10 Open-World Games like GTA That Will Make You Forget About GTA 6

It makes sense that you’d want to find games like GTA since the series has become a gaming classic. However, this is hard to do, since Rockstar Games sets the bar so high with each game they make.

Because of this, GTA 5 has become one of the most popular video games of all time, and GTA Online has become one of the most lasting, even though both games came out ten years ago.

Still, there are a lot of other great crime-based action games out there, so if you’re looking for one of those or just one of the best open-world games to explore, here are some good choices. Here are the 10 best games like GTA, which should help you pass the time while you wait for GTA 6.

1. Red Dead Redemption 2

• Developer: Rockstar
• Platform(s): PC, PS4, Xbox One

You can probably figure out why this game is here since the GTA series and Red Dead are both made by the same company.

Even though it takes place in the early 1900s, Red Dead Redemption 2 (and its predecessor, if you want to go back in time) are great examples of GTA’s core values: player freedom in a large, open world that feels alive, attention to even the smallest details, and morally questionable men and women doing morally questionable things.

It would be too simple to call Red Dead Redemption 2 “Grand Theft Auto with horses,” but if you’re in the mood for GTA, it’s a great game to check out.

2. Just Cause 4

• Developer: Avalanche Studios
• Platform(s): PC, PS4, Xbox One

Just Cause 4 enjoys a level of chaos that has never been seen before. It does this by giving you, the player, an absurd amount of freedom. Wingsuit: all set. Check on the grappling hook. Check that you can ride on cars as a huge tornado pulls them into the air.

If the ragdoll physics in GTA 5 were funny to you, just wait until you see what you can do in The Republic of Medici. To be clear, Just Cause 4 doesn’t have the story quality or mechanical polish of Rockstar’s main series. Instead, it does well by taking a (literally) sky-high approach to orchestrating huge destruction.

3. Watch Dogs 2

• Developer: Ubisoft
• Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One

Aiden Pearce’s story of payback was almost unbearable by the end of the first Watch Dogs, but Ubisoft took that criticism to heart when making the sequel. As a result, the studio’s next game is much more like modern Grand Theft Auto games in terms of mood and tone.

Its setting is used as a backdrop for biting comedy. Remember the Grand Theft Auto 5 task called “Life Invader”? Watch Dogs 2 is basically the same thing, but on a bigger scale.

Rockstar’s take on Silicon Valley is still funnier than Ubisoft’s, but anyone who has had to sit through an Apple meeting or a Facebook commercial will find a lot to laugh about in Watch Dogs 2. And, hey, you can use pool balls with bungee cords tied to them as weapons, which is pretty cool.

4. Yakuza o

• Developer: Sega
• Platform(s): PC, PS4

Grand Theft Auto has always been praised for how it brings towns to life by giving players a ton of extra things to do outside of the main story. Yakuza 0 takes this idea of style and runs with it.

Where Grand Theft Auto 5 has tennis, yoga, and stock trading, Yakuza 0 has singing, pool, arcades, wrestling, bowling, dancing, gambling, and, um, awkwardly watching some explicit material in the back of a video store.

As this last one shows, not all of the side activities are well-made, but there are so many and such a wide range of them that it’s amazing. Yakuza isn’t nearly as big as Grand Theft Auto, but what it lacks in size, it makes up for in (weird) quality.

5. Sleeping Dogs

• Developer: United Front Games
• Platform(s): PC, PS4, Xbox One

Sleeping Dogs lived up to its name by becoming a surprise hit back in 2012. It adds things like martial arts and B-movie stunts to the usual open-world crime game formula. It feels like a Grand Theft Auto game dressed up like an old Bruce Lee movie, and it’s great.

The sequel, which was supposed to have a co-op game, was canceled while it was still in the early stages of development. This makes Sleeping Dogs a rare gem that deserves more attention for the new ideas it brought to the table.

Since the game came out again in 2014 for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, there’s really no reason (sorry) to let Sleeping Dogs sit on a shop shelf.

6. Mafia III

• Developer: Hanger 13
• Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One

There has never been a Grand Theft Auto game that didn’t involve the Mafia in some way. This makes 2K’s Mafia series a good place to start for people who like open-world games and organized crime.

These games seem more realistic than the GTA series and other games like it, but you can see the influence of games like San Andreas and Grand Theft Auto 4 in the way they are made.

Mafia 3, the latest game in the series from developer Hangar 13, is more like Rockstar in that it focuses on side activities and has a story about a war veteran trying to avoid the demons of his past (anyone remember Niko Bellic?).

Still, the rich, slow-burning story is as much inspired by The Godfather and Goodfellas as it is by Grand Theft Auto. It’s written so well that you’ll sometimes forget you’re playing a video game and not watching a Scorsese movie.

7. Lego City Undercover

• Developer: TT Fusion
• Platform(s): PC, PS4, Xbox One, Switch

There’s a good reason why almost every Grand Theft Auto game says it’s for mature viewers only. But what about those of us who want to play cops and robbers without s*x, drugs, or rock and roll? Lucky for us, in 2013 TT Games made the next best thing.

“Lego Grand Theft Auto” is a cliched way to describe one of the best Lego games: Lego City Undercover. However, this cute open-world shooter has a lot more to offer than just a copy of Grand Theft Auto. The brick-based graphics are fun, there are a lot of side quests and items that are surprisingly well-polished, and the story is a hoot.

If you can get the recently re-released version of the game, Lego City Undercover can now also be played with other people or on the go with the Nintendo Switch.

8. Payday 2

• Developer: Overkill
• Platform(s): PC, PS4, Xbox One

If you liked the famous “Three Leaf Clover” task in Grand Theft Auto 4 or the heists in Grand Theft Auto 5, then Payday 2 will be right up your alley. Overkill Software’s multiplayer co-op romp lets players go on a number of high-stakes break-ins and robberies, but it’s not as easy as just taking the money and running.

Payday 2 is a lot like the adventures of Michael, Trevor, and Franklin in that it pushes players to plan their moves and think through every detail. Players can even check out the place before doing the deed later that same day.

The focus on online co-op group play makes me think of the multiplayer heists that were added to Grand Theft Auto Online in 2013. Thankfully, Payday 2 doesn’t have those long loading times.

9. The Simpsons Hit & Run

• Developer: Radical Entertainment
• Platforms: PC, PS2, Xbox, GameCube

Yes, this is a lot older than most of the other games on this list, and a popular animated comedy isn’t the first place you’d think of for a GTA-style game, but with this cult hit from 2003, Radical Entertainment did the unthinkable.

Homer and the rest of the gang can’t do as much damage as Niko or Trevor, but you can still cause all kinds of trouble in Springfield by kicking and punching to your heart’s desire. The Simpsons: Hit & Run is a game for both Simpsons fans and people who have played Grand Theft Auto before.

The game makes smart use of references to its TV show namesake throughout the whole mission. Most people say that Simpsons Hit and Run is one of, if not the best Simpsons game ever made. If you know how to play it but haven’t done so yet, go do it right now.

10. Saints Row

• Developer: Volition
• Platform(s): PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One

Okay, we know this is a bit of a debatable idea, but hear us out. We used to say that Saints Row: The Third was a good option for GTA 5, but now that it’s been out for more than a decade, maybe it’s time to try something new.

Volition launched a new version of Saints Row in 2022, and it has gotten mixed reviews. In our review of Saints Row, we said that Volition had released “a fun but frustrating update to the franchise that has moments of inspiration and irritation” and that the reboot started “a new era that’s still somewhat stuck in the past.”

So, the new Saints Row might not be the rival to GTA 5 we were hoping for, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t fun. And after nine years of exploring Los Santos, maybe it’s time for some open-world violence to happen somewhere else.

Also Read: GTA RP Vs GTA Online: 5 Reasons Why Role-playing is More Fun Than Online Multiplayer in 2023