The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrimis one of the most groundbreaking open-world RPGs ever developed. Like its predecessors,Skyrimprovides gamers with a rich and extensive, and explorable open world to immersive themselves. The most appealing thing aboutThe Elder Scrollsgames is that they are designed to provide unique stories and adventures for players, where every decision they make affects the game world around them.
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That sense of openness made the series andThe Elder Scrolls: Skyrimone of the most influential in gaming, where even action games have aimed to topSkyrim’ssize and interactivity. Now, open-world games seem to be focused on giving gamers a dynamic world full of sights to explore, side quests, and naturally occurring events similar toSkyrim. At 15 square miles,Skyrim’s world is big, but this list looks at othergaming worlds bigger thanSkyrimthat should keep players busy for a long time.
Updated July 31, 2025, by Michael Llewellyn:Skyrim is a stunning and vast game capable of drawing players into its world and immersing them in a fantasy adventure. For many, it is a benchmark for open-world RPGs and deserves the multiple ports across platforms it has received. Despite being a massive game, it’s not close to being the largest. There are more vast and open worlds that dwarf the map of Skyrim, but not all are as densely packed. This list is updated to include more titles withbigger worlds than Skyrim.
16The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - 21 Square Miles
The Witcher 3: The Wild Huntwas released on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and the PC in 2015. A Nintendo Switch port followed in 2019, which holds well up compared to more powerful consoles. However, theWitcher 3is best on the PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and powerful PCs.
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The fact thatThe Witcher 3looks and runs so well on the Nintendo Switch is relative to just how good masterful the developers at CD Projekt Red are in creating beautiful worlds. At 21 square miles, the world ofThe Witcheris significantly smaller than others on this list, but it still feels and looks massive. The cities, towns, and villages are distinctive, and the map is packed with secret caves, dungeons, andhundreds of quests.
15Sacred 2: Fallen Angel – 22 Square Miles
Sacred 2: Fallen Angelwas released on the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 in 2008. It is a traditional top-down open-world RPG widely considered the best game in the series by fans. Much of this is down to the size ofSacred 2’shuge open-world map, which is 22 Square Miles in total.
In addition to the size of the map, there are caves and dungeons to explore that can be up to levels deep, and surface dungeons and buildings can be up to four stories. Furthermore, the world is split into different regions with distinct climates, terrain, architecture, and NPCs.
14The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild - 28 Square Miles
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wildwas released for the Nintendo Switch and the Wii U in 2017. Despite being released on an older machine in the Wii U,Breath of the Wildis still home to one of the most beautifully made open-world games in the last decade.
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While it is not as dense or filled with towns likeThe Witcher 3or evenSkyrim, the world of Hyrule is vast and open to be played and approached in any order. The serene wildlands of Hyrule stretch up to 28 square miles and are a pure joy to explore.
Red Dead Redemption 2was released in 2018 on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and the PC. It is a Western-themed action-adventure game that is the closest that fans can get to realizing their cowboy fantasies to their fullest.
The game is 30 square miles and features one of themost densely packed and beautiful worlds. Many towns are gritty, dirty, and realistic. They look like they have been ripped from the set of HBO’s gritty western series,Deadwood.The world is immersive and packed with reactive and endless activities, hunts, and side quests.
12Elden Ring - 30.5 Square Miles
Despite not being at the top of this list,Elden Ringis still a vast open-world RPGthat feels bigger than it is. There are many secrets and an underground world almost as big as the overworld. It would take a long time to uncover everything inElden Ring,even after getting the Platinum trophy for completing the game.
Unsurprisingly,Elden Ringis the most extensive game using FromSoft’s famedSoulsformula. It features several interconnected and well-designed dungeons and areas within its world. It captures the feeling of a stranger in a strange land like no other.
11Grand Theft Auto 5 - 31 Square Miles
Grand Theft Auto 5was first released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in 2013. An enhanced version of the game was launched on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in 2014 and on PC in 2015. Even thoughGTA 5is technically a last-gen game, it is still seen as the benchmark for open-world games with a modern-day setting and looks even better since it launched on the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S.
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Grand Theft Auto 5is not just bursting at the seams with places to go and things to see but is teeming with life, personality, and a realistic but albeit satirical representation of California. Additionally, it features a great cast ofmemorable characters and protagoniststhat players will love and hate for their actions but ultimately care about their fates.
10Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla - 38.5 Square Miles
As the third entry in theMythology trilogy -Assassin’s Creed: Origins, Odyssey, andValhalla,one would expectAssassin’s Creed: Valhallato boast a larger map than its predecessor. That is not the case, however, as in terms of map size,Valhallais less than half the size ofOdyssey.
In fairness toValhalla,Odysseyalso focuses on exploring the Mediterranean Sea, whereValhalla has morevaried terrain across Norway and Britain with more landmass to explore. The content inValhallahas also been expanded with its new maps,content, and upcoming DLC. As such, there is more than enough to explore for open-world fans.
9Forza Horizon 5 - 41 Square Miles
Released as one of the big hits for the Xbox in 2021, alongsideHalo InfiniteandMicrosoft Flight Simulator, Forza Horizon 5stands as one of the best racers available on any platform.
The game offers a larger open world than its predecessors, with vast and varied landscapes to explore. There are mountains, volcanoes, jungles, and several towns to discover quests, missions, races, and secrets.
8Dragon Age Inquisition - 45 Square Miles
Critically acclaimed at launch, the fantasy RPG from BioWare,Dragon Age: Inquisition,remainsone of the best RPGsin the dark fantasy genre. Far from being underrated, it has become overlooked in recent years, with megahits likeThe Witcher 3andBaldur’s Gate 3dominating lists. However, the award-winning hit from BioWare deserves more praise from RPG fans.
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The visuals hold up very nicely despite being a cross-gen game, and the world is a joy to explore with secrets and lore that fans ofSkyrimwill appreciate. Accompanied by an epic score, dark storyline, and an outstanding voice cast,Inquisitionis a huge game that would complement the library of RPG fans.
7The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom - 53.61 Square Miles
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomis one of the most beautiful games on the Switch. It features a timeless art style and an astounding open world to explore. It is a direct sequel toThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wildand reuses the map. However, the game features explorable land in the sky and underground, giving it more scope and size.
YouTuber Sunowaddlepainstakingly measured the entire map and concluded thatTears of the Kingdomis 53.61 square miles. He calculated the depths and the verticality of Nintendo’s epic adventure, revealing that it is significantly larger than its predecessor.
