Best Open-World Games With Mature 17+ ESRB Ratings

Open-world games have become almost synonymous with the gaming industry. Many developers today focus on bringing players expansive worlds, brimming with life and additional content. RPGs scarcely come as linear nowadays, and sandboxes are not complete without an open world.

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While there are child-friendly open-world games that are suitable for gamers of all ages, there are other titles awarded a mature rating due to the open-world brimming with mature content. These titles are filled with strong violence, buckets of blood, and other such content that should only be witnessed by mature gamers.

Updated April 28, 2024, by Mara Cowley: Open world games have continued to prove their popularity among gamers far and wide simply due to the large volume of options they provide. Open worlds help give players more agency and freedom, as they can choose to put the main quest on hold in favor of exploration and completing or picking up new side quests. While games like Minecraft or Tears of the Kingdom likely come to mind when players think of open-world games, there are plenty for those who want a mature experience with guts, gore, and blood. This article already outlines some truly fantastic titles in the genre, such as The Witcher 3, but there are more out there that deserve to be recognized.

A World Brimming With Magic, Wonder, And Danger

Though the Elder Scrolls games have always been a popular choice among gamers, Skyrim is the one that gained the most fame, earning itself multiple remakes and re-releases to keep up with newer hardware. In this game, the ancient and powerful dragon Alduin the World Eater has returned, threatening the safety of the world, and only the Dragonborn can put a stop to him.

As the Dragonborn, players thankfully have all the time they want to explore the world, spelunk through dungeons, undertake side quests, and even get married and adopt a few children. The total freedom players are given and the amount of content available to them is nothing short of impressive. The high stakes of the enormous threat weighing down on the planet, and boundless blood and violence, make this a game that younger gamers should definitely avoid, but more mature audiences will be sure to appreciate what’s on offer here.

9 Dying Light 2 Stay Human

Total Freedom To Explore A Horrifying Zombie-Torn World

Over two decades after the events of the first game, a new protagonist by the name Aiden Caldwell finds himself in the zombie-torn streets of Europe, humanity in tatters after the Harran virus and its subsequent mutated strain had almost completely wiped all life from the world. Now, humans hide in scattered settlements, with only very few daring to tread the world between these safe zones.

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In search of his sister, Aiden is one of these brave Pilgrims and is free to explore the large and open urban map, brimming with vicious and terrifying zombies intent on tearing Aiden apart to feast on his flesh. Adept at parkour, Dying Light 2 Stay Human players can move through the zombie-ravaged land in an interesting and fun way, making the traversal itself much more engaging.

8 Dragon’s Dogma 2

A Seamless Open World That Features Explicit Content

Like the first game, players take on the role of the Arisen, a hero marked by a great dragon that they now must find and kill, but they won’t be able to do it alone. By summoning Pawns, they can build a squad of competent fighters to take on the dangers of the world, and when they are ready, the dragon itself.

Those who have played the first game will recall how it was also an open-world game, providing players with total freedom when it came to exploration. Dragon’s Dogma 2 has gone even bigger, offering gamers even more to discover and experience. The clever use of emergent events and the day and night cycle further enhance how immersive and exciting it is, alongside racking up the danger. And should players want to take a break from all the violence and murder, they can even engage in relationships with almost any of the NPCs they meet.

7 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

An Impressively Large World Full Of Terrifying Creatures

CD Projekt Red’s flagship franchise, The Witcher, is based on the adult fantasy novel series of the same name by Andrzej Sapkowski, following the trials and tribulations of protagonist Geralt of Rivia as he roams the lands slaying monsters for coin. This is the basic premise of a sprawling franchise that contains fascinating lore, a rich story, and a cast of colorful characters bursting with personality.

The third game, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, sees Geralt trying to track down his lost adoptive daughter Ciri before the Wild Hunt finds her, meeting returning characters such as Yennefer, Triss, and Dandelion along the way. In typical RPG fashion, players can choose to delay pursuing the main plot in favor of side-quests, exploration, and in The Witcher 3‘s case, a few games of Gwent. The sheer breadth of the world here is breathtaking, and it would be a shame for players not to experience as much of it as possible. The slew of monsters, blood, and nudity may be slightly too much for younger gamers, hence why The Witcher 3 received the rating it did.

6 Satisfactory

An Open World Title That Features Tense Combat Encounters

Surprisingly, this open-world factory-building simulator earned itself a mature rating despite not containing gratuitous blood or violence. However, that’s not to say Satisfactory is completely devoid of combat, as that is just one of its many elements. Players can also explore the world, and, of course, build their factories up from the ground, using the resources they find scattered around the map.

The premise of Satisfactory is simple enough. Players take on the role of an engineer who has been ordered to colonize new worlds by building factories on them. At the start, players choose one of four starting locations, all of which have unique terrain and varying resources. In typical open-world fashion, players are free to explore the other locations and see what they have to offer. Unlocking vehicles and weapons as they progress their factory makes exploration all the easier, as gamers can cover more ground faster and fend off hostile inhabitants more easily. The combat is where the game becomes more suited for a mature audience, as foes won’t stop until they are put down for good.

5 Grand Theft Auto 5

A Beautiful Open World In Which Violence Is Encouraged

Rockstar’s best-selling title, Grand Theft Auto 5, swept the gaming world by storm and has retained its popularity since then. Based in the fictional city of San Andreas, players follow the story of the three main protagonists, Michael, Franklin, and Trevor, and their struggles to pull off successful heists despite the rising oppression of the corrupt government and rival criminals that have risen in the underground world.

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Players are free to explore the world in between missions. They can take in the breathtaking scenery of San Andreas, meet NPCs, and partake in side missions. In the typical fashion of GTA games, players can steal cars, commit acts of domestic terrorism, and generally prove to be a scourge on the streets of America. What’s more, gamers can rope their friends into their shenanigans through GTA Online with up to a total of thirty other players and rise from the rank of a lowly street thug to a crime overlord.

4 Death Stranding

An Innovative Title Set In A Frightening World

Following the cancelation of the much-anticipated Silent Hills and Kojima’s subsequent departure from Konami, Kojima founded his own company and created a game with the talents of Norman Reedus, Troy Baker, Mads Mikkelson, and Guillermo Del Toro. That game was Death Stranding. Together, they created an innovative title set in a unique world with fantastic performances by its cast.

Death Stranding takes place in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by creatures called Beached Things (or BTs for short). These undead beings haunt the lands and can create catastrophic events such as an explosion on the same scale as a nuclear bomb or rain that rapidly ages whatever it touches, ravaging the lands and leaving many places uninhabitable. The remaining survivors sequestered themselves away in colonies, with only the courier service known as BRIDGES brave enough to traverse the land to deliver the necessary supplies. The monsters of Death Stranding also enhance the horror elements, so it may not be ideal for the faint of heart.

3 Cyberpunk 2077

Explore The Dangerous And Beautiful Night City

CD Projekt Red’s other hit title, Cyberpunk 2077, also provided a fantastic open world for players to dive into, decked out with futuristic neon vistas, plenty of colorful characters to meet, and interesting side quests to complete. Though its initial release was plagued with technical issues ranging from humorous to game-breaking, the game has since received many quality-of-life updates to ensure players can enjoy the intriguing story and fun gameplay.

Set in the fictional, futuristic Night City, players control V, whose origins purely depend on the one they choose from the three options. V is implanted with a cybernetic chip that seems to contain the personality and memories of dead celebrity Johnny Silverhand, expertly portrayed by Keanu Reeves. Struggling to maintain control of their body, V finds themselves in conflict with corporation giant Arasaka, who has created a deadly artificial intelligence that copies netrunners’ minds before destroying them. These themes are sure to resonate with a more mature audience and provide great motivation to explore this beautiful yet dystopian city to see all it has to offer.

2 Horizon Zero Dawn

A Mature Open World Title That Combines Fantasy And Sci-Fi

Horizon Zero Dawn has proved itself as one of the greatest RPG series out there, bringing players a fantastic new world and story that sees fantasy and sci-fi combined into one near-perfect package. The game transports players to jungle and forest-like environments that are the stomping grounds of giant mecha-beasts. Players can use an array of weapons as well as stealth mechanics to overcome them and a skill tree to unlock new abilities and bonuses.

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Horizon Zero Dawn follows the story of Aloy, a young hunter who sets out in the open, post-apocalyptic world to uncover the mysteries surrounding her past. Humanity now lives in tribes in 31st-century America with different levels of technology. The once-peaceful machines become struck by ‘Derangement,’ a condition that causes them to become hostile to any living creature they spot, becoming obstacles between Aloy and her quest to find out more about her origins. The complexity of the story, mechanics, and, of course, all the violence orchestrated by players and enemy NPCs firmly plant this as a more mature gaming experience, proving itself worthy of the rating it received.

1 Red Dead Redemption 2

A Gritty Step Back Into American History

Red Dead Redemption 2 serves as a prequel to the original game, following the story of Arthur Morgan, a cowboy from 1899. He is one of the leading members of the Van Der Linde gang, which the first game’s protagonist, John Marston, is also a member of. The group of outlaws is dedicated to keeping the Wild West alive and well during its steady decline. On top of that, they face countless threats from rival gangs, government forces, and other enemies that are scattered throughout the expansive world of Red Dead Redemption 2. The group’s illicit activities make them the enemy of oil tycoon Leviticus Cornwall, who recruits the Pinkerton Detective Agency to put a stop to their activities.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is one of Rockstar’s greatest titles, featuring an immersive world to explore and a fun multiplayer mode for gamers looking to be outlaws with a group of friends. That said, Red Dead Redemption 2‘s themes and story are not at all suitable for children, with tough subject matters being explored in the main quest and certain side quests being rife with horror. For older audiences looking for a strong narrative and gritty gameplay, however, Red Dead Redemption 2 is an ideal choice.

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