Most fun game world to explore?

[lacktheknack]

Myst Online, I'd say. Which is good, because the whole point of the game is to explore the game worlds.

Too bad it's stagnant, it could have been the best damn thing ever. As is, it's free and cool if you like puzzles, so give it a shot.

Is this still running? Is the client still available?

Yep.

http://mystonline.com/en/

Four years and still alive. They're treading water financially and haven't really changed anything, so it's entirely frozen in time, but it's still alive and kicking and worth a thirty-hour playthrough.

Enjoy.

When you start, find a KI. You need it to do anything. That's the only hint I'm giving you.

 

[Spider RedNight]

I third Okami and I second Red Dead. There was just something so calming about riding around on a fast horse I broke, through to the sunset then all night, going right past shootouts, wolves attacking a defenseless woman and accidentally running over skunks. I liked the lonely music and the sound of hoof beats on the beaten trail with the occasional thunderstorm.

Except for Undead Nightmare, then it became terrible and tense and I was afraid of stopping for only death welcomed me.

I also rather enjoyed the world in Twilight Princess; with the Poe souls and caves and that giant lake and the desert, I often found myself just running around in the world - despite Midna telling me many times that I should stop screwing around and do work. For that matter, there are 49 different islands in Wind Waker so there was just something so grand about sailing in a random direction and hitting an island. Or a giant octorok that nearly made me shit my pants the first time I saw it.

Lego Lord of the Rings gets an honourable mention from me because of nostalgia. Just you, the trail, and that Wormtongue Lego because he amuses me.

 

[Elvis Starburst]

Bioshock Infinite and Okami spring to mind. Oh, and Tallon 4 from Metroid Prime. Those three had wonderful worlds~

 

[Mister K]

I like Brutal Legend's world. It is filled with many pieces of architecture, which are metal as hell. I always liked jumping into The Deuce and simply roaming around tbeworld, looking for interesting stuff and collectibles.

 

[BehattedWanderer]

In terms of enjoying the scenery and just seeing what the world has to offer, Xenoblade Chronicles definitely is number one. That games environments wowed me unlike any I've ever seen, and I absolutely loved finding where to get the perfect view of each area. The music also really helped bring out the environments, making them even more enjoyable to explore for the next great-looking landmark.

I'll second this, since it's the last game I played where I had to stop for a moment and spend a few minutes just staring at the massive world that was just revealed before me. That first time you step out on the Bionis' knee? Eyes wide, jaw dropped, stupefied awe plastered across my face. It was gorgeous, and gave a sense of scale I hadn't seen in years, and just knew that the few hours I'd been playing was barely even the start of my journey and that I had all those locations left to visit and explore. The variety and detail throughout the game was astounding. Even in the robotic base there was no sign of the boring, bland, flavorless gunmetal and rust aesthetics that are nearly omnipresent elsewhere. Here, it was glowing conduits and molten pools of slag and steel being shaped into enemy productions, or it was a foggy starlit swamp that made me check the air for mosquitoes in small radiant pools.

For instance? Here's a few.

Spoiler: waterfalls near the jungle

Spoiler: one of the many hillside vistas

And each of the locations feels distinct. A day/night cycle makes you want to hang around everywhere, find every nook and cranny, try and find the best place to watch the spectacularly beautiful sunset or sunrise, and you can't wait to see where the game will take you next.