Top 10 Most Absurdly Fun Open-World Games Ranked!

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Open-world video games offer players vast digital landscapes to explore, often keeping them engrossed for extended periods of time. Games like Elden Ring from Fromsoftware and Prey (2017) by Arkane Studios are particularly noteworthy because they create detailed worlds and narrative environments that can seem as real as our own world.

Occasionally, gamers might seek experiences that deviate from the norm or any semblance of logical consistency in these virtual worlds. They yearn for the bizarre and fantastical, something that defies the boundaries of reality. Games that embody absurdity offer not only amusement but also stand out due to their peculiarities – often leaving a lasting impression on players’ minds, longer than most open-world games.

10. Goat Simulator

High-Tech Goat Simulation

Goat Simulator is often one of the initial games that pop into gamers’ minds when they think about ‘the absurd’. In this game, players take on the role of a mischievous goat causing mayhem. The title is unabashedly stupid and full of glitches, to the point where it boasts “MILLIONS OF BUGS!” on its Steam page. Whether players find the game’s parody humor and intentional flaws amusing or not, the focus on chaos and crazy physics should still offer an entertaining experience, at least for a short while.

9. Deadly Premonition

Bizarro Alan Wake

Deadly Premonition is notorious within gaming circles for its abundance of quirks. At first glance, the game appears as if it was conceived by the late brilliant David Lynch, featuring players controlling special agent York, who is accompanied by his reliable imaginary friend Zach, as they delve into the murder mystery of a young woman in Greenvale. However, as the game progresses, its awkward controls and stiff voice acting can disrupt the entire experience. Opinions among gamers are split, with half viewing it as a daring masterpiece and the other half considering it a total disaster.

8. The Sinking City

Lovecraftian Insanity

In “The Sinking City,” the game is filled with Lovecraftian horror themes, which means it’s overflowing with bizarre and unsettling dreams that challenge your understanding of reality. Players take on the role of private investigator Charles Reed, who finds himself in the submerged city of Oakmont, searching for a missing member of the Throgmorton family. As you delve deeper into the mystery, you’ll encounter Wylebeasts – grotesque monstrosities that come in various forms, ranging from spider-like creatures to colossal abominations. In addition to battling these terrifying beasts, players must also keep track of their sanity levels as they navigate through the city and uncover its dark secrets.

7. Another Crab’s Treasure

Crablike Soulslike

In Another Crab’s Treasure, Aggro Crab doesn’t disappoint as the title suggests. This game offers a playful twist on the soulslike genre where you guide Kril, a wandering hermit crab, across the ocean in search of a new home after being kicked out of his old one. The game maintains its whimsical charm by allowing players to use various discarded items as temporary shells, each offering unique abilities that set the core gameplay apart from the Dark Souls series.

6. Borderlands 3

Psychos In Space

The Borderlands series is often recognized for its offbeat sense of humor. Over time, some fans have expressed dissatisfaction with the franchise’s writing style, finding the jokes immature and repetitive. Since humor can be a matter of personal preference, gamers won’t truly know if they enjoy Borderlands’ unique brand of absurdity until they give it a try themselves.

The third part of this series introduces a fresh group of Vault Hunters teaming up with the Crimson Raiders from Pandora to defeat the Calypso twins. Players can anticipate the familiar gameplay style of Borderlands, leveraging their characters’ skills and an array of weapons to plunder and firefight across the cosmos.

5. Sunset Overdrive

Energy Drink Apocalypse

In Sunset Overdrive, the zombie outbreak unfolds in a distinct manner, triggered by an energy drink. As a result, many inhabitants of Sunset City transform into mindless creatures with boils, known as Overcharge Drinkers, within a single night.

Characters maneuver through the contaminated urban landscape using rail grinding and wall running, eliminating OD while wielding an assortment of improvised firearms. Teddy bears attached to explosives or a gun that spits off decapitated heads – the weaponry in Sunset Overdrive keeps players engaged in unique ways.

4. Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster

Zombie Shopping-Spree

In the thrilling Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster, I step into the shoes of a resourceful freelance journalist named Frank West, finding myself in an unimaginable predicament: trapped inside a mall overrun by zombies. The clock is ticking, with just 72 hours until I can break free from this nightmare. But what’s a gamer to do when time is on the line? Spend it either digging for the truth behind the outbreak or satisfying my bloodlust by taking down wave after wave of the undead. The world of Dead Rising is brimming with potential weapons, so if I feel like charging through a horde with a spiky cactus pot, why not?

As the hours tick by, I’ll encounter some twisted individuals who have succumbed to madness and become Psychopaths. These human enemies serve as the game’s formidable bosses, standing in my way as I fight for survival. It’s a grisly, yet exhilarating journey through a world where every item can be a weapon of mass destruction. And with time running short, it’s a race against the clock to see if I can uncover the mystery behind the outbreak and make it out alive.

3. Fallout: New Vegas

Post-Apocalyptic Weirdness

The Fallout series, with its 1960s-style apocalypse, frequently serves as a humorous critique of our world and the capitalist catastrophe it may become. Consequently, many of its quests and characters make light of society in various ridiculous ways. Just like the other games, Obsidian’s addition to the franchise, Fallout: New Vegas, follows suit. In this post-apocalyptic setting of Las Vegas, players take on the character of the Courier, engaging in a variety of tasks. Among these tasks, they can form friendships with a cybernetic dog, hurl ghouls into space or become a tyrant over the New Vegas Strip.

2. Saints Row 4

Superhero Madness

The Saints Row franchise was already growing in absurdity with each new installment, but it was its fourth entry that really dialed things to 11. Saints Row 4 opens with the player being elected as President after stopping a terrorist attack before the White House is attacked by aliens. The zin place the Saints in a simulation of Steelport where the player gains access to full-blown superpowers. Going from crime boss to superhero was a ridiculous escalation for the franchise, but one that seemed to work in its favour.

1. Baldur’s Gate 3

Letting Loose Every Now And Then

In simpler terms, Larian Studios’ “Baldur’s Gate 3” is a rather serious Role-Playing Game (RPG) that features a grand fantasy tale and complex companion narratives. Yet, the game doesn’t always maintain this serious tone. Larian cleverly incorporates the humorous or absurd elements of the “Dungeons & Dragons” lore when appropriate. For instance, while battling against mind-flayer parasites, players might encounter a hidden society of amphibian beings demanding a sacrifice from their group, meet an apparently harmless frog capable of instantly eliminating their party, or be dispatched to an island inhabited by dinosaur-like creatures. The possibilities are endless.

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2025-02-24 12:05