For those who love open-world sci-fi games, 2026 and the coming years promise to be exciting. Developers are hard at work building massive worlds set among the stars, in futuristic cities, and under alien waves. The variety in this lineup is unmatched. A player might explore a retro-futuristic version of the Soviet Union and beyond. Another adventure involves piloting a custom starship through a galaxy containing thousands of unique planets.
Upcoming Games That Could Redefine The Open-World Genre
These games could set a new precedent for open-world titles.
Some games introduce time manipulation mechanics that let users rewind combat or see how their choices affect people decades later. And then there are those that focus on pure survival against terrifying creatures deep under the water of a new planet.
Atomic Heart 2
Same Retrofuturistic Soviet-Era Aesthetics As The First Game, But Now With A Global Focus
- The story continues after the first game as a mechanical rebellion spreads far beyond the original Soviet borders.
- This sequel shows how advanced technology has collapsed society on a global scale.
While the first Atomic Heart focused on a secret Soviet base called Facility 3826, the developers have confirmed that Atomic Heart 2 will be on a global scale. In fact, Robert Bagratuni, the CEO of Mundfish, said the game is "bigger and bolder" than its predecessor. The sequel is being built using Unreal Engine 5 to handle these much larger, more detailed open spaces.
The story continues to explore the dark side of technology and the mess left behind after the first game's ending. Players can expect the same mix of fast shooting and more threats, but the encounters will take place in more varied, outdoor locations. The game has no set release date just yet, but the idea of exploring an open-world retrofuturistic game that expands beyond the Soviet Union is very exciting.
Last Sentinel
A Cyberpunk Tokyo Story
- Set in a future version of Tokyo that looks incredibly real and gritty.
- The team includes people who worked on Grand Theft Auto, so the city is built to feel dangerous and rich with culture rather than just being a big empty map.
There is a new company making big-budget open-world games, and they are starting strong. Lightspeed LA, a studio led by Steve C. Martin, who worked on games like Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption, is making an open-world cyberpunk game called Last Sentinel. It is set in a rebuilt, futuristic version of Tokyo. The goal of Last Sentinel is to mix the rough feel of a future dystopia with a deep story.
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The team hasn't shared many details about the gameplay, but the history of the people making it suggests the game will be very polished and carefully built. The main character is Hiromi Shoda, who lives in a world that feels both culturally rich and dangerously high-tech. Unlike many open-world games that just focus on how big the map is, Last Sentinel focuses on a unique environment that gets its style from graphic novels and serious sci-fi movies. The developers want to make the player feel fully involved in the game, creating a version of Tokyo that seems truly alive instead of just a place to travel to.
Cinder City
Searching For A Loved One In A High-Tech Ruined Seoul
- Follows a father's search for his daughter within a futuristic version of South Korea's capital.
- Fast-paced, large-scale tactical shooting in two open worlds.
Previously known as Project LLL, Cinder City is an MMO tactical shooter made by BigFire Games. The environment in Cinder City is modeled after a futuristic version of Seoul, where very advanced 23rd-century technology is mixed with the ruins of today's world. Even though the game has some giant robot enemies, it’s mostly a third-person shooter where players play as a human soldier known as a Knight.
Cinder City is basically about a father who is in search of his daughter in a world that is falling apart. The game uses two large open-world maps that are about 14 kilometers when added together, according to BigFire Games CEO. While players can hijack big mechs or ride motorcycles, those are just a fraction of the fun. Players can take part in huge battles, as BigFire Games CEO also hinted that up to 200 people participated in playtests. According to NCSOFT, this MMO tactical shooter should be on consoles and PC sometime around the second half of 2026.
Subnautica 2
Co-Op Survival Under The Sea
- Players can finally bring up to three friends along to help build bases and survive in the scary deep water.
- The developers are making a whole new planet with fresh monsters and dark underwater areas to explore.
Subnautica 2 is the follow-up to the hit game from 2018, and it is changing some key things. The biggest news is that players can now play together with up to four people. For the first time, players don’t have to face the dark depths alone. They and their friends can build bases, drive submarines, and scream together when a giant creature appears.
This game is set on a completely new planet, promising brand-new plants and animals to find (and be eaten by). Early videos have shown new Leviathan creatures and massive underwater areas that go from calm plains to frightening, deep zones. The game has unfortunately been delayed by KRAFTON until 2026. If players loved the feeling of discovery and fear in the first game, Subnautica 2 is ready to make that feeling much bigger and shareable.
Chrono Odyssey
Bend Time And Space To Save The World In A Fantasy MMORPG
- Fight to stop a dark force from erasing the history of their world.
- Players can freeze the hands of time as they explore Setera and the deep dungeons.
The developers at Chrono Studio are building a massive online adventure where the environment itself reacts to the passage of time. In Chrono Odyssey, players are soldiers who fight back against a dark corruption called the Void, which is slowly erasing the world's history. Players can’t fully enjoy what Setera has to offer without getting the Chronotector machine. This device gives the player the power to manipulate the flow of time during active gameplay. So, for instance, during a difficult fight, a player can freeze an enemy in mid-air or rewind their own character's movements to dodge an attack.
Upcoming Open-World Games That Will Let You Do Anything
These upcoming open-world games are packed with a ton of activities and gameplay features for players to enjoy.
There are different classes available, including the heavy-hitting Berserker and the fast-moving Assassin. The game allows players to switch between several weapon types instantly while they are in the middle of a fight.
Free Stars: Children of Infinity
Explore A Galaxy Full Of Alien Threats
- Play as a captain exploring a galaxy filled with hundreds of star systems and funny alien species.
- The game mixes ship battles with resource gathering, and the aliens will remember if you were nice or mean to them.
For those who love classic sci-fi games like The Ur-Quan Masters, Free Stars: Children of Infinity will be a delightful sequel to look forward to. In Free Stars: Children of Infinity, players take the role of a starship captain on a journey to a little-known part of space.
The "open world" here is actually a galaxy full of hundreds of star systems and thousands of planets. Players can land on planets to find resources, talk to strange alien races to make deals, and fight in fast, top-down ship battles. The ship battle system, called Super Melee, is back with over 30 different starships, each with its own special powers. The game's Steam page has an expected launch for 2025, but whether that will happen remains to be seen. This is the game for anyone who wants a space adventure that looks like the 1992 classic Star Control 2.
StarRupture
The Galactic Factory-Builder
- The core gameplay mixes survival and factory building, requiring players to set up huge, automated production lines on the hostile planet.
- A star causes massive waves of fire and heat that regularly destroy the surface, so players must quickly build strong shelters to survive.
StarRupture is a survival and base-building game dropping on January 6, 2026. This is an open-world sci-fi experience designed for solo play or for a group of up to four players in co-op mode. Players are dropped onto the dangerous planet Arcadia-7 as convicts tasked with extracting resources for powerful corporations.
The main idea of the game is for players to build quickly and defend their base. Players have to do more than just survive. They need to build long lines of machines and belts to find materials and make new tools. As a player’s factory gets bigger, new dangers appear. First, angry aliens attack the bases in big groups. Players must use automatic guns and shields to fight them off. Second, the star, Ruptura, sends out extreme heat. This often happens and forces players to run to safe places, or all their hard work will be lost.
Upcoming Games With Expansive Worlds
These upcoming games promise to deliver some of the biggest and most detailed virtual worlds ever seen.