6 open world games to play while you wait for GTA 6 to launch

Christmas arrived early this year. Rockstar Games has finally dropped the trailer for the next installment in its iconic Grand Theft Auto (GTA) series – GTA 6, after what seemed like forever. While we’re not dropping any spoilers, something that you should (rather unfortunately) know is that the game is still at least two years away, and is expected to be launched sometime in 2025.

For some, it may not seem like much after having waited for ten long years, while for others, it may seem like an eternity away. Either way, worry not, for we’ve put together this list of 6 open-world games you can play while you wait for GTA 6 on your laptops and desktops, as well as your gaming consoles. Read on.

Red Dead Redemption 2

Think GTA but in the wild west. You play Arthur Morgan, an outlaw working with the Van der Linde gang, based in a fictionalised version of Texas in 1899. Cowboys, sheriffs, outlaws, guns, gambling, wide-open landscapes. Name it, and Red Dead Redemption 2 (RDR2) had it all. The game quickly rose to fame due to its extremely immersive gameplay, whether it was in the form of NPC interactions, the level of detail in which the game’s world was designed, or the missions themselves. Moreover, while many GTA titles have been relatively easy to coast through with cheat codes, RDR2 wouldn’t allow players to save their gameplay progress with cheat codes enabled, making the game all the more immersive and realistic.

Grand Theft Auto V

Our top game on the list has to be GTA V. Despite being a decade old now, the game still feels fresh and way ahead of its time. You get to play as not one, but three protagonists, each with their own back story – former bank robber Michael De Santa, the young, up-and-coming gangster from the streets – Franklin Clinton, and Trevor Philips, who deals in drugs and illegal firearms.

ALSO READ: Grand Theft Auto to GTA V: A look at how Rockstar’s grand open world game evolved

You can switch between the three during free roam and explore the vast landscape that is urban Los Santos and its surrounding areas. Moreover, you can also take part in tag-team-style heists and missions, and play as each of the three protagonists simultaneously, something which was ground-breaking back then, and still is.

Cyberpunk 2077

Cyberpunk 2077 is a 2020 action role-playing game developed by CD Projekt Red. Set in a dystopian universe, in a fictional city in California simply referred to as Night City, you take on the role of “V” a mercenary dealing with fallout from a heist gone wrong in the form of a cybernetic bio-chip containing an engram of terrorist Johnny Silverhand, that threatens to overwrite V’s mind. The game allows one to customise their characters’ clothing, body type, and hairstyle, as well as abilities, which is what influences the gameplay style in real-time.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage

Should you happen to enjoy period titles, you should definitely check Assassin’s Creed Mirage out. The game is the thirteenth installment in the iconic Assassin’s Creed series. You take on the role of Basim Ibn Ishaq, a street thief in ninth-century Baghdad, during the Islamic Golden Age. The player joins the Hidden Ones, a group fighting for peace and liberty, against the Order of the Ancients, a group that desires peace in the region through a totalitarian regime.

Starfield

Bored of games set in fictionalised versions, or faithful recreations of places on Earth? Well, in that case, try out Starfield. In this title, the player assumes the role of a silent protagonist, whose traits, body type, appearance, skills, and background one can modify. Depending on them, the player gains three skills at the beginning of the game, and more as the story progresses.

The game allows you to explore over 1,000 real as well as fictional planets, as well as other star systems and atmospheres. Moreover, players can head to stations on other worlds, and interact with NPCs by befriending them, hiring them, and even starting a romantic relationship with them. Players can also commandeer and purchase spaceships, and establish laboratories and outposts in various planets.

Ghost of Tsushima

Ghost of Tsushima sees players take on the role of Jin Sakai, a samurai who has been offered a chance to redeem himself after he fails to protect his master. The game involves him, a Japanese rebel, along with others, taking on Mongol invaders in 13^th century Japan. The game features a large open world, which can be explored to the player’s liking One can choose to engage in open combat, as well as use stealth tactics to assassinate enemies.

Those are some of the best games you can try for hours and hours of solid entertainment. We hope you love these games just as much as we did, and are just as excited to get your hands on GTA 6 as we are, as well.