There is no shortage of video games that go all-out on their artistic expression, and while open world games have a tendency to lean towards realism and optimization, there is no shortage of games that are pure style.
These games, in particular, are among the most artistic – this is mostly due to graphics/art style, of course, but there are other creative decisions that help make the game a particularly artsy entry.
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When the whole game focuses on its own style, it forges its own identity, making it a game unlike anything you’re really played before (or since), and personally, I feel stronger love towards these kinds of games than the hyperrealistic ones. Of course, there’s art and beauty in perfectly capturing reality, but managing to stylize while keeping it feeling real is a whole different talent.
It just so happens that these artistic games were created with nothing but talent behind them.
10
Vintage Story
Your Work is Your Art
When you look at Vintage Story, it might seem like any other survival voxel block game, but once you actually dig into it and its lore, you’re going to find yourself falling in love with it; and the funny part is that you’ll mostly find yourself loving the unforgiving yet cozy world. Every single night is a fight for survival — a fight to even be able to work towards the next night — but you’ve never felt more fulfilled when you get through just another day.
And when it comes to the crafting system, it’s far more intricate and deeper-rooted than other and more mainstream crafting-based survival games; but part of the enjoyment is being able to step back and see all your hard work in motion, beaming with pride at what’s to come next. Plus, you’re always able to completely customise your settings if things get too intense.
The ambience of the game itself is immensely moody, while being outright gorgeous to view at the same time. Combine this with genuine Lovecraftian elements (in both the game’s lore and design), and it’s a soul entirely of its own.
Truly, it captures the same essence of nature itself: stunningly beautiful, yet dangerous and lethal.
9
The Saboteur
C’est Art
As far as open world games go, mechanically, The Saboteur is your standard historical fiction stealth game (the game is set in the 1940s Nazi-occupied Paris), but it’s still great fun — because it’s also a sandbox … meaning you can approach your enemies almost however you want to so long as you have the means to do so. It’s a chaotic craft, and it’s one you’re going to feel tons of excitement with.
The game’s description puts it best: it’s the Art of Sabotage.
Not to mention, the game has a particularly poignant art style: a blend between black-and-white and full-colour, with the colour coming out only when the occupied Nazis are driven away from the area. You’re quite literally bringing the colour back to the world by driving out the darkness that festers within it. It makes you want to liberate and colour the whole map.
Plus, if you like jazz, you’re going to definitely vibe with the soundtrack while you’re getting rid of Nazis in a beautifully artistic world. It’s a win-win all around.
8
Hyper Light Drifter
A Pixel Dream
Right away, you’ll be able to see the artistic vision of Hyper Light Drifter from the very moment you boot it up. The entire game is reminiscent of classic 16-bit Metroidvania RPGs, with challenge in the gameplay, the puzzles, and the world itself. But it’s the art style and the vivid pictures that truly captivate players.
Plus, the techy soundtrack/sound design is uniquely relaxing, yet fits perfectly with the game; the movement and attacks especially are a sensational watch. The whole game is just completely dazzling.
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I’d argue the art direction of this game is a significant portion of its appeal, but don’t get me wrong, the game itself is still fantastic. It’s truly an underrated little gem — especially if you go in blind. It’s truly best to go in with no expectations and to just enjoy the whole artistic experience happening in front of you.
It’s a delightful time, and definitely worth checking out if you’ve not heard of it before.
7
Borderlands 4
Fun is Flashy
The whole Borderlands series is known for its art style: bold, comic-style outlining on everything and everyone, combined with nonstop flashy fun. Yet, the games normally weren’t open world, but that’s where Borderlands 4 comes in and shakes things up for the franchise, and the art style, rightfully, translates well into the open world structure.
Not to mention, it’s arguably the best the series has been so far.
As far as the gameplay, you’ve got the classic open world formula with the iconic looter shooter mechanics that define the Borderlands franchise. It’s bright, it’s engaging, and it’s honestly just plain fascinating to look at; it’s always a good time to take a second to appreciate the art details, especially in the character and world designs.
Not all art is soft and demure, Borderlands 4 proves that art is far more fun when it’s time to just go all out and be flashy.
6
Firewatch
Warm and Stunning All Around
Art isn’t solely meant to be beautiful; it’s meant to invoke strong emotion in the art’s viewer. When it comes to Firewatch, it manages to be a pure work of art by achieving both outcomes.
On the surface, you’re exploring the Wyoming wilderness, which is about as vast and awe-inspiring as you can imagine, but at the same time, you go on an emotional journey that has you reflecting on your life and your own perspective of it. It strikes a personal chord for everyone, even if it’s a different emotion/memory being struck.
True art always has you observing new perspectives, all while finding new ways to look at your own perspectives — and that’s exactly the kind of experience you’re getting with Firewatch, just with genuinely stunning landscapes to comfort you with these new thoughts.
After all, you’re on the fire watch, but you’re not just looking out for forest fires, you’re looking for internal fires.
5
Cyberpunk 2077
Neon and Tech Unlike Anything You’ve Ever Seen
When it comes to visions of what the future looks like, Cyberpunk 2077 definitely has the bleakest take, but at the same time, it’s one of the most bedazzling. The whole map of Night City is defined by neon and sleek synth designs, all while incorporating an American grunge attitude from the 90s.
It’s a world you don’t want to live in, but it’s definitely one of the coolest to look at and walk through. It’s truly a city of dreams, and thank goodness it’s not (too) reflective of reality.
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The game uses technology as weapons, but as its own art medium — the Arasaka Parade alone is a spectacle that sums this art direction up perfectly — and it’s equally as creative when it comes to your character builds. And if you like a more spy movie, sick espionage kind of direction, you would love the Phantom Liberty DLC.
Just don’t expect to go through the game without the knife stabbing your heart being twisted; the story is just going to hurt.
4
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
I Love Toon Link, Fight Me
There are many, many entries in The Legend of Zelda with vividly distinct art directions; the whole franchise is equal parts art and scientific formula. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker follows this formula while taking a more toonish art style with cel-shaded graphics. But when you go out into the grand open ocean that was once Hyrule, the sense of adventure is truly unmatched.
I honestly think that the childish art direction helps tap into the same sense of adventure that can only be seen through a child’s eyes, when everything was just bright and full of whimsy. It’s like playing pretend, but as an actual adventure for this particular Link (affectionately dubbed Toon Link).
It doesn’t help that Toon Link has a sass about him that you really only see on expressive kids, and it’s equal parts hysterical and reinforcing the childish perspective. It’s a beautiful game, and despite its deep foundation on childhood adventure, it actually has some of the most intense and brutal moments the series had ever seen.
Seriously, it’s a fantastic game, and I really hope that we can get a Switch port of it someday.
3
Red Dead Redemption
Prioritizing Style Over Realism
The Red Dead Redemption games are known for their incredible attention to detail and historical accuracy for Turn-of-the-Century America, and while the sequel has an intense emphasis on hyperrealism with the aforementioned history, the first game had a lot more of a stylised take. It was still accurate, but it also felt more like playing an actual Spaghetti Western.
And while the second game is great, the first Red Dead Redemption will always have a special place in my heart for that very stylisation, giving it a distinct identity of its own.
The game’s art direction gets even more unique when you factor in the Undead Nightmare DLC, which is arguably as fun as the actual game itself. It’s zombies in the Wild West, it’s about as fascinating a direction as you can go.
So, while it’s giving up some of the intense details that its sequel is continuously praised for, the style and how this style impacts the storytelling will keep this game a timeless classic.
2
Minecraft
The World is Your Canvas
When it comes to completely open art and creativity in video games, Minecraft almost always comes to mind for people. Not only does it have the iconic blocky graphics that defined an entire gaming trend, but it gives players unparalleled creative expression. Of course, it’s dependent on whether players pick Survival or Creative mode, but even then, you can still have incredible artistry in Survival mode; it just will take a bit more work.
And even then, one could argue that the grind is as much of a work of art as the fruits of your labour.
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Another area of beauty in the game comes from the many different biomes that exist and can be nestled into — my personal favourite is the cherry blossom biome — with different materials that appeal to different tastes. Just saying, everyone has their favourite type of wood, and it’s typically reflective of their art tastes.
And the fact that you can create insane works of art in this game (and even grand technological feats) with some redstone and dream is a whole different conversation, but it only adds to the game’s roots in creativity.
1
DREDGE
Spooky Has Never Been So Relaxing
Of all the different open world games that I’ve played, DREDGE is on the smaller side, but definitely the most artistically impressive. It’s technically classified as a horror game, but the moment you turn on Passive mode, it’s suddenly just moody with a clear Lovecraftian inspiration.
DREDGE is a fishing game with an inventory management system that’s outright addictive, but the art style keeps the whole experience adventurous and even comforting. Things get strange, especially with some of the aberrant fish, but you’re more fascinated to learn more than feeling frightened by anything. It’s really not scary; it’s just a vibe.
Whether or not you get the DLCs doesn’t make a difference with the game itself; it just adds to the artistic vision and extra fun mechanics on top of the already enticing gameplay loop. Seriously, it’s an absolute delight of a game, and I’m speaking with my open world glasses on rather than my horror ones.
As we’ve established with open world games, they have a distinct soul of their own, and DREDGE is no exception to that — and it’s one that’s going to keep calling you back for more.
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