Summary
- Indie open-world games offer focused experiences with rewarding replay value.
- A Short Hike and White Lavender provide refreshing gameplay loops.
- Battle Brothers and Terraria offer rich gameplay in small open worlds.
Open-world games can often offer players immense replay value, especially those that feature RPG mechanics that facilitate multiple approaches. However, some players may be turned away from larger open-world games due to their intimidating scale and frequently bloated nature.
Best Indie Open-World RPGs, Ranked
Open-world games are often the domain of big-budget studios, but there are some indie gems out there too.
Thankfully, there are a great number of smaller open-world games that provide more focused experiences. While smaller games can sometimes have less replay value, these titles offer plenty of reason to revisit them after a first playthrough.
1 A Short Hike
Fluid Movement Through Cozy Environments
A Short Hike
- Released
- April 5, 2019
WHERE TO PLAY
A Short Hike is a short, cozy exploration game with a winning ambiance and intuitive controls. This title is quick to learn and provides immediate fun with its charming characters and fluid movement, elevated by a clear and simple gameplay loop.
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While A Short Hike is a short experience, its gameplay is so refreshing, its atmosphere so tranquil, that it's often worth revisiting. The value comes from its short and snappy length and the comfortable nature of its charming environments, as well as the welcome familiarity of its colorful characters.
2 Westerado: Double Barreled
A Replayable Arcade Western
Westerado: Double Barreled
- Released
- April 16, 2015
WHERE TO PLAY
- Publisher(s)
- Adult Swim Games
- Genre(s)
- Indie Games, Action-Adventure
- Platform(s)
- Microsoft Windows, macOS, Xbox One
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
Westerado: Double Barreled harnesses a clear love for classic westerns and nostalgic arcade shooters, offering a simple gameplay loop wrapped in pixel-art charm. The game's open environments support a unique structure, tasking players with finding and hunting down a ruthless outlaw.
Westerado's simple design makes for a wonderfully accessible experience that remains engaging thanks to its added layer of mystery. Since players must find and pursue a different outlaw with every playthrough, Westerado is able to offer a small open-world experience with plenty of replay value.
3 White Lavender
A Minimalist Soulslike
White Lavender
- Released
- June 20, 2022
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Sokpop Collective
- Publisher(s)
- Sokpop Collective
- Platform(s)
- Steam
This minimalist soulslike excels with its unique soundtrack, warbling visuals, and charming theme. Supporting its stylish presentation, however, is a finely-tuned gameplay loop that provides a simple but engaging adaptation of classic soulslike mechanics.
Though its open-world environments are small, White Lavender is full of whimsy, with plenty of wacky characters to meet and enemies to fight. The replay value comes from its RPG elements, which allow players to approach the game from a variety of angles.
4 For The King
A Roguelike Strategy RPG
For The King
- Released
- April 19, 2018
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Ironoak Games
- Publisher(s)
- Curve Digital
- Genre(s)
- RPG
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
For The King is a strategy RPG with a roguelike structure and an open-world map. In the game, players take control of a party of three adventurers, battling enemies across the land and delving into dangerous dungeons along the way.
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This title excels with its accessible combat, offering a distinctive blend of strategy and luck that allows for moments of unpredictable excitement. As a roguelike, For The King boasts plenty of replay value, supported by a wide array of classes and items, as well as the addition of co-operative play.
5 Battle Brothers
A Sandbox RPG In An Open Overworld
Battle Brothers
- Released
- April 27, 2015
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Overhype Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Overhype Studios
- Genre(s)
- Indie Games, Tactical, RPG, Strategy, Adventure
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
The open-world map of Battle Brothers is quick to travel across and small in scope, but it is dense with settlements and points of interest to explore and interact with. More importantly, Battle Brothers is a combat-focused experience, and its open-world only works to support it.
In the game, players manage and command a company of mercenaries, working to complete dangerous contracts across the land. It's the random elements at play and the deep RPG systems that give Battle Brothers its replay value, further elevated by multiple end-game scenarios and starting positions, as well as customizable difficulty.
6 Disco Elysium
A Small But Dense World
Disco Elysium
- Released
- October 15, 2019
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- ZA/UM
- Publisher(s)
- ZA/UM
- Genre(s)
- RPG
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Stadia
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
Disco Elysium is a melancholic adventure game with a poignant soundtrack and evocative writing, excelling with its simple loop and complex web of dialogue and RPG systems. From its opening vignette, Disco Elysium plays at a slow pace, but it's an intentionally slower burn that constantly works to pique the player's curiosity and motivate them through its painterly world.
The world itself, while open in its environments, is small. However, Disco Elysium is so dense with points of interest, unique characters, and imaginative environments that it's easy to get lost in despite its small size. Furthermore, the game boasts plenty of replay value with its deep RPG character progression — a system that allows for multiple approaches.
7 The Long Dark
Survival In Interconnected Regions
The Long Dark
- Released
- August 1, 2017
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Hinterland Studio
- Publisher(s)
- Hinterland Studio
- Genre(s)
- Survival Horror
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
The Long Dark is a hardcore survival game that excels with its quiet, harsh, and hostile world. In the game, players must battle the elements, wild animals, and unforgiving simulation, making the best of their surroundings in order to survive for as long as they can.
The Long Dark isn't the smallest open-world experience, with a variety of expanses spread throughout its world. However, it's broken up into digestible regions, each uniquely memorable, that keep exploration compact. The replay value comes primarily from its survival mode, which allows players to enjoy the game indefinitely with a variety of difficulties.
8 Terraria
Crafting & Surviving In A Procedural World
Terraria
- Released
- May 16, 2011
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Re-Logic
- Publisher(s)
- 505 Games
- Platform(s)
- PC, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, Vita, iOS, Android, macOS, Linux, 3DS, Stadia, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
With its procedural world, ramping difficulty, and diverse gameplay, Terraria is a highly replayable open-world experience. This survival-craft game champions intense boss fights and creative base-building in equal measure, giving players plenty of opportunities to express themselves both in and out of combat.
Be it delving into dangerous caves, developing a burgeoning town, or fighting a challenging boss, Terraria excels with its multi-faceted gameplay. Best of all, the game can be enjoyed alone or played cooperatively.
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