Best Open-World RPGs With Magic

While many games feature magic, truly open-world games with extensive magic systems are surprisingly rare. Games like Baldur’s Gate 3 offer a wealth of magical classes and characters, drawing heavily from the rich lore of Dungeons & Dragons, but aren’t fully open-world experiences.

Okay, so as a gamer, I’ve noticed that the open-world Pokemon games, like the new Pokemon Legends: Z-A, basically let your Pokemon use moves that feel like magic spells – think Water Gun or Flamethrower. It’s not full-on RPG magic yet, but it’s getting there. I’m planning to rank these games based on how well they pull off that magical feel, and just how good the games are overall.

Cat Quest 2

Spellcasting Dogs And Cats

In Cat Quest 2, you can play as either a cat or a dog, and even team up with a friend in co-op mode. From the start, your character will know basic fire and ice spells, and you can learn more powerful magic by visiting shops throughout the game.

Players can freely roam the game world, battling enemies and venturing into dungeons. While the combat and magic aren’t overly complicated – making it a good fit for younger players – the game is still enjoyable thanks to its charming open world and the fun of collecting and switching between different pets.

Dragon’s Dogma 2

A Mage Of All Vocations

In Dragon’s Dogma 2, you choose a character class, known as a Vocation, with initial options like Archer, Fighter, Mage, or Thief. These Vocations can then develop into more specialized Advanced or Hybrid classes – for example, a Mage can become a Sorcerer. Mages are skilled in a wide range of magical abilities that RPG players will recognize.

Mages can use a variety of spells – from attacks like fireballs to protective spells that increase resistance to different elements. They can also enhance weapons with elemental power and heal allies, making them a valuable addition to any party. However, while a Mage is helpful to have in your group, playing as a Mage in Dragon’s Dogma 2 is more optional, as the game leans heavily into fast-paced, close-quarters combat.

Hogwarts Legacy

Back To Books

Hogwarts Legacy is the Harry Potter game fans have been waiting for since the very first game came out on PlayStation. It’s a beautiful, open-world game that’s fun to explore, with plenty of spells to learn through classes and quests. However, the spells aren’t quite as diverse as you might find in other fantasy games.

Instead of focusing on powerful elemental spells, players will learn more useful, everyday magic, such as telekinesis. While wizards and witches aren’t helpless in a fight, their spells add an interesting layer to combat, particularly if they explore darker magical options.

Kingdoms Of Amalur: Reckoning

Enhancing Combat

While magic is available in Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, it works best when combined with the game’s strong melee combat system and combo-focused attacks. You can play as a pure mage using wands, but the game truly shines as a more traditional, melee-focused RPG, similar to Dragon’s Dogma 2.

The game offers a diverse range of spells, and finishing an attack with a powerful strike like lightning or an earth tremor can be crucial. Area-of-effect spells are especially useful when facing multiple enemies. Plus, since there aren’t fixed classes, players have complete freedom to build their character with any combination of skills and magic they prefer.

Elden Ring

From Spells To Summons

Like many role-playing games, Elden Ring doesn’t force you into a specific class at the beginning, though you do choose a starting setup. If you enjoy magic, the Astrologer or Confessor classes will provide a good foundation for casting spells right away.

Staying back and using ranged weapons or spells is a great way to survive in the game, especially if you struggle with blocking or dodging. Spells offer a lot of variety, including offensive, healing, and summoning options – and summoning spells are often the most powerful in Elden Ring.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

I Saw The Sign

In The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, players will control both Geralt and Ciri. While both characters can use magic, Geralt has access to a larger variety of spells. These magical abilities, called signs, allow players to do things like launch fire attacks or create powerful blasts of wind, adding a unique dimension to the game’s combat, which is primarily focused on sword fighting.

Making potions is a helpful way to prepare for difficult missions, and it’s a type of magic in itself. Geralt improves his abilities through skill trees, letting players customize whether they want him to be strong in close combat or more focused on magic.

Forspoken

Practical Parkour Magic

While Forspoken isn’t perfect, its fantastic magic system is the main reason to give it a try. You play as Frey, a young woman who finds herself in a strange world and must overcome powerful, controlling figures called Tantas to free the land and its people.

As you defeat Tanta bosses, you’ll learn new spells to customize and upgrade. These spells let you unleash powerful attacks like wind storms, fiery arcs, icy blasts, and even metaphysical whips. You’ll also gain the ability to move incredibly fast, making exploration and combat much easier.

The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim

A Broad Spell System

The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim is often seen as the defining game of The Elder Scrolls series. While its magic system isn’t perfect, it offers a huge variety of spells. Players quickly became hooked on the ability to cast spells with both hands at the same time.

Players in The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim can choose between offensive fire spells and helpful healing spells. Casting the same spell with both hands creates a stronger, wider attack. As players use spells, they become more powerful, and skill trees allow for even further customization, making spellcasting a very effective combat style.

Diablo 4

Dominating Demons

Diablo 4 launched with five playable classes, and a sixth has since been added. Three of these classes are particularly strong with magic, offering diverse and customizable skill trees – meaning players can create unique character builds within each class.

While the Sorcerer, Necromancer, and Druid are all powerful magic classes, the Sorcerer offers the best overall experience. Players can use a wide variety of spells, from fire to ice, to easily succeed whether playing solo or with others. As you level up your Sorcerer in Diablo 4, the spells become incredibly strong, ultimately making you feel like a god.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

Materia-Based Combat

Magic in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth works much like it does in other Final Fantasy 7 games, using a system called Materia. Players equip green Materia to their characters to cast spells like fire, ice, or healing magic. Pink Materia provides stat boosts, such as increasing a character’s maximum health or magic points (MP), which are needed to cast spells.

In Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, you can learn new weapon abilities using Yellow Materia. Blue Materia, when combined with Green Materia like the ‘Magnify’ skill, can change how spells work – for example, making a Fire spell hit all enemies instead of just one. The game boasts a compelling story, a beautiful world, lots of side activities, and a fun combat system made powerful and easy to understand through the Materia system, making Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth a truly impressive experience.

2026-02-06 08:44