Developers put a lot of time and effort into creating interesting worlds in which their games will take place. Some take it a step further by offering interesting worlds and allowing them to change as you play.
This can happen in several ways. Sometimes your actions can even shape the world because you can destroy or fix parts of it. Sometimes, there's a time skip or something important happens in the story and the world automatically changes without your input. Including change in some way adds a lot to the overall experience because it makes the world feel more real. Here are some games that contain worlds that evolve or are inherited over time:
Updated on December 1, 2025 by Ben Jessey. We've updated this list to match current format standards and added a few more items.
disgrace
Dishonored is an action-adventure game set in the fictional town of Dunwall. It looks like a pretty nice place, except for a few rats running around. However, you can make the problem much worse if you wish.
This video game world is so detailed that you'll feel like you're in a real place.
Escape to a whole new world.
The game uses a chaos system rather than a moral system. The way it works is that the more murders you make and the more chaos you cause, the more rats will flood the city. Your actions don't just affect rodent populations. The more chaos you create, the more parasitic insects and zombie-like howls will appear.
My time in Portia
In My Time at Portia, you play as a builder who takes over your father's workshop in the city of Portia. As them, you have to spend time gathering resources and completing tasks. Some of the things you create become important parts of the world. For example, one of your first missions is to build a bridge to Amber Island.
Once created, you can now use it throughout the rest of the game. You can also build everything your town needs, including water towers and lifts. So by the end of the game the place will be changed forever.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Your mission in The Witcher 3 is to find and protect your adoptive daughter, Ciri. However, this game is a large RPG with lots of side quests to do. While doing this, it may affect regions around the world.
For example, following Tris' questline to sneak wizards out of the city of Novigrad causes the witch hunters to target non-human races instead. So when you return you won't see the elves and dwarves running around, but you will see some of them tied up. Furthermore, depending on your actions, entire villages can be wiped out or saved, curses removed, and rulers removed.
saboteur
In real life, Nazis figuratively make every place darker. The World War II game The Saboteur literally makes things darker. This is because all areas occupied by the Nazis in France are black and white, except for a few colors.
But you play as a member of the French Resistance trying to take back their country. To do so, we must go district by district and systematically eliminate the influence of the Third Reich. Any area you retake will regain some color.
death stranding
Being a courier in video games is not an enviable job, as it is usually very dangerous. The same goes for Sam Bridges in Death Stranding. As him, you must cross harsh and dangerous lands to make your deliveries.
But thankfully, building structures during the game can make things a little easier. You can build ziplines, bridges, shelters, highways, and more. These become part of the map. You can also create items for yourself as well as other people playing online.
Dying Light 2 Stay Human
Dying Light 2 is set in a city filled with zombies and a villainous faction known as Renegades. But there are also more friendly faces, like survivors and peacekeepers. Both factions can provide assistance during the game. You can also help the Zombies or Renegades by taking over facilities from them and handing them over to either faction.
This will make the location much safer. Additionally, factions offer you items in return. This includes extra ziplines to help you move, extra trampolines to bounce on, extra traps to use, and more. These are all added to the open world.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
When Animal Crossing: New Horizons starts, you'll be taken to a deserted island owned by Tom Nook. He gives you a tent to start with. But over time, you can upgrade your home to your heart's content.
But that's not the only part of the island that's improving. Over time, more facilities and shops may be added to the island. It may take some time, but eventually the place will feel like a real community.
prototype
There are a lot of games set in New York, but Prototype's game is much worse than most of them. This is because the population is dealing with an outbreak of a dangerous virus that turns people into monsters.
Your character, Alex Mercer, is also infected, but you're mainly using your powers for good to save the city. It's not just people you're saving, because the virus also infects buildings and streets. In fact, as the game progresses, the entire place becomes noticeably more infected.
Mass Effect: Andromeda
At the start of Mass Effect: Andromeda, various species of the Milky Way travel to the Andromeda Galaxy. The goal is to start a new life here and colonize some planets. But when they reached the galaxy, things were much worse than expected. Many planets are uninhabitable.
But all hope is not lost because you are here. You can visit scary and dangerous planets and fix what is making them uninhabitable. For example, the planet Eos is full of radiation, and removing it will make it easier to travel there in the future. Additionally, people may migrate to the planet and start their lives there.
Red Dead Redemption 2
In the second half of Red Dead Redemption 2, the story jumps back in time. But it doesn't move you to a new world. You'll still be wandering around and exploring the same places years from now. As a result, you can see that the place has changed in various ways. The cool thing is that the game sets these changes for you.
For example, at the beginning of the game you can see workers building a railroad, but as time goes by, the railroad is completed. Additionally, the village of Valentine contains buildings that will be constructed in the early stages of the game and completed by the end of the adventure. You also sometimes contribute to change in the world, as the places you burn remain charred and the houses you build become part of the world.
10 open world games that shine even if you skip the story
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