17 Games Like Watch Dogs
Our assembled list of games like Watch Dogs offers other diverse open world action adventures where you can explore, drive, hack and sneak through a quest driven storyline.
Watch Dogs is a series of action adventure games based on the modern technological world of the future which first launched in 2014. Offering a wealth of open world content Watch Dogs features a familiar formula of exploration and side activities alongside the main questline. While this questline is different in each game recurring themes include large companies full of corporate corruption, criminal organisations and hacking of the central Operating System (ctOS) that runs the city and stores citizen personal information across several fictionalised cities.
This ctOS network is also vital to your own story allowing you to hack the city to help with combat or puzzle solving by accessing cameras, obtaining information or controlling traffic. Other core gameplay elements of Watch Dogs includes stealth mechanics, driving, fighting and shooting with an arsenal of weapons. During these activities players will need to ensure they don't bring unwanted attention from authorities by being caught performing illegal activities.
The games like Watch Dogs featured below have similar open world elements with a focus on other games that offer stealth or hacking over direct confrontation as you complete your main questline or various side activities.
Deus Ex
Deus Ex is an older game with a cyberpunk theme which blends action, role playing, stealth and first person shooting into a single story heavy adventure. Highly rated amongst fans and critics the success of the first game has seen the lore, world and mechanics revived in a number of subsequent games in the Deus Ex universe. Deus Ex is set in a futuristic world during 2052 where conspiracies and a number of different government agencies are threatening to tear the world apart as they fight for co...[Read Review]
Yakuza 0
Taking you back in time to a Tokyo of 1988 Yakuza 0 is as an action adventure title that serves as a prequel to the various other Yazuka titles. Focusing on fictionalised recreations of areas such as Shinjuku Golden Gai and Kabukicho there is plenty of Tokyo to explore in this sixth adventure into the world of Yakuza. Originally launched in Japan in 2015 it took two years for the game to come to North America and Europe although the PS3 release remained a Japan exclusive. Starting the story deep...[Read Review]
Batman: Arkham City
Batman: Arkham City takes place in the Batman universe and was released in 2011 for Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 with a remastered version for the next generation of consoles released 5 years later. The game blends fast paced action with an impressive Batman themed storyline and an open world environment while also serving as the second title released in the Arkham trilogy. The game takes place approximately a year after the first game released in the story arc (Batman Arkham Asylum) whic...[Read Review]
Prototype 2
Prototype 2 offers a mixture of open world gameplay and action adventure with a fun and powerful twist within the core mechanics. Originally published for consoles (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360) in early 2012 Prototype 2 was eventually brought to Windows and the next generation of consoles (PlayStation 4 and Xbox One). While there are clear similarities and a story link to the original Prototype (released in 2009) the main character for this adventure is entirely different which helps to keep it a...[Read Review]
Infamous
Infamous treats players to abilities such as having lightning bolts firing from their fingers alongside other action-adventure gameplay. Playing a simple bike messenger by the name of Cole MacGrath you’ll be at the centre of a massive city explosion that leaves a town in chaos and Cole with seemingly new magical powers. All of these new Cole powers are electrical based and will be vital to your survival in the fictional Empire City which amongst the chaos is now overrun with all sorts of g...[Read Review]
Sleeping Dogs
Sleeping Dogs has players taking on the role of Wei Shen an undercover cop and martial artist specialist that decides to tackle the Triad organisation across Hong Kong. Released in August 2012 by Square Enix Sleeping Dogs joins the ranks of other high profile open world action adventures with a crime theme. With a large Hong Kong setting as your backdrop players are free to design their own story as you freely roam the city taking part in fights, driving, crime and anti-criminal activities. Spli...[Read Review]
The Saboteur
The Saboteur explores a different setting to most open world action adventure titles with a World War II theme that has players trying to sabotage everything within reach to help the war effort. With a setting that the genre hasn’t touched before you’re guaranteed a unique adventure as you play on Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The game focuses on Paris during its Nazi occupation with players taking on the role of Sean Devlin as he attempts to sabotage the Nazi’s from within as...[Read Review]
Deus Ex: Human Revolution
Deus Ex: Human Revolution is the third and long awaited game in the franchise of popular science fiction role playing games. Opting to explore a prequel the game is set 25 years before the first Deus Ex game which allows newcomers to the series to easily pick up the story even if they haven’t played the other games while fans of the series will pick up on the many subtle hints to other Deus Ex world adventures. In Human Revolution you’ll play as Adam Jensen in the year 2027 who is a leading memb...[Read Review]
Batman: Arkham Asylum
Arkham Asylum kicks off the Batman: Arkham Asylum story arc and was released in 2009 offering a blend of action, adventure and story as players control superhero Batman against his long time enemy, the Joker. With a focus on melee combat blended with stealth and gadget based action it’s a strong opening act to the Arkham Asylum experience which was further built upon over the years. This founding story of the Arkham Asylum plot follows the Joker’s attempt to seize control of Arkham Asylum ...[Read Review]
Infamous 2
Infamous 2 was released in 2011 exclusively for the PlayStation 3 and continues where the first game (released in 2009) left off. Like its predecessor Infamous 2 promises plenty of action, adventure and open world environments for players to explore as they utilise a whole range of superpower like abilities to achieve their goal. Infamous 2 takes place not long after the original where the world changed after the birth of Cole’s electrical abilities that allowed a human to reach new levels of po...[Read Review]
Crackdown 2
Crackdown 2 is the 2010 sequel to the popular 2007 game of Crackdown which features a similar open world with sandbox elements and is an Xbox platform exclusive. Fast forwarding the game world by nearly a decade it’s a familiar but fresh setting for Crackdown 2 that is enjoyable for returning players and welcoming to newcomers that want to start their adventure here. The sandbox for this adventure is once again the fictional Pacific City which has elements of large cities in America and ot...[Read Review]
Infamous Second Son
Infamous Second Son is the third chapter in the Infamous series of games which sees players once again stepping into a vast open world with their own strange powers. Released in March 2014 and a PlayStation 4 exclusive title this is one that Infamous fans can’t afford to miss with the expansion to the universe that it offers. Set in the year 2016 it has been nearly a decade since the events of the previous game that ultimately led to the death of Cole MacGrath, a noble sacrifice to spare the wor...[Read Review]
Deus Ex: Invisible War
Deus Ex: Invisible War serves as a sequel to the original Deus Ex and follows the story of Alex D in a new world that is constantly at war. Opting for a Windows and Xbox release this time around Invisible War stays true to the series of offering diverse player choice in how they approach the game in general and individual missions within it. Invisible War picks up the story over two decades after the events in the original game and sees players exploring a world further ravaged by war and econom...[Read Review]
Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines
Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines is an action orientated role playing game that explores the rarely touched vampire fantasy for a video game setting. Offering deep role playing mechanics players customise their recently converted human to design their own playstyle through the vampire filled world full of story, choice and challenges. Set in a modern day Los Angeles players explore four unique game areas that include downtown, Santa Monica, Hollywood and Chinatown that each have their own myst...[Read Review]
Batman: Arkham Origins
Batman: Arkham Origins is the third game in the Arkham series of Batman games and continues to offer an open world adventure with particular appeal for fans of the Batman universe and the previous games. Batman: Arkham Origins continues to evolve your gameplay experience with a number of minor tweaks, new locations and challenges thrown at players while also being the first in the series to add online multiplayer gameplay. As the game title suggests the storyline is all about the origins of the ...[Read Review]
APB Reloaded
Seeking to blend the popular gameplay from open world adventures like Grand Theft Auto with MMO mechanics is APB Reloaded. Released in 2010 as a paid title for Windows the game later went free to play (2015) and launched on console platforms. Exploring the endless conflict of the Enforcer and Criminal factions players will join one of these factions as they carry out missions across the map that put them in direct conflict with the other faction. In APB Reloaded players explore the city of San P...[Read Review]
Deadly Premonition
Deadly Premonition rolls open world gameplay, horror and even comedy into a single ball of interesting to create an adventure that is borderline insane. The game originally released on Xbox 360 in 2010 and saw a Director’s Cut for the PlayStation 3 and Windows released in 2013 after the game attracted a cult following online creating demand for the game to be delivered on alternative platforms. This same following was likely the reason behind the games port to Nintendo Switch in 2019. Part of th...[Read Review]