10 Best Open-World Games Set In Utopias

Highlights

• Some games explore the concept of utopia, even if they have darker elements or conflicts.
• Surviving Mars allows players to build their own utopian society on Mars.
• Minecraft can be a surprisingly peaceful and utopian experience with its vast and free game world.

In gaming, it can be quite hard to find games set in utopias. A lot of game developers tend to favor the idea of dystopia, where things seem so dark there can’t be a light in sight. However, there are still some games that explore the ideas and concepts of utopia, even if they do end up going down a darker route to do so. After all, with no conflict, there can’t be much story, can there?

With that in mind, these are open-world games that are set in utopias, even if they are a little bit darker than players would expect.

10 Surviving Mars

Build a perfect society on Mars

Surviving Mars is a sandbox city-building game with a twist. Players can settle their own perfect city on the surface of Mars, designing it exactly how they feel is best. The utopia aspect is simple, as the game represents a society so technologically advanced that the idea of a society in space is an achievable and actionable one. Being a part of that, even virtually, makes the player feel the beauty of scientific advancement.

Surviving Mars offers players the opportunity to design their perfect space society on the red planet.

9 Minecraft

Explore and build in this peaceful utopia

Minecraft might be a surprising game to be tied to the concept of Utopia, but in reality, the game world is so free and vast that it can’t be classed as anything else. Even the nighttime monsters can be turned off, leaving not a single major stain on this perfect society. The player has the option to go anywhere and build anything they can imagine, making it a world that relies on exploration and creativity.

Minecraft can be a surprisingly peaceful experience if players know how to make it so.

8 We Happy Few

Watch a utopia turn bad

We Happy Few is one of the darkest games set around the premise of a utopia, but it still counts if players ignore the horror that occurs within the game itself. The concept of the utopia relies on everyone living within it being on a drug called Joy, which calms their nerves and makes them see the bright side of everything. Players control a character who wants out of this society, so the utopia doesn’t last for long.

We Happy Few is a survival horror game that sets the player up in a constantly happy and perfect utopia to watch as it all comes crashing down.

7 Ark: Survival Evolved

Survive on this mysterious island utopia

ARK: Survival Evolved is a game with many worlds, but Valguero offers players a perfect and beautiful utopia to explore and survive in. The backdrop is gorgeous, even as players must fight for their lives among the scenery. Players can build bases and work together to survive, contrasting perfectly with the peaceful-seeming environment.

ARK: Survival Evolved is a multiplayer classic for players in general, but with the beauty of the scenery in the game’s many worlds, it can become mind-bending as they must reconcile that with the dangers they’re facing.

6 Horizon: Zero Dawn

Experience a different, better version of earth

Horizon: Zero Dawn is set in a futuristic, peaceful-looking version of Earth. Everything about it seems untouchable and wonderful, from the scenic viewpoints scattered throughout the world to the scientific advancements the human race has seemingly made in the time between now and when the game is set. Obviously, this is only a facade, as players must fight robots to survive.

Horizon: Zero Dawn is set in a utopia where everything seems flawless at the start, but as players explore more, there is a darkness underneath.

5 No Man’s Sky

Glide through space

No Man’s Sky is a game that was hated at launch but has grown to become a fan favorite. One of the reasons why players now love this game is due to the large world and the alien species. There is combat in the game, but trade and peaceful interactions are a large part of the experience. Pair that with the beautiful flora and fauna, and the world of No Man’s Sky couldn’t be better.

No Man’s Sky is a relaxing open-world survival game that allows players to traverse space peacefully.

4 Pokemon Scarlet & Violet

Experience Pokemon but in an open-world

The world of Pokemon has always been a utopia, but in Pokemon Scarlet and Violet this world finally becomes open. It’s everything players love about Pokemon but on a bigger scale. Typical of the franchise, there is the option for combat, but players can also just go through the world, collecting creatures and playing in the most peaceful way possible. It can be a relaxing experience if players let it.

Pokemon Scarlet and Violet puts the Pokemon formula into an open world to create a truly excellent experience.

3 The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild

Live out in nature

The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild is a game that puts emphasis on nature and the outside world from the beginning. The tutorial area is full of lush greenery, and Link can spend most of his time here cooking and exploring peacefully while interacting with the world. The world rarely puts the player in unavoidable danger, meaning the game doesn’t have to become dark and dangerous.

The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild lets players explore the lush greenery around them at their own peaceful pace.

2 Abzu

Explore the heart of the ocean

Abzu is a game set entirely underwater, which might seem like a strange location for a utopia, but when the player is surrounded by so much beauty, it’s hard to call it anything else. Players explore the ocean surrounded by the ecosystem and cannot harm it, meaning the world stays perfect forever. Rather, players actually help the world by activating Sonar cells, which restore life to the areas they are found in.

Abzu lets players explore the ocean and interact with the abundant life they find.

1 Outer Wilds

A space-based world all about kindness and creativity

Finally, Outer Wilds is the best open-world game set in a utopia. It may not seem like a utopia at first, as players can die pretty horrible deaths when exploring space in the time loop the game is centered around. However, the world and society in the game are based on being kind to others and finding creative solutions to problems. Players can glide around space, interacting with friendly aliens and uncovering mysteries.

Outer Wilds is a game that prioritizes kindness above combat, making it a perfect society with a lot to uncover.

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