5 Best Games Like GTA 5 You Should Play

Red Dead Redemption 2

The best choice for players who want another deeply detailed Rockstar world with freedom, exploration and one of the strongest single-player stories in modern gaming.

If the main thing you love about GTA 5 is the feeling of entering a detailed Rockstar world and simply deciding what to do next, Red Dead Redemption 2 is the strongest place to start. It is not a modern crime sandbox, and the slower pace may surprise players expecting another version of Los Santos. What it shares with GTA 5 is Rockstar’s ability to build a world that feels like more than a backdrop for missions.

The game takes place in a fictional version of the American frontier, where busy towns, isolated farms, forests, mountains and small settlements create a world that constantly encourages exploration. Travelling from one place to another often leads to something unexpected, whether it is a side activity, a random encounter or simply a location worth stopping to explore. That sense of discovering the world at your own pace is one of the biggest reasons GTA players tend to enjoy it.

The biggest difference is the setting. GTA 5 gives you cars, highways and a modern city, while Red Dead Redemption 2 is built around horses, wilderness and the final years of the Wild West. Instead of racing through Los Santos, much of the experience comes from travelling across the frontier, visiting towns and spending time in environments that feel deliberately slower and more immersive.

That slower approach also affects the story. You follow Arthur Morgan, a member of the Van der Linde gang, as the group struggles to survive while the world around them rapidly changes. The campaign is more character-focused than GTA 5, giving its main cast plenty of time to develop. Players who enjoyed the missions and characters in Rockstar’s modern crime story may appreciate how much attention is given to relationships within the gang.

Outside the main campaign, the world offers plenty to do. Hunting, fishing, exploration and optional encounters give players reasons to leave the main path, while the game’s towns and wilderness make even simple travel feel like part of the experience. The result is an open world where you can spend hours doing things that are completely unrelated to your current story mission.

Combat also feels familiar enough for GTA players to understand quickly, although the pace is different. Gunfights rely more heavily on the weapons and technology available during the period, while the game’s Dead Eye system adds another layer to combat. It does not offer the same chaotic collection of modern vehicles and weapons found in GTA 5, but the action still fits naturally into the larger sandbox.

What makes Red Dead Redemption 2 especially interesting as a GTA 5 alternative is the level of detail in its world. Characters react to events, towns have their own atmosphere and many activities are designed to make the world feel believable rather than simply filling the map with icons. Rockstar’s approach to environmental detail is easy to recognize, even though the setting is completely different.

Watch Dogs 2

The best modern-city alternative for players who enjoy GTA 5’s freedom, vehicles and sandbox gameplay but want a completely different way to interact with the world.

If you are looking for a game that feels closer to GTA 5’s modern-city formula, Watch Dogs 2 is one of the strongest alternatives. It gives players a large urban environment to explore, plenty of vehicles to drive and missions that can often be approached in more than one way.

The biggest difference is hacking. Instead of relying only on weapons and direct combat, Marcus Holloway can manipulate parts of the environment using his smartphone. Vehicles, cameras, drones and other connected systems can become useful tools, giving the game a different kind of sandbox freedom.

This is where Watch Dogs 2 separates itself from many other open-world games. A mission can sometimes be handled quietly by using cameras and remote devices, or approached more directly if things go wrong. Players are encouraged to experiment with the systems around them rather than simply following one fixed path.

The San Francisco Bay Area is also one of the game’s strongest features. The map includes busy streets, different neighborhoods and recognizable locations inspired by the real region. Driving through the city, exploring new areas and discovering activities outside the main missions can create a familiar feeling for players who enjoy spending time freely exploring Los Santos.

Vehicles play an important role as well. Cars, motorcycles and other transport options make travelling around the map fast and enjoyable. The driving does not try to copy GTA 5 exactly, but players who enjoy stealing a vehicle, heading in a random direction and seeing where the open world takes them will understand the appeal.

The tone of Watch Dogs 2 is also lighter and more colorful than its predecessor. The story follows Marcus and the DedSec group as they fight against powerful technology and surveillance systems. While the themes can become serious, the game often balances them with humor, creative missions and a more playful atmosphere.

For GTA 5 players, the biggest reason to try Watch Dogs 2 is the freedom it gives you inside a modern city. You can drive around, explore neighborhoods, cause unexpected situations and experiment with different tools. The hacking mechanics make those activities feel different enough that the game does not simply come across as a GTA copy.

It is worth remembering that Watch Dogs 2 is not primarily focused on traditional crime storytelling in the same way as GTA 5. Its strongest feature is the way its open-world systems work together. Players who enjoy experimenting, finding creative solutions and interacting with a city beyond simple driving and combat will probably get the most out of it.

Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition

A crime-focused open-world game that combines driving, exploration and undercover missions with one of the most distinctive hand-to-hand combat systems in the genre.

Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition is one of the most interesting choices for players who enjoy GTA 5’s combination of crime, driving and open-world exploration but want a very different setting. Instead of Los Santos, the game takes players into a fictionalized version of Hong Kong, where crowded streets, markets and neon-lit districts create a completely different atmosphere.

You play as Wei Shen, an undercover police officer who becomes involved with the city’s criminal organizations. That setup gives the story a different perspective from many open-world crime games. Rather than simply following a criminal character from the beginning, much of the tension comes from Wei trying to maintain his undercover identity while becoming increasingly connected to the people around him.

The open world will feel familiar to players who enjoy exploring a city between missions. You can drive through busy streets, move between different districts and take part in activities outside the main story. Hong Kong is smaller in scale than some modern open worlds, but its dense urban design gives the environment plenty of personality.

The biggest reason Sleeping Dogs stands apart from GTA-style games is its combat system. While guns are available, much of the action focuses on hand-to-hand martial arts combat. Wei can fight groups of enemies using punches, counters, throws and environmental attacks, creating encounters that feel much more physical than the typical third-person shooter formula.

This makes the game a strong option for players who enjoy the crime-world setting of GTA but want combat that requires a different approach. Instead of immediately reaching for a weapon, many encounters encourage you to stay close to opponents, react to attacks and use the surrounding environment to your advantage.

Driving still plays an important role in the experience. Cars and motorcycles are used to travel across the city, while certain missions turn that freedom into fast-paced chases. Players who enjoy the simple pleasure of getting into a vehicle and exploring an urban environment will find plenty of familiar elements here, even though the overall handling and world design are different from GTA 5.

Sleeping Dogs also places a stronger emphasis on its central story than on unlimited sandbox chaos. The world is there to explore, but the main campaign remains the core of the experience. This makes it a particularly good choice for players who want an open-world crime game with a focused narrative instead of a game built entirely around endless activities.

Despite being different from GTA 5 in several ways, the combination of urban exploration, crime, driving and missions makes Sleeping Dogs easy to recommend. Its greatest strength is that it does not try to copy Rockstar’s formula exactly. The Hong Kong setting and martial arts combat give the game its own identity while still offering many of the elements that GTA players enjoy.

Cyberpunk 2077

A futuristic open-world adventure for players who want the freedom of exploring a huge city but prefer deeper character customization, role-playing systems and a completely different vision of urban life.

If GTA 5’s Los Santos is the kind of city that makes you want to drive around and see what is happening in every corner of the map, Cyberpunk 2077 offers a completely different version of that experience. Its world is built around Night City, a futuristic metropolis filled with towering buildings, neon-lit streets and distinct districts that give each part of the city its own atmosphere.

Cyberpunk 2077 is not a GTA-style crime sandbox, and that distinction is important. The game places much more emphasis on role-playing systems, character builds and story choices. Instead of controlling a fixed protagonist with the same abilities throughout the game, players can develop V in different directions and choose how they want to approach many situations.

That flexibility is one of the main reasons GTA players may enjoy the game. Combat can focus on firearms, stealth, hacking or a combination of different abilities depending on how you build your character. This gives players more control over their personal play style and makes the experience feel different from a traditional open-world action game.

Vehicles are also an important part of exploring Night City. Cars and motorcycles allow players to travel between different parts of the map, from crowded city streets to areas outside the main urban center. Driving around does not feel exactly like GTA 5, but the freedom to choose a direction and explore a massive futuristic environment remains a major part of the experience.

Night City itself is the biggest attraction. The vertical design of the city creates a very different kind of open world compared with Los Santos. Neon signs, massive buildings and dense streets give the environment a strong identity, while different districts offer their own visual style and atmosphere.

The main story is another major reason to consider Cyberpunk 2077. Rather than focusing on a group of playable protagonists, the game follows V and explores themes of identity, technology and survival in a world dominated by powerful corporations. Conversations, character relationships and major story decisions play a bigger role than they do in many traditional sandbox games.

For players coming from GTA 5, the biggest adjustment is the RPG structure. Cyberpunk 2077 rewards players for thinking about their character build and experimenting with different abilities. Weapons, cyberware and skills can change how encounters play out, which gives the game more depth but can also make it feel more complex than GTA’s straightforward action systems.

The game works best as a recommendation for players who love GTA 5’s city exploration but want something completely different in terms of gameplay and setting. Cyberpunk 2077 trades the modern crime-world atmosphere of Los Santos for a futuristic RPG where story, customization and character progression play a much larger role.

Mafia: Definitive Edition

The best choice for players who enjoy GTA 5’s crime-world atmosphere but want a more focused, cinematic story built around memorable characters and a classic rise through the criminal underworld.

Mafia: Definitive Edition is not the closest match to GTA 5 when it comes to open-world freedom, but it is one of the strongest alternatives for players who enjoy crime stories. The game follows Tommy Angelo, a taxi driver whose life changes after becoming involved with the Salieri crime family.

That story-first approach is what separates Mafia from many other games on this list. GTA 5 gives players a huge amount of freedom between missions, while Mafia uses its world primarily to support the narrative. The city is still an important part of the experience, but the game is designed around a more structured progression.

The setting is also completely different from modern Los Santos. Mafia takes place during the 1930s in the fictional city of Lost Heaven, where vintage cars, period architecture and the atmosphere of Prohibition-era organized crime create a distinct identity. Simply travelling through the city gives the game a very different feeling from the modern worlds found in GTA or Watch Dogs.

The main campaign focuses heavily on Tommy’s journey through the criminal underworld. Missions involve driving, gunfights, escapes and encounters with rival groups, but the story remains the center of the experience. Characters and relationships receive more attention than optional sandbox activities, which makes Mafia feel closer to a crime drama than an open-ended playground.

Driving is still an important part of the game, although the vehicles reflect the era. Instead of modern sports cars and motorcycles, you spend much of your time behind the wheel of classic automobiles inspired by the 1930s. The slower, heavier style of these vehicles fits the setting and helps create the feeling of moving through another period in history.

Combat also supports the cinematic structure. Gunfights and action sequences are designed around individual missions rather than giving players unlimited ways to create chaos across the city. This is one of the reasons Mafia should not be viewed as a direct GTA 5 replacement.

However, players who enjoyed GTA 5’s criminal world, memorable missions and character-driven storytelling may find exactly what they are looking for here. Mafia tells a more focused story and does not constantly compete for your attention with dozens of activities across the map.

The biggest question is what you want from a GTA alternative. If your favorite part of GTA 5 is exploring freely and causing chaos, Mafia: Definitive Edition may feel restrictive. But if you are more interested in the crime-world setting, dramatic missions and watching a character rise through the underworld, it is one of the strongest choices available.