Best Open-World Games On PS Plus

In June 2022, Sony unleashed its new

PlayStation Plus

. Split into three tiers, the service offers subscribers access to hundreds of games from across PlayStation’s history, including PS1 and PSP projects. Along with showing love for the brand’s history, PS Plus also covers most genres, be it horror, platformers, RPGs, or strategy. Unsurprisingly, PS Plus does not skimp out on open-world games either.

Whether searching for a PlayStation exclusive or a third-party juggernaut, PS Plus Extra and Premium should have most players covered. With so many titles to pick from, knowing where to start can be challenging, and that extends to open-world projects. PS Plus covers this genre quite extensively, including everything from first-person shooters to survival and role-playing games. Therefore, let’s take a look at the

best open-world PS Plus games

.

While every upcoming game is on PS Plus Premium, some titles are not part of the Extra tier.

Horizon Forbidden West

Metascore: 88

Approximately a year following its debut,

Horizon Forbidden West

has been officially added to PS Plus Extra. Besides being a big get for the platform, this announcement might provide some indication of how Sony plans to treat first-party titles when it comes to its subscription service. That said, one example is not a pattern, so expectations should be kept in check.

Guerrilla Games’ sequel sees Aloy heading west, visiting areas that were once part of Utah, Nevada, and California, just to name a few featured states.

Horizon Forbidden West

retains what worked in

Horizon Zero Dawn

, which is also on PS Plus Extra, all the while expanding on a few things that could have been improved upon. While the 2017 release has a beautiful and impressive open-world, its sequel fills it with more interesting side content and micro stories. Consequently,

HFW

‘s map feels slightly more alive. When it comes to combat, the game delivers thrilling encounters that pit Aloy against both humans and robots. The latter is undoubtedly the campaign’s highlight.

Horizon Zero Dawn

is also on PS Plus Extra.

Tchia

Metascore: 77

Debuting directly on PS Plus Extra, which is a rare treat,

Tchia

is an indie open-world game that might have gone unnoticed if it was not readily available to a pre-existing user base. Cast as the eponymous girl, players traverse a beautiful island that is ruled by a less-than-beloved god. When her father is kidnapped, Tchia heads out to save him, using a unique power that allows her to take over the bodies of animals or objects.

Considering it was created by a fairly small team,

Tchia

is an impressive achievement that can stand alongside most bigger budget projects in the genre. That said, the game is fairly short by open-world standards, although that can be viewed as a positive. While not devoid of combat, the title’s primary focus is exploration, which is enhanced through Tchia’s ability.

Metascore: 81

Debuting in 2011,

Skyrim

was a massive hit right out of the gate, and its popularity has not waned over the last decade. The

Special Edition

is the definitive way to experience Bethesda’s masterpiece on consoles, as it improves the visuals and provides support for mods (which have played a huge part in extending the RPG’s lifespan).

Skyrim

‘s open-world approaches perfection as it encourages exploration and discovery. The main storyline is fine, but the game’s success lies in its immersive locations, customization options, and character writing. Even as the years continue to pass,

Skyrim

still comes across as a big deal, and its addition to PS Plus Extra makes the service seem far more complete.

The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion

is also on PS Plus Premium (but not Extra).

The Elder Scrolls Online

is on PS Plus Extra.

Final Fantasy

15 Royal Edition

Metascore: 77

Square Enix brought the

Final Fantasy

series into the Open World genre with the release of

Final Fantasy 15

. Prior to its release, fans still got a taste of “open world” gameplay with installments like

Final Fantasy 7

, which allowed them to traverse an overworld via an Airship. But

Final Fantasy 15

marks the first time that the series has entered a state of true freedom, allowing players to traverse a large open world filled with enemies, items, towns, and secrets.

The end result is a fascinating and unique

Final Fantasy

title that follows four protagonists on a journey across an expansive land, built with the same hybrid-style ATB and Action combat that players have come to love.

Fallout 4

Metascore: 87

Bethesda’s latest single-player

Fallout

is on offering with PS Plus for players who are looking to patrol through the wastelands. With a map that’s even larger than

Skyrim

‘s,

Fallout 4

gives players tons of areas to explore, with a multitude of sidequests to complete and secrets to uncover. Those looking for an FPS-style RPG with a myriad of areas to conquer should definitely fall in love with the iconic release.

The franchise has been going strong, offering players a multitude of great open-world adventures and

Fallout 4

is no exception. Players can expect to put some serious time into this game if they want to “see and do everything possible,” and that’s not even counting the DLC add-ons.

Fallout 76

is also on PS Plus Extra, while

Fallout 3

and

New Vegas

are on PS Plus Premium.

Assassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag

Metascore: 84

PS Plus Extra has a plethora of

Assassin’s Creed

games, including fairly recent releases such as

Odyssey

. Subscribers can readily spend half a year playing through the franchise’s PS Plus projects, allowing them to explore a wide range of historical worlds. Picking a favorite will likely come down to a person’s preferred setting; someone might gravitate toward

Syndicate

‘s UK aesthetic or feel more at home in

Origins

‘ Ancient Egypt. The latter is actually a good entry point since the game acts as something of a soft reboot, along with being one of the franchise’s stronger entries.

However,

Black Flag

should not be ignored either, especially since the game stands on its own quite well. Set during the height of piracy,

Black Flag

takes place in the West Indies, a map filled with diverse locations, three central cities, and lots to discover. The campaign quickly puts the player behind the wheel of a ship and gets them out on the water, encouraging them to explore to their heart’s content.

Black Flag

is, first and foremost, a pirate game rather than an

Assassin’s Creed

sequel, and this helps differentiate it from everything that came before and after.

The following open-world

Assassin’s Creed

games are on PS Plus Extra:

• 
  Assassin’s Creed: The Ezio Collection
  
• 
  Assassin’s Creed 3: Remastered
  
• 
  Assassin’s Creed Rogue Remastered
  
• 
  Assassin’s Creed Unity
  
• 
  Assassin’s Creed Rogue Remastered
  
• 
  Assassin’s Creed Freedom Cry
  
• 
  Assassin’s Creed Syndicate
  
• 
  Assassin’s Creed Origins
  
• 
  Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
  

Ghost Of Tsushima: Director’s Cut

Metascore: 87

The PS4’s swan song as Sony’s main console,

Ghost of Tsushima

transports players back in time to the 13th century as the Mongols invade Japan’s Tsushima Island. After failing to stop the invasion and almost meeting his end, Jin Sakai goes on a quest to recruit fighters that could help turn the tide of battle.

Ghost of Tsushima

‘s open-world is gorgeous, be it on the PS4 or the PS5. Tsushima Island is lavish, varied, and breathtaking. The same can also be said about Iki Island, the location of the expansion that is included in the Director’s Cut. Within this map, players can look forward to engaging in intense samurai-themed battles and decent side quests with memorable NPCs.

Yakuza: Like A Dragon

Metascore: 86

Another

Yakuza

-related recommendation might seem like overkill, but

Like a Dragon

is a considerable departure from everything that came before it. Released in 2020, the game initiated a new era in the franchise’s history, one that brought on a number of significant changes. Rather than Kiryu,

Yakuza: Like a Dragon

‘s protagonist is Ichiban Kasuga, a character with a much louder personality than his predecessor. Inspired by old-school heroes found in games like

Dragon Quest

, Ichiban is likable, and the same can be said for the rest of the main characters.

Like a Dragon

utilizes a turn-based combat system reminiscent of Ichiban’s favorite game, and while not perfect, it is a solid first attempt at this style of gameplay. More importantly for this article’s topic, this RPG takes place in a new setting, Yokohama’s Isezaki Ijincho. As tends to be the case with this franchise, the open-world is small by the genre’s standards, but the map is densely packed with quests, mini-games, and stores.

Lost Judgment

Metascore: 82

Like a Dragon

might be all about turn-based combat nowadays, at least the main entries, but the

Judgment

spin-off series has kept the franchise linked to its beat ’em up roots. While a third entry does not seem all that likely, both games are great fun, and they are available on PS Plus Extra. Newcomers should start with 2019’s

Judgment

, which introduces Takayuki Yagami, a lawyer who quit the business to become a private investigator. Known to take on risky cases, Yagami gets dragged into a challenging murder case in the original game, which eventually puts him in contact with the Yakuza.

The sequel does not deviate too far from its predecessor’s ideas, but it does fine-tune some elements to craft a superior overall package. For instance, both games incorporate lackluster detective-style mechanics, but the sequel spreads them out a bit more to try and make them less annoying. The melee combat is fast-paced and satisfying in both titles, and it should hit the spot with fans of Kiryu’s

Yakuza

era; however,

Lost Judgment

just adds a tinge more depth to the system.

While all of that is great,

Lost Judgment

‘s main selling points are its storyline and world, the latter of which comes packed with side quests and minigames. Like quite a few entries in this license, the game is set in Kamurocho, which is inspired by Tokyo’s Kabukicho district. The reused map might get tiresome for long-time

Yakuza

fans, but the open-world is great and charming. Story-wise,

Lost Judgment

focuses on bullying, a touchy subject that the game treats seriously but also struggles to explore with nuance. Nevertheless, the campaign produces more than a few awesome moments.

Saints Row 2

Metascore: 82

PS Plus has three

Saints Row

games:

Saints Row 2

,

Saints Row 4

, and

Gat Out of Hell

. Despite falling within the same franchise, all three games are fairly different from each other.

Saints Row 4

and its spin-off,

Gat Out of Hell

, are unapologetically over-the-top to the point that they bear almost no resemblance to reality. They play somewhat similar to

Crackdown

, and they cast players as superhero-style characters who have abilities that make most of the conventional components of an open-world game like vehicles and weapons obsolete.

Saints Row 4

is fun, provided players know what they are getting into.

On the other hand,

Saints Row 2

is more down to earth, while nevertheless leaning into parody and comedic territory. Set in Stillwater, the story tasks the protagonist with reforming the Saints, which naturally means they will need to take on other gangs that have gotten a foothold in the city. Even if it is not as absurd as later entries in the franchise, the sandbox game still gives players all the tools they need to spread mayhem on the street. It just happens to be accompanied by a pretty good story and some great characters.

Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales

Metascore: 85

Insomniac’s

Marvel’s Spider-Man

is arguably the Wall-Crawler’s greatest game, although it does have stiff competition from a few older titles. Unfortunately, the 2018 release is not available on PS Plus Extra, having been removed in May 2023; that said, superhero fans yearning to swing through New York City can jump into

Miles Morales

, a spin-off that maintains the main entry’s high standard of quality.

Even though it ties into

Spider-Man

in a few ways,

Miles Morales

can be treated as a standalone experience since it has a fairly self-contained story. As its subtitle suggests, the game swaps Peter Parker for Miles, who is still in his infancy as a hero. Both games do splendid jobs of recreating New York City, and while it is not overly packed with memorable side content, the open-world is nevertheless fun to explore due to

Miles Morales

‘ satisfying movement. Compared to other games of this ilk, Insomniac’s spin-off is on the short side as it can be readily completed in under 10 hours, which is a decent enough length for a PS Plus game.

Just Cause 4: Reloaded

Metascore: 65

Just Cause 4

has a mixed reputation. In a vacuum, the game offers mindless entertainment as the ultimate super spy spends a few hours blowing up most of an island to free its people from the sinister Black Hand. Although not particularly deep, the gameplay is fun for what it is; however,

Just Cause 4

is generally regarded as a step back from the previous entries in the franchise. Consequently, fans of the second and third

Just Cause

games might find the 2018 sequel disappointing.

Nevertheless,

Just Cause 4

is still one of the better

open-world PS Plus games

, especially if someone just wants to make the world burn. Solis, the island, is quite large and, at times, gorgeous.

Jak 3

Metascore: 84 (PS2)

By the time 2004 rolled around, Naughty Dog’s

Jak & Daxter

franchise has morphed into a very different beast. While still utilizing platforming as a core mechanic,

Jak 2

and

3

greatly ramped up the action and replaced

The Precursor Legacy

‘s (fairly) linear levels with larger and more open-ended areas.

Jak 3

really emphasizes its free-roaming element, encouraging players to explore its two cities and wasteland as much as possible.

Compared to its predecessors,

Jak 3

can come across as unfocused and disjointed; however, it is still one of the better action-adventure games on the PS2. As far as its open-world is considered,

Jak 3

‘s map is not nearly as expansive or diverse as some of its high-profile contemporaries like

Grand Theft Auto 3

. That said, the core gameplay is strong enough to keep things interesting for the relatively short campaign.

Outer Wilds

Metascore: 82

Outer Wilds

is a fascinating open-world game with a time loop central mechanic. Every 20 minutes, the sun basically explodes, causing the player to reawaken on their home planet. Luckily, they happen to be astronauts and have access to a ship, so they can

travel

to other planets in search of clues to decipher the mystery of what exactly is going on.

Outer Wilds

superbly makes its story the central puzzle as the protagonist collects slivers of information en route to stitching together a complete picture of what is going on. Gripping, ambitious, and unique,

Outer Wilds

is an incredible ride that everyone with a PS Plus Premium and Extra subscription should take.

Death Stranding

Metascore: 82

A Hideo Kojima project is always going to be something special, and

Death Stranding

‘s bizarre reveal and early trailers instantly made that apparent. Set in a post-apocalyptic version of the United States, players portray Sam, a person charged with traveling across the country delivering packages and establishing communication points.

Death Stranding

is very much about the journey; in fact, Sam has to carefully plan his trips and every step he takes along the way. Barren landscapes dominate the scene, and the gameplay can be quite meditative once players get used to its rhythm.

Tom Clancy’s The Division 2

Metascore: 82

The Division 2

has been out for more than four years, and while things have not always been smooth sailing, Ubisoft’s game has cemented itself as one of the better live-services games on the market.

Set in Washington D.C., Ubisoft’s title envisions a post-apocalyptic alternate reality filled with warring factions and nature-covered landmarks. The series has quite a realistic presentation, although the sequel is slightly more colorful than its predecessor.

The Division 2

has plenty of multiplayer-focused content, including PvP and an extensive endgame, but the story can be played solo and experienced as a single-player game.

Tom Clancy’s The Division

is also on PS Plus Extra.

LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes

Metascore: 81

LEGO

is not just for children, and that goes for both the building blocks and the games. PS Plus Premium has a couple of

LEGO

titles, but anyone searching for an open-world experience should check out

Batman 2: DC Super Heroes

. Like a comedic version of the

Arkham

series, Traveller’s Tales’ game allows DC fans to explore a detailed and charming Gotham filled with references to the Caped Crusader’s legacy. The campaign even includes a trip to Metropolis, although it is not a sandbox like the Dark Knight’s hunting grounds.

DC Batman 2: DC Super Heroes

has a relatively short but enjoyable campaign, one that assembles an impressive array of heroes and villains from DC’s extensive history. While the main missions are good, the game’s free roam might be its greatest feature since it encourages players to explore every corner of the world.

Extra-only subscribers can check out

Lego Batman 3:

Beyond

Gotham

, which trades one big open-world for smaller hub areas.

Unturned

Metascore: N/A

Unturned

takes a few pages from

Minecraft

and throws zombies into the mix. After loading into a map, players are mostly left to figure things out for themselves, regardless of whether they are offline or tagging along with some friends.

The survival element takes a familiar form, demanding the monitoring of resources and meters while strategically planning out actions to avoid attracting unwanted attention. There is even a base-building mechanic.

Unturned

provides an enjoyable way to spend a few hours. It is not the most graphically impressive or unique

open-world game on PS Plus

, but

Unturned

has its charm.

Far Cry Primal

Metascore: 76

PS Plus Extra has a couple of

Far Cry

games, including the most recent entry. Although not especially well-received,

Far Cry 6

has the best gunplay in the franchise so far, and its open-world is impressively big. If someone has never played a

Far Cry

project, they will likely have a blast with the sixth entry since one of its main criticisms is its map’s visual similarities to its numbered predecessor.

Far Cry 3 Classic Edition

is also a decent option, but the beloved game shows its age by this point.

Far Cry Primal

takes place during an era when (gaming) conflicts were solved with bows and clubs rather than machine guns. The prehistoric setting was a refreshing change of pace in 2016, and that is still the case all these years later. While not a full-blown survival experience,

Primal

incorporates more elements from the genre than the license’s modern main entries, and it strikes a nice balance between a traditional

Far Cry

experience and a more experimental adventure.

Middle-Earth: Shadow Of Mordor

Metascore: 84

Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor

and

Shadow of War

are both on

PS Plus Extra, open-world games

that should hit the spot for fans of

The Lord of the Rings

. Utilizing a combat system reminiscent of the

Batman Arkham

series, both titles knock their gameplay out of the park. As Talion, players traverse relatively expansive maps littered with orcs and Uruks, completing quests in the process. The campaigns are somewhat linear, but they do provide some side content.

Shadow of Mordor

should be a newcomer’s starting point, and it is arguably the more enjoyable of the two games. As the map is split into areas, the world is not quite as open as, for example,

Skyrim

, but the individual sections are quite large and can be explored freely. The Nemesis System also reflects the player’s actions, making it seem like the world is constantly evolving.

The Long Dark

Metascore: 75

The world finds itself in a post-apocalyptic era, leaving the player stranded in a freezing Canadian wasteland.

The Long Dark

has a story mode in the form of Wintermute, which guides players through a largely straightforward path that teaches them the basics of survival. Although this option is fine, it is merely an appetizer to

The Long Dark

‘s Survival mode. As its title implies, this section is all about persevering for as long as possible against the overwhelming challenges offered by the weather, cold, and wildlife.

The Long Dark

is at its best when it just lets its users do their own thing. With death lurking around every corner, the game creates a constant sense of tension as players desperately attempt to keep their meters healthy in an environment that feels tailor-made to destroy them.

The Long Dark

is far from an easy game, although it does come with a variety of difficulty settings so that players can customize their experiences.

Gravity Rush 2

Metascore: 80

The underappreciated sequel to

Gravity Rush

,

Gravity Rush 2

gives Kat a bigger playground to jump across. In this universe-swapping adventure, players will be taken to multiple locations, although the majority of their time will be spent in Jirga Para Lhao and Hekseville.

Gravity Rush 2

‘s open-world is beautiful, large but not overwhelmingly so, and diverse. Like its predecessor, the sequel’s gravity-driven traversal system enhances the game’s world as it provides a unique way to interact with its highs and lows.

Gravity Rush Remastered

is on PS Plus Premium.

Immortals Fenyx Rising

Metascore: 77

Ubisoft has cornered a slice of the open-world market. The publisher’s franchises, mainly

Assassin’s Creed

and

Far Cry

, tend to stick fairly closely to a formula, although each entry tweaks a few things. While these are all good games, by this point, someone likely knows whether they are for them or not. As Ubisoft’s games tend to share a few common traits, people who are not fans of the company’s biggest IPs might be tempted to just ignore

Immortals Fenyx Rising

, an open-world game that was added in March 2023 to PS Plus Extra.

While not completely removed from Ubisoft’s other projects,

Immortals Fenyx Rising

definitely has its own identity, especially since the title is clearly inspired by

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

. Beyond sharing a visual style, the game utilizes a flashy hack and slash combat system that blends melee with ranged options. The campaign also has quite a few optional puzzles, and while there are a number of side quests, they are not overabundant.

Immortals Fenyx Rising

is a fun footnote in Ubisoft’s legacy.

Prey

Metascore: 79

Set on a space station,

Prey

puts players in Morgan Yu’s shoes as he investigates the Talos 1 after it has been invaded by an alien threat. Combining elements of horror, stealth, and Metroidvania gameplay,

Prey

doesn’t handhold players, allowing them to explore the environment at their own risk.

Talos 1 is not as big of a location as some other open-world games, but it serves as a detailed and immersive sandbox filled with secrets to uncover and challenges to take on.

Infamous: Second Son

Metascore: 80

All the

Infamous

games on PS Plus Premium are worth playing. While Cole’s entries are highly rated,

Second Son

tends to get overlooked due to its (relatively) early release in the PS4’s lifecycle. Despite coming out within a year of the console’s launch,

Infamous: Second Son

is still one of the

best-looking games on the PS4

, and its iteration of Seattle is incredible.

As Delsin Rowe unlocks new powers and ways to interact with the world,

Second Son

grows into something truly special. This is also a pretty

short open-world game

, presenting a nice alternative to the

RDR2s

and

Horizon Zero Dawn

s of the world.

Infamous: First Light

is also on PS Plus Extra, while

Infamous

,

Infamous 2

, and

Infamous: Festival of Blood

are on PS Plus Premium.

Batman: Arkham Knight

Metascore: 87

PS Plus has Batman fans well-fed. Rocksteady’s full

Arkham

trilogy,

Arkham Origins

, and the maligned

Gotham Knights

are available on the Premium tier; meanwhile, Extra-level subscribers can play

Arkham Knight

and

Gotham Knights

. While the latter has some positives that make it not a complete write-off, the former is undoubtedly the superior package, and it is not particularly close. In 2015,

Arkham Knight

garnered some controversy due to its terrible PC launch and the heavy inclusion of the Batmobile, resulting in a positive reception that did not quite live up to

Arkham Asylum

and

Arkham City

‘s best-of-all-time standards.

Nevertheless,

Arkham Knight

is an impressive achievement, and it

features

arguably gaming’s best rendition of Gotham to date. Even nearly a decade later, the game’s open-world remains a sight to behold – it is visually striking, dense with architecture, and dripping in style and personality. Putting aside the polarizing Batmobile sections,

Arkham Knight

is generally fantastic and features the deepest combat system in the franchise.

Arkham Asylum

and

Arkham City

are available on PS Plus Premium, but they are the

Return to Arkham

PS4 versions. While still worth playing, these versions are not perfect.

MORE: The Best Games On PS Plus Premium