Summary
- Few open-world games focus entirely on crime and robberies, providing unique gameplay opportunities.
- Thief Simulator offers a detailed sandbox crime simulation experience with heists to plan and execute.
- Red Dead Redemption 2 allows players the freedom to be a law-abiding citizen or an immoral outlaw, engaging in various levels of theft.
The vast majority of open-world games rely on mechanics such as combat and exploration as a hook, and there are some truly stunning titles that follow this template. And then there are others that simply use a sandbox-style map as the backdrop of the main story arc, seldom encouraging the player to strike out on their own. But there are some open-world games that break the mold, and let the player do anything they please, and this includes theft and crime.
The Best Open World Games With Female Protagonists
Open-world games are fairly new in comparison to other gaming genres. Here are some of the most notable female protagonists in the category.
There are very few open-world games that focus entirely on crime and robberies. However, there are a few that enable the player to commit crimes such as burglaries or even acts of piracy as part of the gameplay.
6 Assassin's Creed Syndicate
Explore Victorian London
Assassin's Creed Syndicate
Set in the City of London during the Victorian era, Assassin's Creed Syndicate only just makes this list, and is in the bottom place. Why? Even though there are options for committing a theft in the game, such as pickpocketing, it is not a main gameplay loop as crime is in other entries on this list.
Open World Games That Have No Combat
Favor the pacifist routes in your open-world games? There's no other way with these particular titles, as they have no combat mechanics.
However, Assassin's Creed Syndicate made this list because when the player does have an opportunity to commit a theft in this game, the stealth mechanics come into play, and this is exceptionally well implemented by the developers. And of course, the open-world map based on Victorian London is exquisite in every detail.
5 Thief
Become A Burglar In A Steampunk Setting
Thief
Garrett, the Master Thief, steps out of the shadows into the City. In this treacherous place, where the Baron’s Watch spreads a rising tide of fear and oppression, his skills are the only things he can trust. Even the most cautious citizens and their best-guarded possessions are not safe from his reach.
As an uprising emerges, Garrett finds himself entangled in growing layers of conflict. Lead by Orion, the voice of the people, the tyrannized citizens will do everything they can to claim back the City from the Baron’s grasp. The revolution is inevitable. If Garrett doesn’t get involved, the streets will run red with blood and the City will tear itself apart.
Garrett never paid the price for anything… until now.
Key Features:
YOU ARE GARRETT, THE MASTER THIEF
Step into the silent shoes of Garrett, a dark and lonely thief with an unrivalled set of skills. The most challenging heists, the most inaccessible loots, the best kept secrets: nothing is out of your reach.
THE CITY: YOURS FOR THE TAKING
Explore the sick and troubled City, from its shady back alleys to the heights of its rooftops. Sneak into rich houses, Infiltrate the best-guarded mansions and lurk in every dark corner… unnoticed and unsanctioned.
CHOOSE YOUR APPROACH
Leverage Garrett’s arsenal to take down guards with your blackjack, shoot one of your many arrow types or use your newly acquired focus abilities to manipulate the environment and outsmart your enemies. What kind of master thief will you be?
UNPRECEDENTED IMMERSION
Become one with the world thanks to ground-breaking visual elements and a truly tactile and visceral first-person experience. Through jaw-dropping Next-Gen technical possibilities, Thief delivers unprecedented immersion through sights, sounds and artificial intelligence.
- Released
- February 25, 2014
- Developer(s)
- Eidos Montreal
- Platform(s)
- Xbox One, Xbox 360, PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4
Thief had to make this list, even though its open-world aspects are not as fully fleshed out as all the other entries in this list. The player is free to roam and explore the game map as they wish, but some areas remain locked until a certain stage of the main story. That being said, even with these minor restrictions on open-world gameplay, the environment is still atmospheric and compelling.
The game focuses entirely on stealth gameplay, as one would expect from a game named Thief. Combat is supposed to be avoided whenever possible, and resorting to violence is seldom the right way to approach challenges in this game. Indeed, as a burglar, the best outcome is to go entirely undetected whilst pulling off a robbery in Thief.
4 Thief Simulator
Sandbox Crime Simulation
Thief Simulator
- Released
- November 9, 2018
- Developer(s)
- Noble Muffins
- Platform(s)
- PC
- Genre(s)
- Stealth
- OpenCritic Rating
- Weak
At the time of writing, Thief Simulator was entirely unique. No other game simulates life as a career criminal as closely. Thief Simulator is about much more than just theft. Each robbery needs to be planned in full before execution. This means gathering intel, checking out the area around a target on the open-world map, and avoiding the police at all costs.
Each location the player targets for a heist, be this a home or a business, has its own puzzles that need to be solved to pull off the robbery. And of course, the puzzle must be solved without triggering any alarms or being spotted and the police start closing in.
3 Dishonored 2
Both Stealth And Violence Are Viable Options
Dishonored 2
- Released
- November 10, 2016
- Developer(s)
- Arkane Studios
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 4, Xbox One
- Genre(s)
- Stealth, Action-Adventure, Fighting
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
Dishonoured 2 is a bit of an odd game at times. Why? This is a stealth game, set in a Steampunk open-word map, that mixes in supernatural powers as well. This can be somewhat of a challenge for players to come to grips with, and requires a significant level of suspension of disbelief to look past.
Great Open World Games That Let You Play As A Nomad
One of the best features of any open-world game is exploration, and there's a certain charm to living out a nomadic life within these vast worlds.
That being said, it is well worth taking the effort to try and overlook the game's odd premise, as the gameplay is great. Playing as one of two protagonists, the player uses theft and stealth to complete missions and progress in the game. Theft is easier in the early stages of the game, and in the later stages, most businesses have hired guards the player will need to sneak past to get inside.
2 Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag
Pillage As A Pirate
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag (2013)
- Released
- October 29, 2013
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft Montreal
- Genre(s)
- Action, Open-World
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
The second of two Assasin’s Creed games on this list is Black Flag. Playing as a pirate is synonymous with theft, despite the fact this game doesn’t rely on stealth and cunning to commit crimes as previous entries on the list have. Playing as Edward Keyway, who is considered a pirate assassin, the player is free to rob and steal as much as they wish.
Theft involves ship-to-ship pirate battles, and also land-based missions that do require at least some level of stealthiness to complete. And of course, all of this action takes place on a stunning open-world map, as one would expect from a game from the Assasin’s Creed franchise.
1 Red Dead Redemption 2
Wanted: Deal Or Alive
Red Dead Redemption 2
Few games offer a player such freedom of action as Red Dead Redemption 2. And of course, the player is able to play the good guy, even though they are a member of an outlaw gang. Arthur Morgan doesn’t need a be a bad guy, he can be played as a gray man quite well. But let's face it, the real fun in Red Dead Redemption 2 comes from being a completely immoral monster.
5 Open World Games With The Best Mounted Combat
These games provide a host of trusty companions to ride on into battle.
When it comes to thievery in RDR2, the sky is the limit from being a simple pickpocket, through robbing trains and stagecoaches, to pulling off a bank heist. The tagline of this game should have been ‘meet lots of folks from the Old West, then rob and murder them’ for sure.
6 Open World Games With The Best Siege Warfare Mechanics
Players can command or immerse themselves in large-scale battles in these open-world games that feature excellent siege warfare gameplay.