Some open-world games have a centralized villain that everyone loathes, and the hero is fighting toward. For example, the Wild Hunt in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt are inter-dimensional travelers hellbent on wreaking havoc while they look for Ciri, the key to their salvation.
Best Games That Let You Be The Hero Or The Villain
Whether they want to be the world-saving hero, or tear the world apart ass the terrifying villain, these games give players the option to do both.
Even a sillier game like Donkey Kong Bananza has clear villains and heroes between the VoidCo apes and Donkey Kong, who is partnered with Pauline. Some open-world games don’t have clear black and white sides to good and evil, and these are the interesting ones to check out. They may even make players question their own motives.
Who’s That Character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Easy (7.5s)Medium (5.0s)Hard (2.5s)Permadeath (2.5s)
Fallout: New Vegas
Factions For Days
Fallout: New Vegas definitely has people that could be considered heroic or villainous by modern standards, but the game is also set in a post-apocalypse that shifts the scales a bit. It may not be right to eat human flesh, but when supplies are low, sometimes cannibalism is the answer. Players also have an arch nemesis, the one who shot them dead, but even this man had his reasons.
With a karma system in place, players can decide how they want to approach the world, either as someone benevolent, wishing to change things for the better, or a merciless survivor out for themself and the revenge they crave. That’s the beauty of Fallout: New Vegas and how players can change their approach with new playthroughs.
Minecraft
Just You Building Stuff
Minecraft will drop players into a randomly generated world as if to say, “Go and have fun.” There is no story, no tutorials, and no quest system to speak of. Minecraft is the type of experience that beckons players to test it out for themselves, and that’s why it has remained so popular as a builder game.
After punching a few trees, digging in some patches of dirt, and smashing some rocks, players can start crafting better tools to then create masterpieces from gardens to whole villages. There are enemies to fight, like zombies and creepers that can explode, but no overarching villain is trying to stop players from having fun, and this removal of burden also makes things more accessible.
Monster Hunter Wilds
Monsters Aren’t Inherently Evil
Monster Hunter Wilds, and the Monster Hunter series overall, is all about hunting giant Kaiju-sized monsters, but these monsters are not inherently evil. They all exist within habitats, and they live and die like all animals in nature. Sometimes there are those out of control who are hurting nearby villages, and sometimes there are monsters that hunt humans for sport.
10 Story-Heavy RPGs With Villain Twists No One Saw Coming
Who doesn’t love a good twists? These RPGs do a wonderful job at catching you off-guard with their unpredictable villain twists.
Overall, though, nothing is malicious about the way these monsters live their lives, as it’s all about survival. In a way, hunters are more like the evil ones as they also hunt for sport, to collect materials, and arm themselves with the best gear imaginable. It’s all part of the cycle of life in a way.
Cyberpunk 2077
Your Villain Is Your Upbringing
The villain of Cyberpunk 2077 is ambition. There are three routes players can start at, and no matter what players choose, they will eventually fall into the same route, which gets them into corporate shenanigans within Night City. This also leads to a near-death experience with an AI being implanted into their bodies, Johnny Silverhand, who is based on a notorious hacker who died years ago but now lives on through players.
Through a symbiotic relationship, a lot of the game switches focus between players wanting to get ahead in the world themselves and players adhering to Johnny’s wishes to seek justice. While likable, Johnny is not an altruistic character, and his enemies are not much worse. In the cyberpunk future, it’s a dog-eat-dog world out there.
Starfield
Exploring Space For The Human Race
Starfield falls in line with something like Fallout: New Vegas, as there are antagonists, but no one is trying to destroy the galaxy. The premise follows players as a newly trained space cadet out looking for some cosmic artifacts that will have significant meaning. On the way, they’ll run into rival hunters and general space bandits, but like the Old West, space is a wild frontier, and people expect a little bit of lawlessness.
It’s a different story than a space RPG like Mass Effect that had a core plot and villain, which makes Starfield more refreshing. Players are free to be good or bad if they wish as well, so there’s that aspect.
No Man’s Sky
Fly To Parts Unknown
No Man’s Sky is somewhat similar to Starfield in that players are space explorers, but the game has more in common with Minecraft. With no core plot other than a need to reach the center’s universe, players are given all the tools they need on their starting planet to scan life and blast off. Players can bounce from planet to planet, soaring in real time with their customizable ship.
10 RPGs Where The World Tells The Story
These RPGs are masters are feeding you their story not just through cutscenes, but through powerful environmental storytelling.
They can reshape these randomly generated planets as they see fit by digging deep inside, building bases, and so on. There are bandits and law enforcement to butt heads with, but No Man’s Sky is a relatively peaceful game by all accounts, which is more like a space sim than a space adventure.
Sword Of The Sea
Rebuilding The Planet
Sword of the Sea is a relatively short game with a cool gameplay hook. As a nameless warrior who reawakens in a tomb, they are given a sword, but not to fight with, as this blade can be ridden like a surfboard. The goal of each zone is to turn the sandy seas into real seas once again, as the magic of life has been locked away in tombs.
Other than the forces that changed the planet long ago, there is no combat or central villain to worry about, as the story can be pieced together through environmental world-building instead. The first time players unlock an ocean front will be dazzling, and they will surely look forward to what is next in Sword of the Sea.
Sea Of Thieves
Just Pirates Having An Adventure
Sea of Thieves is a party game to end all party games. It’s workable alone, but players can get so much more enjoyment out of the pirate life with a whole crew going on adventures across wide open oceans. That’s because the ship controls can all be delegated to other players, like a sim game, which is more engaging than a lot of pirate games out there.
Players can also fight other pirates in ship combat, dock on islands to fight monsters and look for treasure, and so on. The game was a bit weak at launch in terms of content, but now it is brimming with content waiting for all pirate enthusiasts to check it out.
9 RPGs You Didn’t Realize Had Branching Endings
Always expect the unexpected in RPGs, because you never know how things end, and that includes these games that surprise you with branching endings.
