10 Best Open-World RPGs Like Skyrim, Ranked

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is one of the most influential games of the last two decades. Bethesda Game Studios gave us an enormous world to explore, countless quests to discover, and the freedom to build a character around almost any playstyle.

It’s been more than a decade since it came out, but even games today still have elements from it that we can see. If you’ve been missing that kind of game and haven’t had the chance to catch up in the last decade, there are plenty of games to get lost in.

Here are 10 of the best open-world RPGs like Skyrim that you can check out today.

10 Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey brings the franchise fully into RPG territory. We’re taken to an enormous representation of Ancient Greece full of settlements, ruins, islands, caves, enemy camps, quests, and optional activities.

We have a vast array of combat abilities to pick from; we can collect powerful equipment and make dialogue choices that influence certain interactions. Like Skyrim, Odyssey makes it easy to get distracted by something interesting while traveling toward an objective.

9 Hogwarts Legacy

Hogwarts Legacy is another fantasy-world alternative to Skyrim, but the role-playing systems are a little different. Set decades before the events of the Harry Potter books, we can create our own witch or wizard and explore Hogwarts, Hogsmeade, and the surrounding countryside.

The open world is filled with side quests, puzzles, collectibles, enemy camps, magical creatures, and other activities. We can even customize our Room of Requirement, collect magical creatures, learn spells, and develop different abilities.

8 Dragon’s Dogma 2

Dragon’s Dogma 2 has a different approach to the open-world RPG formula compared to Bethesda’s games. The world is filled with dangerous creatures, wandering NPCs, unexpected encounters, and large battles that can develop organically while traveling.

The combat system is one of its biggest strengths. We can choose from several vocations and pick between different abilities and approaches to fighting. The game’s Pawn system also provides AI-controlled companions who accompany us through the game.

7 Fallout: New Vegas

Fallout: New Vegas takes us from Skyrim’s medieval fantasy to a post-apocalyptic version of the American Southwest. However, it still shares one of Bethesda-style RPGs’ most important qualities: player freedom.

Developed by Obsidian Entertainment, New Vegas allows decisions to have big consequences. Factions have competing interests, characters can react to the player’s actions, and quests can have multiple possible outcomes.

6 Cyberpunk 2077

Cyberpunk 2077 is quite different from Skyrim in terms of setting, but the underlying RPG structure is all there. CD Projekt Red takes us to Night City, a futuristic metropolis filled with corporations, gangs, mercenaries, and countless side stories.

We get to customize V through different abilities, cyberware, weapons, and equipment. These choices can dramatically alter how combat and certain missions are approached.

It is more linear than Skyrim in terms of story, but it has great exploration, character progression, side quests, and build experimentation.

5 Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a great option if you enjoy the feeling of actually becoming a character rather than simply controlling one.

Set in 15th-century Bohemia, the game has a detailed historical setting. There are no dragons or magical spells. Instead, we can explore villages, castles, forests, roads, and the countryside while dealing with the social and practical realities of medieval life.

There’s a ton of character development, equipment, reputation, survival mechanics, combat, and interactions with NPCs that all contribute to the feeling of living in the world.

4 Elden Ring

Elden Ring is an option if you’re also interested in a more combat-heavy game. Instead of having a map full of quest markers, FromSoftware encourages players to explore and figure out the world for themselves.

The Lands Between is filled with hidden caves, castles, underground areas, optional bosses, secrets, and entire regions that can be missed if you simply follow the obvious path.

It’s much harder than Skyrim, and that makes it a very different kind of RPG. However, the sense of discovery is very similar.

3 The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom isn’t a traditional RPG in the same way as Skyrim, but it shares one of its most important qualities: almost complete freedom to explore. Hyrule is a huge world, and you can go anywhere you see with relative ease.

There are also shrines, side quests, settlements, caves, enemy camps, collectibles, and hidden locations to find. The game doesn’t push you toward a single objective, and it rewards curiosity and experimentation.

2 Red Dead Redemption 2

Red Dead Redemption 2 isn’t a fantasy RPG, but it is one of the best options if you want a truly immersive world. Rockstar’s recreation of the American frontier is extraordinarily detailed. The game’s wildlife truly behaves on its own, NPCs have their own routines, you can find random quests while traveling, and even the smallest locations can hide unexpected things.

You can also ignore the main storyline for a while. You can hunt, fish, explore, complete side missions, search for secrets, or just travel across the countryside.

1 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is the closest in terms of delivering the overall combination of exploration, fantasy, quests, and world-building that makes Skyrim so special.

— The Witcher (@thewitcher) August 25, 2026

The world is enormous, but its size is only part of the appeal. You can find stories, characters, monsters, settlements, treasure, and unexpected distractions everywhere. And a simple trip between two objectives can easily turn into an entirely different quest.

Unlike Skyrim, we have a main character in Geralt instead of an original character. The combat system is also more focused, with Geralt’s abilities, signs, weapons, and preparations being big factors. Despite those differences, The Witcher 3 perfectly captures the essence of what makes a great open-world fantasy RPG.

Which is your favorite open-world RPG of all time? Let us know in the comments!