In one form or another, an RPG needs to include progression, and many games simply go down the “stat boosts, skill upgrades” route. There's no reason to fix a broken wheel, but it's still nice to have a game where we take things in a different direction. Like Progress fundamentally changes how you interact with the worldA unique version can create a dynamic not found in any other game.
Avoid any bonfires and traditional stat points; Let's focus on a few games that experiment with the new progression system and, for the most part, nail their implementation. Since nothing exists in a vacuum, we'll be highlighting a mix of classic and modern games, even if the former ideas aren't so strange in 2026.
I chose to include only three games, because I wanted to go in depth. Many other open-world RPGs have new progression systems.
Click on a game with a high OpenCritic rating.
Gothic (1 or 2)
Groundbreaking progress in more ways than one
Gothic
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November 23, 2001
“Near-perfect” might be a slight exaggeration, but the first two of Piranha Bites Gothic The games have firmly written their places in both open-world and RPG lore. Focusing on the 2001 original, Gothic It defied the prevailing trends of its era, moving away from the casual statistics-based power fantasies that defined the earliest 3D RPGs. In an absolute genius move, Your character's animations act as your progress barThey change as you get stronger.
You start Gothic As an anonymous convict gets kicked out of a magical prison colony called Mining Valley. If we take “progress” more than “growing stronger”, Piranha Bites sets its games apart by removing features like quest markers or accessible mini-maps.
Gothic Gives you traditional stats like HP, Mana, Strength, and Dexterity.
As you gain experience leveling up, this process only boosts learning points and HP. To really get stronger, you need to use LP and money to get NPCs to train you, which will let you improve your stats or gain new skills.. We've seen this concept co-opted by the likes Kingdom Come: Redemptionbut Gothic did better than his successors.
The progress of the world is based entirely on experience. than an artificial wall, Players easily learn if they are strong enough for the area when they run into its monsters. Gothic Handles story progression differently than most RPGs, making it primarily based on social hierarchy. Factions respond to a player's condition, strength and wardrobe.
10 open-world RPGs with the best customization options, ranked
What's an open-world RPG without the ability to make your character as tough or as silly as you like?
Kenshi
Want to be tougher? Well, then prepare for a beating
Kenshi
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December 6, 2018
Much more than that Kingdom Come: Redemption Or like the later games of Piranha Bites Alex, Kenshi appears to be the true spiritual heir of Gothic. If the 2001 masterpiece wrote the blueprint for organic world-building and progression, then This quirky indie darling pushes it to its inexhaustible end.
No other open-world RPG makes you feel as good as trash Kenshi. In this wasteland, you mean nothing. You have no identity, future, presence, power or ambition. Rock bottom is your home, and it's not easy to get out. The world does not exist for your benefit, nor a scale to match your abilities. It just exists, and it's up to you to make something out of it.
Like Gothic, Kenshi There are tons of stats and skills, almost all of which gain XP independently of what you actually do and how you do it.. For example, running improves your athletics, and direct combat increases stats like martial arts or toughness (you'll need to hit for the latter). If you want to become a master thief, you need to steal, get caught, end up in a slave camp, try to escape, get beaten by the guards, and repeat the loop to improve your stealing and lockpicking skills.
The progression above is really for early game, ie Kenshi Gradually it becomes more complicated.
Again, “near-perfect” may sound like too much of a compliment, but Kenshi Originally created by a single person, Chris Hunt, and has been a fixture of Steam for nearly a decade. Even now, the game still has about 5K concurrent players. Given its humble beginnings and longevity, “near-perfect” seems appropriate.
Cassette animals
Record, stick, and fuse
Well, that's enough gritty open-world RPGs! Time to talk about something a little more colorful. That said, don't be fooled by its cozy 16-bit monster-taming aesthetic; Cassette animals is very close to criticism Pokemon formula rather than approval. Although it contains some traditional elements, the indie game stacks mechanics on top of each other to create a system entirely its own.
You wake up on New Viral, an island stuck in a strange, inter-dimensional pocket dimension where people from different eras of Earth have mysteriously washed ashore. Rather than throwing poke balls, You tame demons by recording them on magnetic tapes, allowing you to physically transform into them.
You tap to level up until you reach 5 stars, adding tricks (aka stickers) along the way. Good thing about The stickers are such that you can peel them off and attach them to other tapes, giving you more customization options.. Unlike most monster-tamer games, Cassette animals' Progression is not a mad dash to find a high-level monster, but a journey of cutting stickers to create a much stronger core group.
naturally, Cassette animals Characteristics of a development system in the form of Remasters, which is honestly no different Pokemon Apart from sometimes offering multiple routes.
Finally, the progression loop ends with fusion, which is unlocked once you improve your relationship with your human companions. Since the hero transforms into a monster, you can only have one tape active at a time, and Cassette animals You get around this by engaging friends with similar abilities. After completing a personal quest, you unlock the ability to fuse with your partner in the middle of battle, and you need to find the perfect combination of monsters to survive the boss battles.
When it comes to world progress, Cassette animals Makes its island look like Metroidvania which closes off the backsides of traversal capabilities. It's not a particularly unique progression system, but it's rarely seen in open-world RPGs.
Great co-op games to explore the big world together
For those looking to immerse themselves in the big video game world with friends, here are some great co-op options available.
