LIKE GTA · RANKEDUPDATED MAY 29, 20269 min read

Best Games Like GTA (That Aren't Just GTA Again)

You finished the heists, you've owned every garage, and you've heard the same radio ads a thousand times. The good news: the open-world crime sandbox didn't start and end in Los Santos. These eight games scratch the same itch — drive fast, cause chaos, get pulled into a story bigger than you — without just handing you another numbered Grand Theft Auto. Some are louder, some are quieter, one of them is technically still Rockstar (we'll allow it).

01OUR #1

★BUY★NEXT SAVE POINT

Undercover cop drama · Hong Kong · ~25h

Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition

“The closest anyone has come to GTA's open-world crime loop while feeling completely its own — because instead of gunfights it leans on bone-crunching martial-arts melee and a genuinely great undercover-cop story. Neon-soaked Hong Kong is a joy to drive, fight, and karaoke through. And at its usual sale price it's almost free.”

FOR · Players who want the GTA structure with hand-to-hand combat and a real protagonist arc.NOT FOR · Anyone expecting a sprawling map — it's tight and dense, not huge.

BUY8.6/10A-WORTH IT? YES

How we picked

Open world you actually want to mess around in, not just drive through.
A crime or anti-hero story with real character, not filler missions.
Brings something GTA doesn't — martial arts, hacking, total chaos, or heart.
Playable today on current hardware, no emulator archaeology required.
No mainline GTA titles. That's the whole point.

The full list

Crime melodrama + brawler · 1980s Japan · 40h+

PCPS5XSXSwitch

Yakuza 0

“If GTA's strength is 'a living city full of distractions,' Yakuza 0 is the platonic ideal. The main story is a gripping bubble-era crime saga; the side content is an avalanche of karaoke, real-estate empires, pocket-car racing and pure absurdity. Combat is a meaty brawler, not gunplay, and the best entry point in the whole series.”

FOR · People who fall down side-quest rabbit holes and never finish the main story.NOT FOR · Players who want guns, driving freedom, and Western open-world structure.

BUY9.2/10AWORTH IT? YES

Open-world hacker romp · San Francisco · ~20h

PCPS5XSX

Watch Dogs 2

“Ditches the grim tone of the first game for a sunny, playful Bay Area you can solve like a puzzle box — hack cars, drones, and cranes instead of just shooting. The traversal and toy-filled sandbox are pure GTA energy, but the hacker-collective vibe gives it a personality all its own.”

FOR · Players who love the 'cause chaos with gadgets' side of an open world.NOT FOR · Anyone who wants tight gunplay — the shooting is the weakest part.

BUY8.4/10B+WORTH IT? YES

Western open-world epic · solo · 50h+

PCPS5XSX

Red Dead Redemption 2

“Yes, it's Rockstar — but it's not GTA again, it's the studio firing the same engine at the dying Old West, and the result is the most detailed open world ever built. Trade the freeway for a horse and you still get the heists, the crew drama, and the slow-burn anti-hero tragedy that GTA does best. The 'we'll allow it' pick.”

FOR · Anyone who wants the deepest, slowest, most cinematic open world going.NOT FOR · Players who want fast, arcadey chaos — this one makes you live in it.

BUY9.6/10A+WORTH IT? YES

First-person open-world RPG · Night City · 40h+

PCPS5XSX

Cyberpunk 2077

“After its rocky launch and the 2.0 overhaul, Night City is now one of the best open worlds in the medium — a vertical, neon megacity stuffed with crime, choice, and consequence. It swaps GTA's third-person sandbox for a first-person RPG, but the 'lawless city is the real main character' feeling is identical.”

FOR · Players who want story, build choices, and a jaw-dropping city.NOT FOR · Anyone who wants pick-up-and-play chaos over a 40-hour RPG commitment.

BUY9.0/10AWORTH IT? YES

Maximalist crime comedy · co-op · ~18h

PCPS5XSXSwitch

Saints Row: The Third Remastered

“GTA's gleefully unhinged cousin. Where GTA plays its crime story (mostly) straight, Saints Row hands you a giant purple weapon and a co-op partner and dares you to take nothing seriously. The remaster keeps the chaos and cleans up the visuals — the best entry point to the series.”

FOR · Couch/online co-op crews who want pure dumb fun.NOT FOR · Players looking for a grounded, serious crime narrative.

BUY8.2/10B+WORTH IT? YES

Linear period crime story · solo · ~14h

PCPS5XSX

Mafia: Definitive Edition

“Proof that 'like GTA' doesn't have to mean 'open-ended.' This full remake tells a tight, gorgeous 1930s mob-rise-and-fall story across a beautiful period city. Less sandbox, more The Godfather — for when you want the crime saga without the 60-hour commitment.”

FOR · Players who want a focused, cinematic crime story they can finish in a weekend.NOT FOR · Sandbox lovers who want to ignore the story and cause mayhem.

BUY8.0/10B+WORTH IT? YES

Pure chaos sandbox · Mediterranean · ~20h

PCPS5XSX

Just Cause 3

“Forget the story — Just Cause 3 is the 'physics playground' end of the GTA spectrum dialed to eleven. Grapple-hook, wingsuit, and parachute across a massive island while blowing up everything that isn't bolted down. Shallow but spectacular; grab it on sale when you want chaos with zero homework.”

FOR · Players who treat open worlds as explosion sandboxes.NOT FOR · Anyone who wants story, characters, or mission variety.

WAIT7.6/10BWORTH IT? KINDA

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HONORABLE MENTIONS · CUT FROM THIS LIST

BUY

Saints Row IV

Superpowers + alien invasion push it past 'GTA-like' into its own genre — great, but barely about crime anymore.

WAIT

L.A. Noire

A brilliant 1940s detective story, but it's an investigation game wearing an open world, not a sandbox.

BUY

Driver: San Francisco

The driving and car-shifting gimmick are fantastic; just hard to buy legally these days.

WAIT

Scarface: The World Is Yours

A cult-classic empire-builder, but it's aged hard and is a pain to run on modern hardware.

Best Games Like GTA (That Aren't Just GTA Again)

Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition

How we picked

The full list

Yakuza 0

Watch Dogs 2

Red Dead Redemption 2

Cyberpunk 2077

Saints Row: The Third Remastered

Mafia: Definitive Edition

Just Cause 3

Saints Row IV

L.A. Noire

Driver: San Francisco

Scarface: The World Is Yours

NO HYPE.JUST GAMES.

NO HYPE.
JUST GAMES.