Summary
- Red Dead Redemption 2 offers precise and advanced combat with the Dead Eye system.
- Metal Gear Solid 5 features engaging combat encounters that feel natural and unpredictable.
- Fallout 4 provides chaotic shooting scenes and utilizes the VATs system for targeting specific enemy parts.
The open-world video game genre has become one of the staples of the industry. These huge, expansive worlds have left players in awe for decades. And within the scope of unlimited possibilities and things to do within these worlds, some of them have also created deep, complex combat systems that allow players to feel powerful in a hostile and aggressive world. These games have found ways to infuse incredible combat into huge worlds, a task that has proven rather difficult over the years due to the unpredictability of the player's involvement.
Some of these games have focused combat encounters around melee and magic, while others see players engaging enemies with firearms and tactical espionage. Whatever route a game takes, these titles have done so with precision, crafting the best combat systems in the open-world genre. These open-world games have been ranked based on their battle systems, and how well the combat encounters are woven into the environments.
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7 Red Dead Redemption 2
Use Dead Eye To Eliminate Enemies
Red Dead Redemption 2
- Released
- October 26, 2018
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Sexual Content, Strong Language, Use of Drugs and Alcohol
- Developer(s)
- Rockstar Games
Rockstar's open-world Wild West epic began in 2003 when they purchased the rights to the Red Dead IP from Capcom, which led to the franchise becoming one of the cornerstones of the company. While the original Red Dead Redemption was an instant classic when it launched in 2010, Rockstar produced a prequel in 2018 that took everything about the first game and improved on it, including the already compelling combat.
Much like the first game, Red Dead Redemption 2 uses the Dead Eye system, which allows the player to lock onto enemies and slow down time in order to mark enemies for execution. Thanks to the improvements in hardware after RDR1, the prequel features a much more dynamic, free-flowing version of Dead Eye that also utilizes advanced gore to sell the harsh reality of the Old West. Shooting in Red Dead Redemption 2 feels precise and snappy, and is easily Rockstar's most accomplished combat system.
6 Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain
The Franchise's Most Complete Combat System
Metal Gear Solid 5 The Phantom Pain
- Released
- September 1, 2015
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- m
- Developer(s)
- Konami, Kojima Productions
- Genre(s)
- Stealth, Action-Adventure, Shooter, Adventure
Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima continued to expand the combat possibilities of the franchise with Snake Eater and Guns of the Patriots. However, the most refined version of the series' combat system was released in 2015 with The Phantom Pain. Utilizing nearly every aspect of prior combat systems, Kojima and his team crafted a unique, engaging world. Encounters feel natural and are treated with an unpredictability that makes each one more exciting than the last.
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After setting the stage with Ground Zeroes, a prologue released a little over a year prior to the launch of The Phantom Pain, the team at Kojima Productions crafted what is still one of the most incredible examples of an open-world stealth game ever made. The Phantom Pain also offers a wide variety of tools and abilities that Snake can use during combat. The act of marking a base for infiltration, then raiding it, is one of the most addictive game feels of the last generation. Guns feel powerful and aggressive, while dismantling enemies with CQC remains one of the most satisfying feelings in the franchise's history.
5 Fallout 4
The Best Version Of The Franchise's Hectic Shooter Gameplay
Fallout 4
- Released
- November 10, 2015
WHERE TO PLAY
After shepherding Fallout from its roots as a top-down 2D experience into a 3D first-person RPG, Bethesda continued to improve and challenge the status quo of this iconic franchise. This culminated in the fourth entry, which launched in 2015. With Fallout 4 taking full advantage of next-generation hardware, Bethesda managed to create what is still the best combat in the franchise. Even a decade later, it remains one of the most fun open-world RPGs of all time.
Much like the rest of the series, Fallout 4 uses VATS, the Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System, which allows players to effectively pause the game and target specific body parts of enemies. It bridges the gap between classic and modern Fallout, allowing the new games to play similarly to the older titles without feeling like too radical of a departure. Fallout 4 features some of the most intense, chaotic shooting scenes in the series. It also recently received a next-gen update for modern consoles, making it even more exciting to jump into today.
4 Elden Ring
FromSoftware's Trademark Combat Blends Seamlessly Into Their First Open World
Elden Ring
- Released
- February 25, 2022
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence
- Developer(s)
- From Software
After creating some of the most influential, successful video games of all time, FromSoftware decided to take their skill at designing intricate labyrinths and direct that effort into the open-world genre. The end result was Elden Ring, a massive and wonderfully detailed open world. The came captures FromSoftware's uncanny ability to create hand-crafted settings, but never lost a step when it came to combat, a specialty of this talented studio.
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The prospect of transitioning FromSoftware's combat style into a large-scale experience was risky, but it worked out wonderfully. Like FromSoftware's other games, Elden Ring relies on detail-oriented combat, where each encounter requires something different. Confrontations with enemies and bosses are built around patience, tasking the player with utilizing every skill at their disposal. The combat system featured in Elden Ring is one of FromSoftware's best, alongside classics like Bloodborne and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.
3 The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild
The Iconic Franchise Goes Open-World
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
- Released
- March 3, 2017
WHERE TO PLAY
After spending decades creating some of the most legendary worlds and locations in video games, The Legend of Zelda franchise was poised to break out, and did so in spectacular fashion with Breath of the Wild. The Zelda series has featured some rather large worlds in the past, but Breath of the Wild was a step above into a fully open world. It also maintained the franchise's commitment to impeccable combat.
Breath of the Wild features fast-paced, entertaining melee combat and outstanding ranged conflict. As Link feels nimble and agile, moving him through the wide open fields of Hyrule is incredible, and engaging with the game's expansive variety of enemies is a delight. In terms of combat, the Zelda franchise has never felt better, as the player has access to a huge list of tools and abilities to overcome the evil that threatens Hyrule. The physics of the world makes it feel alive, like anything is possible.
2 Cyberpunk 2077
Wake Up, Samurai
Cyberpunk 2077
- Released
- December 10, 2020
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Strong Language, Strong Sexual Content, Use of Drugs and Alcohol
- Developer(s)
- CD Projekt Red
After a rough launch in 2020, developers CD Projekt Red worked to elevate Cyberpunk 2077 to the game it was promised to be. They have done a remarkable job in that quest. One of the areas that was in need of refinement the most was combat, and CDPR was able to transform the game into something special, a far cry from its disappointing launch.
Cyberpunk 2077's kinetic, entertaining combat has evolved and re-shaped itself over the years, emerging as one of the most fun open-world video games on the market. As an RPG, Cyberpunk allows the player to choose what combat avenues they want to explore, offering a fantastic variety of different play styles. Ranging from the Netrunner to the Corpo build, Cyberpunk 207 7 offers a huge, distinct number of possibilities. Shooting and melee feel fabulous, with terrific feedback, as Cyberpunk 2077 remains one of the genre's most spectacular entries.
1 Marvel's Spider-Man
With Great Power, Comes Great Responsibility
Marvel's Spider-Man
- Released
- September 7, 2018
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- T For Teen Due To Blood, Drug Reference, Language, Mild Suggestive Themes, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Insomniac Games
- Genre(s)
- Action, Adventure, Open-World
Having dominated film, television and video games for the past sixty years, Spider-Man has become one of the entertainment industry's most iconic and successful characters. But when it comes to Spidey's turn in video games, no title has ever been able to compete with 2018's Spider-Man. This open-world masterpiece felt like a dream come true for fans of the webhead. The developers at Insomniac knew that one of the most important aspects of a video game based on Spider-Man is the action, and they passed with flying colors. This stellar title features the best combat system in any open-world game on the market today.
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Spider-Man uses all the things that make the character so appealing in his other media appearances. Every element of his wall-crawling, web-slinging, and furious punches and kicks work in tandem. The feeling of zipping around an environment, flipping over enemies, and delivering brutal take-downs is still unmatched by any open-world game, as it allows players to live out the power fantasy of being Spider-Man. And when Spidey isn't taking out waves of goons and towering bosses, sneaking around and picking enemies off from above feels magical. Spider-Man captures the spirit and action of the classic Marvel Comics character flawlessly, and is in a class of its own when it comes to open-world combat.
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