Summary
Open-world fantasy is a robust genre within the gaming industry. Most RPGs take this route owing to fantasy’s proclivity for great settings, magic systems, and a great variety of races and creatures that add depth to the gameplay experience. That being said, most developers of open-world fantasy games tend to stick with original IPs rather than adapting an existing fantasy world.
However, existing fantasy novels and franchises written by some of the mostcreative authors in the world are exactly what developers should be looking at for inspiration, as proven by the success ofThe Witcher 3: Wild Hunt,Hogwarts Legacy, andShadow of Mordor.
8Fablehaven
The Perfect Series For A Cozy Open-World Exploration Game
Brandon Mull’sFablehaven/Dragonwatchseries is set in sanctuaries for various fantasy creatures. The story revolves around two siblings who visit their grandparents and discover that they’re caretakers of one such sanctuary. Thus begins an adventure of magic and discovery.
Fablehavenis a middle-grade fantasy, which means that while there is a central threat in the plot, the novels focus much more on the sense of wonder that comes from discovering a magical place. This makes the series perfect fora cozy open-world co-op adventureabout exploring these magical sanctuaries and befriending various fantasy creatures.
7The Lies Of Locke Lamora
The Perfect Inspiration For An Open-World Stealth Heist Game
TheGentleman Bastardnovels follow the adventures of Locke Lamora and his friends as they lie, cheat, and steal their way through the fantasy world. There are a host of locations and heists to choose from in the novels, and more that are mentioned.
An open-world game set in a bustling fantasy city where the story revolves aroundpulling off the ultimate score, with quests, side-quests, and activities all designed around aiding the final mission, either by stealing money to buy resources or gathering information, would be an absolute blast.
6Red Sister
Assassin’s Creed In A Fantasy Setting
Mark Lawrence’sRed Sistertells the story of a convent of sisters who are trained in the art of murder. Students are taken in at a young age and taught everything they need to know about being a perfect assassin, until they can be trusted to go on missions and assassinate powerful and influential people.
ARed Sistergame could adaptthe signatureAssassin’s Creedgameplay,i.e., the parkour, stealth, and combat. However, it would have much more added depth with the subtle use of magical powers that aid in combat and stealth.
5The Stormlight Archive
Perfect For A Massive Open-World RPG
Brandon Sanderson is one of the most prolific writers of this generation, and his crowning achievement isThe Stormlight Archive. It is an epic fantasy tale set in a sprawling world full of magic, mystery, conflict, and wonder that rivalsThe Lord of the Rings.
The Stormlight Archiveis the perfect series for an open-world epic fantasy RPG in the vein ofThe Elder ScrollsandThe Witcher 3. With a story that revolves around epic magical weapons and a diverse set of powers,The Stormlight Archivehas more than enough material to easily beadapted into a 100-hour+ RPGwith a brilliant main quest and loads of engaging side stories.
4Powder Mage
A Unique Magic System Perfect For A Shooter
ThePowder Mageseries by Brian McClellan has one of the most unique magic systems in fantasy. There are multiple magic systems, but the central one the series focuses on is the titular powder mages, whose magic is based around gunpowder.
Open-worldfantasy shooters are rare. A game based on thePowder Mageseries could be an excellent entry into the genre. The powder mages have fun abilities, like igniting gunpowder to make explosions and controlling the trajectories of bullets. These would translate well to a fun fantasy shooter game.
3A Song Of Ice And Fire
Long Overdue
Despite being one of the most popular franchises with the phenomenon of theGame of ThronesTV show,A Song of Ice and Firehas shockingly yet to receive a good video game adaptation. The recentKingsroad, while seeming promising at first, has turned out to be just a free-to-play microtransaction-heavy disappointment.
George R.R. Martin’s magnum opus series has so much to offer. It is a dark, magical world with conflict, political intrigue, and warring armies. There are few novels as primed for a AAA open-world game asA Song of Ice and Fire.
2Mistborn
The Most Fun Magic System
TheMistbornseries is set in a unique fantasy world. The original trilogy describes a world where ash falls from the sky in place of rain. Furthermore, theMistbornmagic system sees characters consume and burn metals that imbue them with various powers.
The series’s magic system is ideal for an open-world game. The various abilities include the ability to pull and push using metal objects as anchors,which would make for a great traversal systemlike that of theinFamousseries. Other metals allow for various combat abilities, like increased strength, and social skills like influencing people’s minds would make perfect RPG systems. All of this makes Mistborn the prime candidate for an open-world game adaptation.
1The Wheel Of Time
A Sprawling World With Epic Lore
The Wheel of Timeis one of the most popular fantasy series outsideTheLord of the Rings. With 14 books in the original series and a prequel novel,The Wheel of Timeis a sprawling fantasy world withheaps of lore that would be perfect for an open-world game.
The series received an FPS adaptation in 1999, but it didn’t fit the epic nature ofThe Wheel of Time.It is baffling that this series has yet to receive a big-budget videogame adaptation despite its overwhelming popularity. While theAmazon TV adaptation has recently been canceled, there is some good news for the fans of the series. Montreal-based iwot Studios hasannounced a AAA open-world RPG is in production.
