Open-world games give you an entire, well… world to explore. You can visit every nook and cranny, talk to NPCs, and maybe even complete a variety of quests. Sometimes, these planet-bound explorations can get a bit tiring, and we totally understand. Thankfully, you can take the exploration to space.
Here, we are going to take a look at some of the best open-world games that let you explore space. For the most part, this will combine space exploration with planet traversal, as these go hand-in-hand. Many of these games put you directly in the seat of an astronaut, proving that space flight is more difficult than you think.
First up, we have an absolutely iconic space exploration game that also happens to take place in a time loop. Your main goal here is to figure out why time is looping. Along the way, you’ll pilot a ship and explore the solar system. The flying is no joke though; if you’ve never played before, you can expect to wipe out on your first flight.
The world in Outer Wilds isn’t infinitely big. Still, there is plenty to explore. Once you start to understand what is happening, you’ll realize how truly amazing this game is. We won’t spoil anything, but just know that people across the internet wish they could forget this game and experience it all over again.
Kerbal Space Program is hard. In this case, it really is rocket science; you’ll need to expertly assemble your rocket, and then successfully launch it into space. Once you’re in space, you’ll need to navigate with precision.
There is also Kerbal Space Program 2, but this game has mostly negative reviews. Personally,I played the second one and it was incredibly buggy, with extremely long loading times. It seems the development studio has since been shut down, so the game will never be updated.
Essentially, this game is like a space exploration sandbox. Getting the hang of Kerbal Space Program is difficult, but once you have your first successful launch, you’ll feel the satisfaction wash over you… until the rocket experiences issues elsewhere.
No Man’s Sky is a popular game that is mentioned when people discuss open-world space exploration. As an open-world survival crafting game set in a procedurally generated world, you’ll be able to do literally anything that you may think of. The game boasts a whopping 18 quintillion planets for you to explore, though you probably won’t reach even a fraction of these.
Overall, No Man’s Sky is an incredibly vast game that lets you explore planets, and then hop in your ship and take to the stars. Sure, it’s not as difficult as the space travel in Kerbal Space Program, but flying through space and then using warp speed is a fun experience.
Looking to just vibe while exploring space? Exo One may be the perfect game for you. This is an incredibly atmospheric space exploration game that lets you fly through space to great music. It isn’t just all relaxation though; Exo One features a story that will leave you hooked.
If you are a fan of games like Outer Wilds, which made a previous appearance on our list, then Exo One is right up your alley. Interestingly, Exo One was also inspired by games like Journey, which has a similar atmospheric vibe.
4Space Engine
Do you want to explore a non-cartoony space that looks as close to the real thing as possible? Space Engine is a self-described “science-based photorealistic interactive 3D planetarium”, which basically means it feels pretty real. With a 1:1 scale, you can take in the universe realistically.
There is no complex story here or a greater narrative. Instead, you can just explore to your heart’s content. If you feel like you need more, there are tons of mods to download, adding in planets. And yes, there are mods that addStar Wars content.
Elite Dangerous is part of the Elite franchise, which has roots going back to 1984. Video games have changed a lot since then, and you canexpect Elite Dangerous to really push the franchise to new limits. In fact, this game influenced No Man’s Sky, which we mentioned earlier!
In this massive game, you may explore a recreation of the Milky Way. As a multiplayer game, you can make friends (or enemies) and do basically anything you want. Interestingly, there is a story timeline that takes place in real-time, but you don’t have to be involved in it.
Fextralife Wiki
Star Citizen is similar to our previous entry, Elite Dangerous. Interestingly, Star Citizen is an extension of Freelancer, which launched back in 2003. Now, you can play Star Citizen! Though the game has been in early access for a long time, there is so much that you can do.
Star Citizen isn’t on Steam, but you can buy it directly from the developer’s website.
Space travel really delivers the realistic feel of space flight, with limited loading screens standing in your way. you’re able to simply explore a station and then head back to your ship, walk to the cockpit, and take off.
Last but not least, we have the Everspace games. The first game isn’t just an exploration survival game; Everspace is a roguelike adventure that takes you through the vast space around you. While it’s not as open-world as some of the other options on our list, there is still plenty of freedom in terms of exploration.
In fact, we founda Reddit comment from the developers, stating that the ‘stages’ are like a sandbox environment that you’re able to explore, mentioning that “you basically progress from sandbox to sandbox”.
Everspace 2 shakes things up a little, bringing an open-world shooter that lets you explore the universe while following along with the main story. Interestingly, Everspace 2 was inspired by Freelancer, which set the groundwork for Star Citizen. Overall, Everspace combines open-world exploration with good old-fashioned shooting.
