Most Absorbing Open World Games to Play with Your Friends

Open-world exploration games are such an immersive experience, allowing you to traverse continents without ever leaving your couch. And while some of the best open-world games are limited to single-player, such as Skyrim and Fallout 4, other open-world games allow for multiplayer co-op gameplay.

In this article, we’ll go over some of the most absorbing open-world games that you can explore with a friend or several friends.

Minecraft

It’s amazing how a survival-sandbox game, written in Java by a single coder, went on to become the best-selling game of all time, with a $2.5 billion-dollar buyout from Microsoft. There’s so much to do in the world of Minecraft, it’s come so far from its origins as a dig-loot-dig game, especially with the help of the massive mod community.

From mods that add new items and landscapes to modern graphics and ray-tracing technology, and mods that run VMware so you can run Doom inside of Minecraft. There’s really no shortage of new things to discover with your friends.

Red Dead Redemption 2

Rockstar Games epic western adventure was one of the hottest 2019 releases is set in a game world that is over 29 square miles in size, which is roughly 3/4ths the size of Disney World. For a non-procedurally generated landscape, that’s a pretty huge world to explore.

The multiplayer mode is separate from the single-player story, and you’ll be able to create your own outlaw character, then join any of the numerous game modes such as battle royale, deathmatch, territory capture, or go on co-op missions and take part in free roam events. If you’re a fan of battle royale games, you can also play .io games online as there’s a lot of battle-royale type games to choose from. 

Add the fact that Red Dead Redemption 2 won Game of the Year awards from numerous media outlets, and you can’t go wrong getting lost in the wild with a companion. Just beware of rattlesnakes.

No Man’s Sky

No Man’s Sky is possibly the most immersive space and planet exploration game, with over 18 quintillions (a number with too many commas to type) planets to visit. Originally launched as a single-player game, a multiplayer mode was introduced not long ago, and it’s a blast.

Whether you’re up for raiding bandit outposts, extracting precious minerals, or just chilling with up to 32 other players in the Space Anomaly station, No Man’s Sky offers the kind of space adventure gamers have always dreamed of. It’d be great to see a Nintendo Switch port of No Man’s Sky to join the growing list of open-world Nintendo Switch games.

Horizon Zero Dawn

A post-apocalyptic game set in a huge 31st-century open world where mechasaurs (yes, mechanical dinosaurs) rule supreme. It offers a co-op mode where you and a friend can explore the vast continent, gathering resources to craft weapons used against the giant robotic creatures.

Overall it’s quite a blast, offering gorgeous scenery combined with the unique “futuristic caveman” aesthetic gameplay that makes Horizon Zero Dawn a very absorbing open-world game.

The Forest

The Forest is an unforgettable open-world survival horror, which is best described as a PVE-centric hybrid of Minecraft and Rust. Essentially, you and other players must gather natural materials to craft shelter, hunt for food, and try not to be killed by the mutant cannibal tribes roaming the map.

Sections of the game can be rather unsettling, such as while exploring caves with only a lighter to guide you, and you’ll be glad to have a few companions watching your back as you try to uncover the mysteries of the peninsula you’re trapped on.