Jun 26, 2026, 8:00 PM EDT
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Grand Theft Auto 5** **is often considered one of the best games of all time due to the unique experience that it offers, but it’s not the only game to fulfill on some of its most engaging elements. From an immersive story that is constantly swapping between three protagonists, to a huge open world with unique places that players loved exploring, GTA 5 has a bit of everything.
Nevertheless, most fans have already explored Los Santos, finished the story, and enjoyed most of the experiences that GTA Online has to offer. Although it can be hard to find a game as good as GTA 5, there are some noteworthy options for fans to sink their teeth into. While fans wait for the 2026 release of GTA 6, checking out some games like GTA 5 can scratch a similar itch.
GTA 5 shares a handful of similarities with United Front Games’ martial arts video game Sleeping Dogs. For one, both offer an open-world city for players, with Sleeping Dogs being set in modern Hong Kong.
The focus of the titles is similar, with both featuring compelling stories that focus on a life full of heists, gangs, and fights. The big difference comes in the form of the martial-arts-inclined gameplay, which offers a very different brand of fun than the gun-focused action that’s more central to GTA 5.
While the game’s camera work and animations can be a bit wonky at times, **Sleeping Dogs holds a strong legacy for its incredible character design, combat experience, and voice acting. Despite having released over a decade ago, *Sleeping Dogs *is a sandbox game that *GTA 6 *could learn from.
Just like in GTA 5, crime runs amok in the world of L.A. Noire. Set in 1940s Los Angeles, the game follows a detective on a mission to break a drug ring. This is in stark contrast with GTA 5, which mainly follows criminals and gang members.
However, both games expose the corrupted system that allows crime to thrive, with *L.A. Noire *taking a classic film noir angle on the subject. In classic Rockstar fashion, L.A. Noire is also set in an open world that players can explore both on foot and by vehicle.
Fast-paced action sequences and incredible acting make the game stand out, with a talented voice cast meeting then-groundbreaking motion capture to render realistic performances and facial animations for players to scrutinize.
Despite some complaints at the time that it was a simple GTA clone, True Crime: New York City is an excellent crime thriller that follows the story of an undercover cop attempting to navigate the criminal underbelly of New York. With an incredibly ambitious world for the time, the cityscape is packed with plenty of missions, collectibles, and random events that let you decide if you want to engage with them.
With a morality system that offers a surprising amount of control over whether you want to be a good cop, a dirty one, or a mix of both for your own benefit, TC: NYC has plenty of player freedom that helps it stand out from the competition. Even with True Crime: New York City being on a much smaller scale compared to games like GTA 5, the sandbox experience has plenty to offer.
The most recent installment in the Just Cause series is a solid game that can be compared to GTA 5. In Just Cause 4, players once more assume the role of Rico Rodriguez, a man tasked with taking down the world’s largest private military.
The real joy, however, comes in the general mayhem that he’s sure to cause along the way. While the game’s narrative is far from what GTA 5 offers, Just Cause 4 does allow players to go on a rampage in a number of ways, whether they end up attaching rockets to cows or bundling helicopters together.
The sandbox gameplay and focus on the physics of destruction are perfect for fans of GTA 5, which makes Just Cause 4 a game worth playing for those who enjoy Rockstar’s title.
Fallout 3 has amassed a huge number of fans thanks to an expansive open-world environment that features an apocalyptic wasteland. Bethesda’s RPG sees a world ravaged by nuclear devastation and puts the players in control of an underground shelter inhabitant.
Apart from the open-world gameplay, Fallout 3 is similar to GTA 5 when it comes to excellence in writing and characters. The core narrative of *Fallout: New Vegas *may have garnered more acclaim over the years, but the rich expansiveness of Fallout 3’s world and the wasteland dwellers in it are hard to beat.
Fallout 3 and *GTA 5 *are also very ambitious but successful projects that have a sizable modding community, allowing for immense customization and outrageous game outcomes.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is one of the best medieval open-world RPG games. It resembles GTA 5’s large, explorable open world and combines it with a rich story. Based on Slavic mythology, the game tells the story of Geralt of Rivia as he continues to search for his daughter. It includes* *several great missions and gives players the chance to explore underground hidden ruins and some legendary battles.
Although* The* Witcher 3 favors medieval, sword-focused gameplay (as opposed to GTA 5’s more modern approach), the focus on variety makes The Witcher 3 easy to enjoy. With a robust variety of side quests to take on, monsters to fight, and secrets to find, *The Witcher 3 *achieves a level of open-world scope and polish that is hard to find outside of Rockstar games.
Nier: Automata is one of the best games with multiple protagonists and offers a unique twist to open-world games through the futuristic, robot-focused setting. It follows the story of 2B, an android that is created to fight for the Resistance against the machines that have invaded Earth. The best part is that this story is paired with an iconic soundtrack that fans are guaranteed to love.
While this focus on technology makes it different from GTA 5, it also bears some great similarities. Nier: Automata is characterized by its vast and engaging world, where the player can defeat machines, complete engaging side-quests, or gather materials to upgrade their weapon and equipment.
It may not be the closest experience to GTA 5 that players can find, but as one of the best open-world games of the last generation, it’s not a title that fans should ignore.
Watch Dogs: Legion features open-world gameplay similar to GTA 5 while taking a more tech-focused approach. Set in London in the near future, Watch Dogs: Legion depicts a society where everything is thoroughly surveilled and freedom is limited. The player’s goal is to form and support a resistance team against this oppressive system.
Although the game revolves around hacking devices rather than GTA 5’s more brutal, combat-oriented approach, the tones are similarly rooted in chaos. *Watch Dogs *has struggled to rise above the first game’s disappointing launch for the course of the series, but *Watch Dogs 2 *managed to hook fans back in with a lot of improvements.
Legion is more divisive than Watch Dogs 2, but a system that lets you play as NPCs is interesting enough to forgive its shortcomings. For all its faults, *Legion *offers a unique experience that can be a great option for fans wanting to dive more into the tech side of GTA 5.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is one of the most famous games of the latest decade, and GTA 5 fans are sure to enjoy Rockstar’s most recent title. From a large and unique open world for players to explore to an immersive storyline that keeps fans on edge, Red Dead Redemption 2 has a lot to offer. With any possibility of a *Red Dead Redemption 3 *release likely to be many years away, there’s no reason to wait around before jumping into the second title.
Red Dead Redemption 2 mainly focuses on a story of trust and betrayal, following an outlaw gang who are hoping to do one last heist before they retire. However, things aren’t as simple as they seem, and the narrative takes many surprising turns. For a GTA 5-like game set in the Wild West with horses, cowboys, and revolvers, Red Dead Redemption 2 is the ideal choice.
Saints Row: The Third is a story-focused, open-world, fantasy game that bears striking similarities with GTA 5 and has maintained a much better reputation than more recent entries in the series. While Saints Row: The Third offers a more futuristic fantasy approach**, with superpowers and strange weapons, it maintains open-world gameplay similar to that of GTA 5.
Both games allow for great fun and creativity regarding possible approaches in the open-world setting. This varies from in-depth character customization to multiple open-world missions that involve stealing cars or just wreaking havoc all over the city.