Best Open-World Games That Make You Smarter

Open-world video games have accomplished numerous things over the years, but the ability to make a player smarter just by virtue of experiencing it is a rare feat. While many video games are intent on telling some sort of cinematic story or expanding on entertaining gameplay systems, some games dive a bit deeper into their responsibilities to players and end up teaching the player far more than how to jump or duck behind waist-high cover.

These open worlds are special experiences, and ones that have had a unique impact on players over the years, through multiple generations. Each player has come away from these experiences with a greater understanding of the world around them, as well as potentially locked and loaded with new information that shapes them moving forward. These titles have been ranked based on their writing, execution, and overall ability to improve the intelligence of players.

Red Dead Redemption

The End Of The Wild West

Rockstar’s compelling exploration of the Old West has emerged as one of the industry’s most successful franchises, as the Red Dead Redemption series continues to examine the dying days of cowboys and the emergence of the modern world. Boosted by exceptional writing and a commitment to showcasing the harsh realities of the period, Red Dead Redemption feels like a living, breathing history lesson on some of humanity’s darkest moments.

Red Dead Redemption does its best to combine a fictional history and mythology alongside a world that explores human atrocities, as well as gripping commentary on the steps that led humanity to where we are today. It may seem hard to believe considering these developers also made a name for themselves with the profanity-laced Grand Theft Auto franchise, but Red Dead‘s intelligent, measured look at humans and the evolution of our world continues to make its players smarter with each passing entry.

Outer Wilds

Compelling Space Game Makes Its Players Smarter

Outer Wilds began development after a group of USC graduates got together to create a game that explored the concept of a planet that lives and evolves throughout the experience, an experiment that paid off in spades, as it became an indie darling and continued to captivate its players six years later. Its looping narrative revolves around the player attempting to solve the mystery of a supernova and their imminent destruction, creating an unmatched urgency.

Outer Wilds isn’t just content with making the player live out a catastrophic time loop in order to satisfy entertaining gameplay concepts, as it insists on informing the player of both the way its world works and how one can understand its complex science, which is often based on real-world ideas. It is a truly fascinating game that was clearly made by smart, intelligent people, and their sense of wonder and discovery is infectious, making each player who experiences it more knowledgeable about the cosmic world surrounding them.

Death Stranding

Philosophy And Science Fiction Collide

Hideo Kojima’s apocalyptic vision of the future is still one of gaming’s most fascinating experiences, as Death Stranding was made by a man who has a lot of things to say, and finds truly incredible ways to say them. As Sam Bridges, players trek their way across a harsh landscape in order to reconnect a broken United States and usher in a new era of peace, but find themselves at odds with the worst humanity has to offer, in addition to haunting ghosts known as BTs.

As so many of Kojima’s games do, Death Stranding focuses on complex, sociopolitical themes and concepts, with a story rooted in musings on the fragility of life and the loss of humanity in a time of chaos. It challenges the player to examine their own biases and preconceptions, prompting philosophical discussions in a way no game ever has. Not only that, but the actual gameplay itself makes players feel smarter, as making it out of BT territory alive comes with its own intelligence boost, as the game’s harsh world is truly a beautiful nightmare, where survival is paramount.

No Man’s Sky

Explore The Depths Of Outer Space And Expand Your Mind

Despite its incredibly rough launch and problematic first few years, No Man’s Sky has slowly rebuilt its reputation into something truly special, becoming one of the industry’s most celebrated survival games. With its impressive technology and sense of scale that lets players travel from star system to star system, No Man’s Sky relies heavily on the player’s willingness to be part of the journey and its own intelligence to push them forward each time they play it.

The voyage between each star system creates an intoxicating sense of wonder that fills one with both anticipation of what the next world may look like and the ability to consider just how insignificant humans are in comparison to the world around them. No Man’s Sky also features worlds that teach the player about flora, fauna, and the general concept of the way a planet operates, something that is so unique to this experience. In many ways, No Man’s Sky teaches players that it’s okay to just let go and see the cosmos for what it is, and teaching that sense of humility is one of the game’s greatest strengths.

Minecraft

Shape Your World

Minecraft recently celebrated its fifteenth anniversary, which is still tremendously impressive considering that, despite how long it’s been around, Mojang’s hit open-world survival game is still just as relevant today as it was back when it launched in 2011. Ever since then, Minecraft has dedicated itself to teaching its players the ability to think, innovate, and create, resulting in one of the industry’s most influential games of all time. It remains one of the most iconic releases, as it continues to educate players on those same core values over a decade later.

Players who put time into Minecraft come away with a sense of invention and creativity that is still truly incredible to watch, as they have used the game’s remarkable set of tools to build and shape outstanding works of art. It has also cultivated a fanbase filled with heart and emotional intelligence, as the continuously growing community has emerged as one of the industry’s smartest player bases, as the internal mechanics of Minecraft also rely on clever crafting and knowledge. Minecraft has shown no signs of slowing down, creating a community of highly intelligent, innovative players.