Summary
- There are open-world games with short main quests that can be beaten quickly.
- Games like Shelter 2, Grow Home, and Pupperazzi offer quick and enjoyable experiences.
- Even massive games like The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion can be finished in under 4 hours, providing a fun challenge.
Gamers often associate the notion of an open world game with a sprawling journey that will take months to beat. That might be the case most of the time, but not always. There are actually a few open-world games that, despite featuring huge gameplay areas, also feature short main quests that players can finish rather quickly if they put their hearts and minds to it — and sometimes even if they don't.
Beating a game with a huge world will always feel like quite an achievement, especially for busy gamers who might not have as much time to play. Let's look at some of the most surprisingly easy-to-beat open-world games out there.
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9 Two Worlds 2
Efficient At Making Players Feel Like A Hero
Two Worlds II
- Released
- February 4, 2011
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M // Blood, Partial Nudity, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Violence
- Genre(s)
- RPG
- Main Quest Duration: as short as 10 minutes
An essential piece of information to take in before diving into Two Worlds 2 is that it is not a fantastic game, unlike the other games on this list. It is, however, the easiest-to-beat open-world game on the list — to a comical degree, even — and thus one that's likely to make players feel incredibly accomplished.
Speedrunners have found out that, right at the start of the game, they can lure the final boss into a regular village, where he will get obliterated by the villagers. This, because Two Worlds 2 isn't a very good game, will trigger the game's final cutscene. It may not be the best out there, but who doesn't like to be crowned the hero of a huge nation after having played there for no longer than 10 minutes?
8 Shelter 2
Open-World Survival
Shelter 2
- Released
- March 9, 2015
- ESRB
- t
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Open-World, Adventure
- Main Quest Duration: Under 2 Hours
Shelter 2 is a game with a big world and a simple premise. The players step into the role of a mother lynx who needs to protect her offspring as they traverse a dangerous land. Despite its dangers, Shelter 2 looks beautiful with its unique art style. It will scratch the itch for players who enjoyed The Last Of Us, but wished it could be stripped down to the basics. Shelter 2 is a great way of spending 2 hours.
7 Grow Home
Open, Simple, and Fun For All Ages
Grow Home
- Released
- February 4, 2015
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- e
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft Reflections
- Genre(s)
- Adventure, Indie, Casual
- Main Quest Duration: Under 3 Hours
One of the coolest aspects of The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom was its introduction of multiple floating islands that injected the game with a further sense of wondrous verticality. Grow Home did that before Zelda, and navigating its land is just as fun.
In Grow Home, players are tasked with helping BUD, a robot, save its planet. Grow Home's open world is rather small, but the development team at Ubisoft Reflections opted instead to spend their time making Grow Home's world more interesting and fun to navigate, and they sure did pull it off.
6 Pupperazzi
Exactly What The Name Suggests
Pupperazzi: The Dog Photography Game
- Released
- January 20, 2022
- ESRB
- E For Everyone // Alcohol Reference
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Action, Casual, Indie
- Main Quest Duration: under 2 hours
Pupperazzi features one of the simplest concepts out of all open-world games out there. The player simply roams around its cute world and snaps cute pictures of cute dogs. The world is fun to explore, the vibes are comfy, and taking pictures of dogs is just as soothing as one would expect. Pupperazzi is proof that a game doesn't need a high concept to provide a lot of fun for a few cozy hours.
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5 Proteus
As Simple As It Is Comfy
Proteus
- Released
- January 30, 2013
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- E For Everyone
- Genre(s)
- Walking Simulator
- Main Quest Duration: One Hour
Concept-wise, Proteus is the simplest game on this list. It's what many would describe as a "walking simulator," but that's not a bad thing. In Proteus, players simply have to walk around this beautiful environment while they witness the passing of a season. There are no enemies, no big mysteries, just a chance to explore this beautifully unique and stripped-down world for a short while. Proteus is an excellent way of spending an hour traveling inside.
4 Outer Wilds
Daunting, But Tameable
Outer Wilds
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 85 /100 Critics Rec: 82%
- Released
- May 28, 2019
- ESRB
- E10+ For Everyone 10+ due to Fantasy Violence, Alcohol Reference
- Developer(s)
- Mobius Digital
- Publisher(s)
- Annapurna Interactive
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
- Main Quest Duration: Under 8 hours
The Outer Wilds is one of the most interesting open-world titles ever made, as its world is actually solar system-shaped. Outer Wilds has a lot of mysteries to uncover and fun places to visit, but it's not impossible to beat the game in one day. In fact, speedrunners have beaten it in less than 30 minutes, though that's already quite a stretch for anyone looking to engage with the game in the more or less relaxed way that one should engage with it. Either way, for a game featuring various planets and satellites, Outer Wilds is a surprisingly tight place.
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3 Sable
Fast And Soothing
Sable
- Released
- September 23, 2021
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- e
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
- Main Quest Duration: Under 7 hours
Anyone looking for an open-world game based on exploration and chill vibes will have a hard time doing better than Sable. It tasks players with riding a futuristic Jetbike (extra cool) and roaming around in a beautiful landscape that's filled with all sorts of secrets for players to explore. Like most games on this list, Sable employs some unique looks that enhance the quality of the already one-of-a-kind experience at hand. Though it features a wide play area, players can beat Sable in less than 7 hours.
2 The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion
Still Huge, Still Quick To Finish
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
- Released
- March 20, 2006
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Language, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol, Violence
- Genre(s)
- RPG
- Main Quest Duration: can take as little as 4 hours
Oblivion is one of the hottest games of 2025, even though it's a remaster of a game from '06. Even though it already featured an impressively huge open world at the time of its original release, the main quest is surprisingly short.
Unlike the previous games in the Elder Scrolls series, Oblivion featured a new fast travel mechanic players could use from pretty much anywhere, with no need for the presence of a specific item in one's inventory. This allowed players to beat the game's main quest in not much longer than just 4 hours. Best of all, players can either spend dozens of hours enjoying everything the game has to offer, or just jump in to save the world as quickly as possible. Either way, it'll still be a blast.
1 The Forgotten City
Groundhog Day In The Style Of Ancient Rome
The Forgotten City
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 84 /100 Critics Rec: 92%
- Released
- July 28, 2021
- ESRB
- T For Teen due to Alcohol Reference, Blood, Mild Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Modern Storyteller
- Publisher(s)
- Dear Villagers
WHERE TO PLAY
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
- Main Quest Duration: Less than 6 hours
The Forgotten City sees the main character, a man from modern times, stranded in a city made to resemble ancient Rome. On top of that, he soon learns this city is under a bizarre set of rules that will cause the city's whole population to die should anyone break a rule. Whenever someone (usually the player) messes up, they get to restart the game, with the knowledge earned from past cycles being the only thing carried over to the new one.
It's a fantastic exploration game that delves into some fascinating philosophical questions at its deepest moments, and still dazzles with some fantastic writing at its most normal ones. Finding out all the secrets in The Forgotten City might take a little bit over 7 hours, but just finding out all that's needed to get out will take much less. Either way, this is one of the best games out there right now, out of any genre.
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