26, 2026, 1:15 PM EDT Evan is a Communications student based in Edmonton, Alberta. Formerly a sports writer, he was drawn to Game Rant by his longtime passion for video games. An avid gamer since the age of 13, Evan has played and enjoyed games across all genres and platforms. He is also an avid binge-watcher and reader, and prefers his music on CD or vinyl. He has two cats that frequently plot ways to ruin his day. Sign in to your GameRant account Some games simply don't age well. Their legacy lives on in the memories of those who played them and the nostalgia for their era, but when you actually return to play them with modern sensibilities hovering in the back of your mind, they can be a slog. It's not the game's fault, either; that's just the progression of the gaming industry, which is something we all benefit from. That said, not every game ages badly in all aspects. Some open-world games still play great, tell a gripping story, and offer a ton of variety, but the act of exploring their maps has become an agonizing experience over time. That's the case with these next open-world games. In many respects, they're still worth your time, and can offer a ton of fun if you're patient. The thing is, when you're moving from one quest to another, or just goofing off in the open-ended map, it can go from being fun to being a chore in a hurry. Scratch & Peek Identify the cover art while scratching off as little foil as possible. Easy Medium Hard Permadeath 0 Points Medium 0 % Scratch to reveal Low reveal = bigger bonus 0 / 10 Results 0 High Score: 0 — More Games The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind Things Are Looking Muddy The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind Released May 1, 2002 Where to play Close WHERE TO PLAY SUBSCRIPTION DIGITAL GGMods Mods ESRB T For Teen due to Blood, Violence Developer(s) Bethesda Game Studios Genre(s) RPG Powered by Expand Collapse Here's the thing about The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind: it's a product of its time. Back in 2002, this game was a serious looker. It also revolutionized the open-world RPG, first-person melee combat, and frankly, video games in general. There are a lot of classic games that owe their inspiration entirely to Morrowind, and it deserves all the praise it gets. The thing is, it's pretty rough to look at these days. Well, okay, it still looks pretty good from a distance. Unfortunately, its built-in game design forces you to look a lot closer than that. Morrowind is a game that refuses to hold your hand, and that's a big part of what people love about it. The quest markers and QoL improvements that made life easier in Oblivion and beyond aren't present here, which makes for a more immersive experience, to be sure. The thing is, when the game is so heavily reliant on learning your environment, remembering landmarks, and deciphering quests based on what the quest-giver tells you, rather than what's in your journal, then its age really starts to show. Textures are muddy, assets are reused, and the world is just so dang big that it quickly becomes a chore to explore it "organically." There are mods out there that can add some QoL improvements, and they make a huge difference, because exploring Morrowind today can be a frustrating experience. Assassin's Creed Brotherhood Somehow, Italy Returned Assassin's Creed Brotherhood Action Stealth Systems Released November 16, 2010 Where to play Close WHERE TO PLAY SUBSCRIPTION DIGITAL ESRB M // Blood, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Violence Developer(s) Ubisoft Montreal Genre(s) Action, Stealth Powered by Expand Collapse The Exio trilogy is widely considered some of the best storytelling in the Assassin's Creed franchise, and it undeniably features the best games of the "Desmond era," before the shift to more RPG-like gameplay. That said, this entry comes with a bit of a caveat. It would be weird to start playing Assassin's Creed Brotherhood without playing Assassin's Creed 2 first. That's like starting Star Wars at The Empire Strikes Back. Yet if you play AC2 and then jump into Brotherhood, things are going to feel pretty same-y. That's because Assassin's Creed 2 takes place across several cities in Italy, including Florence, Venice, and more. Assassin's Creed Brotherhood takes place in Rome... which is also in Italy. This is not to disparage anything else about Brotherhood, because it's easily one of the best games in the series, but purely from a map exploration perspective, you're going to climb a lot of the same architecture, hear a lot of the same accents, and see a lot of the same environmental detail that you saw in AC2. That can make the actual process of moving through the world — which is often the best part of an Assassin's Creed game — a chore. Sure, the Roman landmarks are stellar, but the rest of the map is a lot of been there, done that. Mafia The Source Of The Series' Biggest Criticism Mafia: Definitive Edition 7 /10 Released September 25, 2020 Where to play Close WHERE TO PLAY DIGITAL ESRB M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood, Sexual Themes, Drug Reference, Strong Language, Intense Violence Developer(s) Hangar 13 Genre(s) Action, RPG, Adventure Powered by Expand Collapse Mafia has always been playing second fiddle to Grand Theft Auto, in the same way that Saints Row has. The difference is that Saints Row went full satire to differentiate itself, while Mafia leaned hard into narrative storytelling, sacrificing a lot of the justification for it being an open-world game in the process. One of the main criticisms that Mafia series gets — especially the first two entries — is that despite being gorgeous games with excellent narratives, there isn't really anything to do in the open world. The first game is particularly egregious for this, and the Definitive Edition doesn't do anything to alleviate that. Look, it's still an excellent crime drama game with stunning visuals and okay-to-good gameplay, and it's worth playing for that alone. That said, you're guaranteed to hit a wall at some point during a playthrough where driving through the open world from mission waypoint to mission waypoint starts to grate on your nerves, and then you have to keep doing it. Will it ruin the experience for you? Probably not, but it will definitely cause some ennui to set in. Middle-Earth: Shadow Of Mordor That's A Lot Of Brown Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor 9 /10 Released September 30, 2014 Where to play Close WHERE TO PLAY DIGITAL PHYSICAL ESRB M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence Developer(s) Monolith Genre(s) Action, Adventure Powered by Expand Collapse Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor has basically one claim to fame. Its combat is Arkham, its traversal is Assassin's Creed, and its narrative completely ignores a lot of Tolkien's work (not even in a bad way, but it does). The one thing that makes it stand out is the Nemesis system, and what a fantastic system it is. It's really the saving grace of this series, because the organic development of an orc nemesis based on your actions as you play is worth the price of admission and then some. It's a good thing, too, because the world design here could not be more boring. Everywhere you look, it's just brown. Brown hills, brown fortresses, brown cliffs. The only color in the game comes from the grass and the visual effects on Talion's attacks. Beyond that, be prepared to walk through a lot of fields, sometimes up a hill, and even more rarely through an Uruk fortress or encampment. That's the extent of the visual variety on display, and when you're not slaughtering orcs or fighting your arch-rival for the tenth time, it can feel like staring at a stock photo titled "fantasy world" for hours on end. Red Faction: Guerrilla Hope You Like This Landscape, Because You're Going To See A Lot Of It Red Faction: Guerrilla Re-Mars-tered Released July 3, 2018 Where to play Close WHERE TO PLAY DIGITAL PHYSICAL ESRB m Developer(s) Volition Genre(s) Action Powered by Expand Collapse The Red Faction series made its name on destruction physics. There's a story, but even those who've played the games probably can't explain it to you. There are traversal elements, third-person shooting, and even vehicles. They all pale in comparison to how cool it feels to bring an entire building down on an unsuspecting squad of enemies. This came to a head in what is undoubtedly the franchise's most beloved entry: Red Faction: Guerrilla. The open-world map added just the right amount of freedom to make those destruction elements feel even more personal. The only gripe with this game isn't even really a fair one. Red Faction: Guerrilla is set on Mars, and so everything looks like Mars. That means a lot of brownish red, a lot of rock, and a complete lack of vegetation. Fair enough, that's Mars for you. The thing is, no matter how creative or surreal the structures you're destroying get, the moment-to-moment exploration feels like you're constantly staring at a dirt road. A really cool dirt road, with lots of weird metal stuff that blows up when you hit it, but a dirt road nonetheless. Even the Re-Mars-tered edition can only do so much to solve this issue. Improved textures and lighting help a little, but when the color palette is effectively "red and brown forever," it doesn't take long to feel like you're looking at the same things over and over, no matter how far you explore. Is Red Faction: Guerrilla still a fun game? Absolutely, but it's a chore when you're just wandering around its map.
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