Summary
Bethesdahas a reputation for building worlds so detailed and immersive thatplayers can lose hundreds of hourswithout even realizing it. Whether it’s the icy sprawl of Skyrim or the irradiated wastelands of the Capital, these games aren’t just about main quests—they’re about stumbling into caves, uncovering lost civilizations, and occasionally getting eaten by mutant wildlife because someone got a little too curious.
Open worlds are Bethesda’s bread and butter, and some of their worlds have stuck with players long after the credits rolled. Here’s a look at the best of the best from Bethesda’s library.
Nobody ever accusedRage 2of having a deep story, but when it comes to its open world, the Wasteland sings a little louder. Co-developed by id Software and Avalanche Studios,Rage 2throws players into a neon-drenched apocalypse where mutants, warlords, and rocket launchers with zero recoil reign supreme.
The map itself is split into different biomes, from crimson deserts to swampy jungles, and despite being lighter onthe RPG elementsBethesda fans are used to, the world is rich in moment-to-moment chaos. It feels handcrafted for players who want to stop moving only when they’re dead or stuck in midair because they forgot how the physics work.
Scattered across the world are mutant nests, bandit dens, crumbling highways, and abandoned arcades, each offering gunfights that could make Michael Bay blush. The actual map isn’t as big asFallout 4orSkyrim, but what it lacks in size, it makes up for with sheer kinetic energy. It’s less about sprawling settlements and more about jump pads, convoy chases, and taking downMad Maxrejects with a shotgun that sounds like it might explode with every pull of the trigger. The world ofRage 2might not always make perfect sense, but it never really needs to.
WhenStarfieldlaunched, it promised players an entire galaxy to call their own—and in classic Bethesda fashion, it delivered something that was both awe-inspiring and hilariously janky. Players can touch down on over 1,000 planets, but not all planets are created equal. Some are lush and teeming with life, while others are barren. However, even the emptier worlds have a strange, lonely beauty thatscratches the exploration itchlike nothing else.
The central hubs, like New Atlantis and Neon, are where the real magic happens, full of faction politics, neon-lit markets, and corporate conspiracies that make the boardrooms of Earth look tame. Outposts can be built on remote moons, spaceship dogfights can happen out of nowhere, and there’s always a scanner in hand because that next rock over might just hide a weird alien species or a lucrative ore deposit.
Even thoughStarfield’s universe sometimes struggles with the “handcrafted versus procedural” debate, the places that are built with obvious care shine like Polaris stars. Wandering into a forgotten research facility on a dead moon and piecing together a tragedy through old datapads feels like a page ripped right out of Bethesda’s best storytelling moments. Sure, loading screens between planets aren’t ideal, but few games have captured the lonely, exciting feeling of space travel quite like this one.
Fallout 4’sBoston is a city that never really learned to die. Two centuries after the bombs fell, it’s still standing, clinging to life with duct tape and stubbornness.
Fallout 4’s Commonwealth is smaller compared toNew VegasorSkyrim, but it’s absurdly dense. Every collapsed highway, shattered skyscraper, and seedy dive bar hides something worth seeing—or shooting. Players who get bored of trading bullets with Super Mutants can spend hours scavenging through abandoned universities, skeletal suburbs, or the eerily beautiful ruins of Fenway Park, now repurposed into a settlement called Diamond City.
The addition of settlement building transformed exploration into something even more personal. Players could find a derelict gas station, kill a few Molerats, and suddenly it’s their new home base complete with walls, turrets, and slightly judgmental robot butlers. The radiant quest system meant there was always something happening, even if it was just another request to save a settler who somehow got kidnapped (again). While it might not have the sweeping political intrigue ofNew Vegas,Fallout 4’s world feels like a real place, full of survivors who live day to day with hope, anger, and a ridiculous number of laser guns duct-taped together.
The Elder Scrolls Onlinedid the impossible: it shrunk Tamriel down without making it feel small. Over the years, ZeniMax Online Studios has added nearly every iconic location from the mainlineElder Scrollsgames and beyond, letting players explore places like Vvardenfell, Summerset, and the Alik’r Desert in stunning detail.
Each zone tells its own story, packed withside quests that actually feel meaningfulrather than fetch quest filler. Players can ride through the rolling hills of High Rock one minute, delve into a Daedric cult’s lair the next, and wrap it all up by arguing with a talking cat who might secretly be a god.
The world is always alive, thanks to public events like Dolmens, Harrowstorms, and dragon hunts that pull wandering players into spontaneous chaos. Towns are bustling, not just because of NPCs but because real players populate the streets, making the cities feel like actual communities.
WhileESOcan’t replicate the intimate detail of a single-playerElder Scrollstitle, the sheer scale and loving recreation of Tamriel make itan open-world experiencethat’s easy to lose months in without realizing it—and somehow, it will still feel like there’s more to see.
BeforeSkyrim’s dragons andMorrowind’s weird mushrooms, there wasOblivion—a game where a single glowing door in the woods could pull players into a mad god’s playground. Set in the province of Cyrodiil,Oblivion’s open world is deceptively simple at first glance. Rolling green hills, ancient Ayleid ruins, misty swamps, and sleepy villages sprawl across the landscape, but it’s the way the world is filled with secrets that makes it magical. One minute, players are chasing bandits through an abandoned fortress, and the next, they stumble into a portal to the Shivering Isles, a place so bizarre it makes Cyrodiil look boring by comparison.
Cities like Chorrol, Bruma, and Skingrad each have distinct personalities, and the way NPCs move through their Radiant AI routines gives the world a sense of lived-in authenticity, even when it’s occasionally hilariously broken.Oblivion’s world encourages players to ignore the main quest entirely in favor of joining a guild, hunting down Daedric artifacts, or just picking alchemy ingredients while a wolf chews on their boots.
Despite its age, the world ofOblivionstill feels like a place where anything could happen—and often does, usually when least expected. If the dated graphics feel like too big a hurdle to clearOblivion Remasteredfaithfully captures the original game’s vibe—jank and all—but with a fresh coat of paint and ray-traced puddles.
Players stepping intoMorrowindfor the first time weren’t just exploringanother fantasy world; they were tourists in a place that didn’t care if they understood it. From the moment the boat landed in Seyda Neen, it was clear this wasn’t Tolkien-inspired high fantasy. Giant bug shells served as homes, colossal mushrooms towered over the forests, and the local gods had an unsettling habit of answering prayers with lightning bolts.
The island of Vvardenfell feels ancient and weird, as if it existed long before players ever arrived and would keep going long after they left. Every ash-strewn valley, cantankerous NPC, and dusty tomb tells a story of cultures clashing and traditions decaying. Players aren’t just fighting monsters here—they’re navigating a society where politics, religion, and history are tangled together like the roots of the giant trees dotting the land.
Fast travel barely exists, quest markers are a polite suggestion at best, and players are expected to spend time reading directions and following landmarks to find their objectives. While that may sound frustrating today, it givesMorrowind’s world a sense of physicality that’s still unmatched.
At first glance, the Mojave Wasteland inFallout: New Vegasseems emptier than some other Bethesda open worlds, but that emptiness is exactly the point. Every crumbling highway, rusted trailer park, and irradiated crater tells a story about ambition, greed, and what happens when civilization forgets to be civilized.
Developed by Obsidian Entertainmentwith Bethesda’s engine,New Vegas' world is built on factions and choices. Players aren’t just wandering between locations—they’re navigating a web of alliances, betrayals, and morally grey areas, and the landscape itself reflects that messiness. The glittering lights of New Vegas hover on the horizon, promising salvation or ruin depending on which deals get made.
Places like the irradiated ruins of Camp Searchlight, the quietly desperate outposts along the Colorado River, and the tense NCR bases near the Strip show a world that’s on the brink of either rebirth or complete collapse. Every side quest feels like a fragment of a larger puzzle, and every town or faction has its own messy, believable motivations.
If there were a Mount Rushmore of open worlds,Skyrimwould have its own, separate mountain. From the snowy peaks of the Throat of the World to the misty marshes of Morthal, every inch ofSkyrimfeels like it was designed to pull players off the beaten path. Sure, Alduin might be threatening the end of days, but players spend more time learning to bake sweet rolls, hunting down ancient Nordic tombs, and shouting goats off cliffs than saving the world.
Cities like Solitude, Whiterun, and Riften each hum with life, while random encounters—like a wizard duel happening right in the middle of a forest—make every journey feel unpredictable. Players can become the Arch-Mage, the Listener of the Dark Brotherhood, a homeowner in a frozen fishing village, or a wandering bard just looking for another tavern.
Skyrim’s world strikes the perfect balance between handcrafted wonder and emergent chaos, making it a playground that millions of players still revisit today. Modders have only extended its life span, adding new lands, expanding cities, and making sure players can shout even more goats off of even more cliffs.
