Updated September 2026
This is the ranking of the best Open-World Adventure Games, sorted by NextGameLike Score: a 0-100 metric blending Steam reviews, IGDB ratings (community and critic), Metacritic, OpenCritic and the NextGameLike community votes into a single number. Unlike opinion-based editorial lists, this order is computed from real data and applies a Bayesian shrinkage adjustment so games with few reviews can't inflate the top of the chart. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time lead the chart — the highest-rated titles in the genre according to our data. The top-25 average NextGameLike Score is 89/100, out of 72 games catalogued. The ranking updates continuously as new reviews and votes come in.
Top 3
Top of “The 20 Best Open-World Adventures (2026)”: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (95.3/100). Close behind: Super Mario Odyssey and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
Ranked by NextGameLike Score · 72 games catalogued
Critics rated The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild higher than the public did. Hence the first place.
Super Mario Odyssey is more loved by critics than by the average player. It holds the best critic score on the whole list, 97/100. Enough for the podium: number 2.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time has little in the way of ratings and a great deal of standing. That puts it at number 3.
Critics rated The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom higher than the public did. It is the newest on the list (2023), and has already earned its place. Number 4, inside the top 10.
Super Mario 64 earns its place on presence rather than on a score. It is the oldest game in the ranking (1996) and still here. That gets it into the top 10, at number 5.
No argument here: Kerbal Space Program wins over players and critics alike. That gets it into the top 10, at number 6.
With Shadow of the Colossus, the press was ahead of the public. Number 7, inside the top 10.
Stray is one of the few Open-World Adventure Games where players and critics say the same thing. It is the most reviewed of the 20: 171,374 Steam reviews. That gets it into the top 10, at number 8.
Critics were lukewarm on LEGO Star Wars - The Complete Saga; players were not. That gets it into the top 10, at number 9.
Players and critics agree on Outer Wilds, which is rarer than it sounds in Open-World Adventure Games. That gets it into the top 10, at number 10.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess earns its place on presence rather than on a score. It sits at 11 of 20.
Players and critics agree on A Short Hike, which is rarer than it sounds in Open-World Adventure Games. No other entry of the 20 has a higher share of positive reviews: 99%. It lands at 12 of 20.
Critics rated The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds higher than the public did. It lands at 13 of 20.
A Hat in Time is carried by its players more than by its reviews. It sits at 14 of 20.
Antichamber is one of the few Open-World Adventure Games where players and critics say the same thing. It lands at 15 of 20.
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask has little in the way of ratings and a great deal of standing. It lands at 16 of 20.
The Witness is one of the few Open-World Adventure Games where players and critics say the same thing. It sits at 17 of 20.
L.A. Noire is one of the few Open-World Adventure Games where players and critics say the same thing. It lands at 18 of 20.
Critics rated Shadow of the Colossus higher than the public did. It lands at 19 of 20.
SpaceEngine is here because of its players — they are who it won over. It lands at 20 of 20.