

• Platform: PC
• Released: 2023-08-23
• Developer: Superkami
• Genre: Open-world, Simulation

Fans of the Dynasty franchise might consider Sengoku Dynasty to be a rehash of one of the other "builders" of the same time period, but quite a few things set it apart, besides the stunning visuals on offer inspired by Japanese culture and its gorgeous wilderness scenery. Although storytelling is not its main focus, there is more of a narrative to be had in Sengoku Dynasty, and conversations with NPCs are immersive and enjoyable. The attention to detail is stunning, and passion has clearly been put into recreating the intricacies of building, farming, and cultural practices from the Sengoku era.

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There is less customization on offer compared to other immersive city builders, as each building, like the player character, is prefabricated, perhaps to maintain the aesthetic of feudal-era Japan. This removes some tedium associated with the genre, but some life sim fans may miss being able to fiddle with the intricacies of these mechanics (but as an open-access title, this may change in the future). Sengoku Dynasty's co-op multiplayer allows friends to farm rice, hunt wild animals, and fold Japanese steel 100 times as a group of wannabe rice farmers, hunters, or samurais.

Mon Bazou

A Relaxing Rampage Through Rural Canada

• Platform: PC
• Released: 2021-12-16
• Developer: Santa Goat
• Genre: Casual, Survival, Racing, Simulation

For anyone who has ever fantasized about living the life of a street racing, maple-syrup-growing Canadian in the mid-2000s, Mon Bazou might be their dream game. From growing potatoes to hand-customizing a sporty racer, there is plenty of life to simulate. Much of the game is car-based, as players can use it to make money by winning street races (if their ride is fast enough) or delivering pizza pies to hungry customers. While customization isn't the deepest, it scratches an itch for those who love to tinker with fixer-uppers, and driving itself feels as tight as it should.

While a lot of the rewards can take time and effort to attain, it is a more forgiving and relaxed track than other car-based games of the same ilk. That isn't to say there are no dangers of challenges. Tipping over cars is easily done and can have disastrous consequences, and running out of gas is tantamount to running out of oxygen in outer space. Life meters need constant attention, as even in the idyllic land of Canada, it is possible to die without regular sips of water or life-giving syrup.

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