Players can easily sink hundreds of hours into open-world games. From immersive open-world games set in historical locations and far-flung fantasy environments to action-packed modern masterpieces, this genre has it all.

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Open-world games give players a ton of freedom to work with. These titles have stood out the most over the years.

Although the best of these games are often paired with fantastic main storylines, the greatest draw of most open-world games is the freedom to explore. However, while big maps can be great, if they feel empty, their size can become a hindrance. Open-world games with dense maps packed full of things to do are therefore extremely popular and always keep players on their toes with plenty of content.

Updated May 29, 2024 by Joe Grantham: There are many ways in which an open world can be considered dense. For example, even if a game doesn't have the most content, the map can still feel dense if there is a high population of NPCs going about their life in a bustling metropolitan city. Architecture also plays a role in how dense a video game world feels, and if players can enter and explore lots of buildings, that can have a huge effect on the perception of density. While some open-world games suffer from bloating with players feeling overwhelmed and bored by the endless map markers, other games manage to find the right balance.

11 Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

The Various Maps Feel Complex & Cramped In A Great Way

In some ways, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided isn't a true open-world game, as it is made up of many smaller maps that can all be explored freely at different times. However, each of these maps is incredibly dense, with action lurking around every corner.

True to its cyberpunk setting, the world feels cramped, and not only lived in but lived in by far too many people. In fact, the map is perhaps the game's greatest feature, with environmental storytelling playing a huge role. Armed with state-of-the-art weapons and augments, players must navigate this dense world to succeed in their covert operations.

10 Marvel's Spider-Man 2

New York Feels Truly Alive With How Densely Populated It Is

Marvel's Spider-Man 2 takes place in New York City, and although a few iconic buildings are missing for legal reasons and other changes have been made to facilitate gameplay, it is a very familiar replica of the bustling city. As such, the game is already dense by nature, and so was the previous installment, but this sequel takes things further with how densely populated the city is.

New York feels like a pulsing heart in Marvel's Spider-Man 2, with more traffic, more NPCs going about their lives, and more random interactions. There is also no shortage of things to do in this masterpiece, especially as players can switch between Peter Parker and Miles Morales.

9 Risen

The Map Appears Very Small At First But Hides A Lot Within

Fans of the classic Gothic series are well-used to small and dense maps, but the game Risen, made in a similar vein by the same developers, arguably takes density further. To the untrained eye of a new player, Risen's map feels very small, and in terms of square miles, it is.

However, there are many caves and dungeons hidden underground, and players will be surprised at just how much content is packed into small areas of this gritty fantasy game. Impressively for a game from 2009, there are also no loading screens which helps players immerse themselves in the world.

8 Hogwarts Legacy

The Castle Of Hogwarts Is Jam Packed With Secrets & Hidden Rooms

The world-famous castle of Hogwarts naturally plays a massive role in Hogwarts Legacy and even has a 3D map of its own. This region is particularly dense with plenty of puzzles, mini-games, and side quests. More importantly for Harry Potter fans, there is a lot to see in Hogwarts, which is packed full of easter eggs from the books.

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14 Hogwarts Legacy Characters Related To Harry Potter Characters

Longtime Harry Potter fans may have noticed that many of the NPCs in Hogwarts Legacy share a bloodline with characters from the books and movies.

The other areas of Hogwarts Legacy's map are also dense, although not to the same extent as the wizarding school. Scattered throughout the map are plenty of exploration challenges, including 95 Merlin Trials, as well as camps swarming with enemies that respawn and dozens of locations where players can find and capture magical creatures.

7 Yakuza/Like A Dragon Games

Small But Packed With Quests, Mini-Games, And Personality

Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and Sega's Yakuza/Like a Dragon franchise is synonymous with small but dense urban landscapes, with each entry usually revolving around one or two districts. While modern entries like Infinite Wealth feature considerably bigger sandboxes than the PS2-era releases, they are still relatively tiny compared to other open-world projects; however, that does not mean they lack content.

More often than not, Yakuza players will barely be able to take a step without triggering some sort of activity, be it a side story, mini-game, main quest, or just a random fight (be it turn-based or real-time). Importantly, these components are consistently high quality.

6 Assassin's Creed Odyssey

The Map Is Packed With Markers & Points Of Interest

The vast majority of the Assassin's Creed games are known for having dense maps, which makes perfect sense given that parkour plays a vital role in the series. While the early installments in the series were arguably the densest in terms of cities and buildings, a game such as Assassin's Creed Odyssey manages to combine multiple urban environments with a myriad of content.

Set in 5th-century BCE Ancient Greece, players can travel by ship to various city-states, all of which have been wonderfully recreated using the latest historical knowledge. All of these locations are packed full of intrigue and things to do, and whether players opt for stealth or less discreet methods, there is never a lack of combat available.

5 Fallout 4

Post-Apocalyptic Boston Is Unsurprisingly Dense

Fallout 4 is one of Bethesda's best-selling games. One of the reasons for its success is its dense map, which has players looking around every corner for the next adventure. The game takes place in the year 2287 in the city of Boston and the surrounding Massachusetts area, and naturally, the closer players get to the city center, the more there is to see and do.

The list of things to do in Fallout 4 goes on and on, but players can actually make the game even denser by building their own structures or settlements.

4 The Witcher 3

Each Of The Smaller Maps Are Dense With No Empty Land Between

While many games achieve density in their map by having everything packed into a smaller map, The Witcher 3 somehow manages to have one of the biggest open-world maps while maintaining density. For players who own all the DLC, the map comes to about 88 square miles, and yet players will never run out of things to do.

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Favor the pacifist routes in your open-world games? There's no other way with these particular titles, as they have no combat mechanics.

In part, this is achieved by the game teleporting players from region to region, cutting out the empty land that would otherwise just be for travel. This allows players to go from Witcher contract to Witcher contract or simply clear out camps for the fun of it. There is also always someone nearby who will offer Geralt a friendly game of Gwent.

3 Grand Theft Auto 5

The Downtown Areas Are Dense With Buildings, NPCs, & Things To Do

A large portion of Grand Theft Auto 5 takes place in the city of Los Santos, which is heavily inspired by Los Angeles, and as such, the downtown regions of the map are particularly dense, both in terms of environment and content.

Whether players are experiencing the game in story mode or online with their friends, there is always plenty to do in GTA 5 from tennis, darts, and a plethora of races, to robbing stores and staging heists. Every area of the map is also brought to life by the realistic NPCs that Rockstar Games are known for, and players will never feel like they are alone in the world.

2 Watch Dogs

As Almost Everything Can Be Hacked, There Is Something To Do Every Few Metres

The original Watch Dogs game takes place in Chicago, and due to the hacking mechanics that are at the core of the game, every area of the map is dense. This is because, throughout the city, almost everything can be hacked, from traffic lights and explosives to the cell phones of any pedestrian.

Outside of hacking, there are plenty of less nefarious activities for players to engage in while playing Watch Dogs, including chess, poker, and various other games.

1 Batman: Arkham City

The Small Map Of Arkham Is Full Of Criminals & Riddles

Batman: Arkham City is one of the greatest superhero adaptations in video game history. Other than a stellar story and invigorating gameplay, one of the ways the game found success was through its relatively small, but dense map.

The infamous city of Arkham feels truly alive and riddles left behind by the Riddler keep the player constantly on their toes. Arkham can also be said to never run out of criminals, and taking them down in Batman: Arkham City never gets boring.

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