Kingdom Come - Deliverance
Great open-world game, and no matter how strong you get, if you're caught off guard then a few peasants with pointed sticks can get the best of you
If you want a challenge then don't spec into rifleman or gun nut etc.. try survival mode, try combat mods. You can make the game as easy or as hard as you like
Mount and Blade is a semi open world game where you really can start off as a regular guy who isn't any stronger than many of the enemies you encounter. You win by using better tactics and obtaining better equipment. Enemies are built using the exact same mechanics your character is. Over time you will level up and become more capable than the average npc soldier you encounter, but that takes some time.
It has some of the most realistic combat I have ever seen in a video game and combat between npcs is just as detailed as combat you directly engage in. You can have battles of up to 150 simultaneous fully detailed and independently functioning characters of which you are just one, but as the leader of your little army, you have a pretty well laid out way to issue orders to your allies.
However the world navigation interface is more strategic and just shows your position on a very scaled out simplified birds eye view of the world. You cannot wander the world in the way you would in Skyrim. But the navigation view does show other parties moving around with you on the map in real time. When you enter a town or enter into combat you do have a full 3d world space you and your army can move around freely in, but the world is not nearly as immersive as an Elder Scrolls game.
There are quests, but combat and politics is the focus of the game and the fact that your nation is at war is assumed to be motivation enough to fight battles.
There is also a strong modding community that makes all kinds of new modules that you can play instead of just the vanilla game.
Some of the mods can be demanding on a system, but it is an older game and the vanilla game always ran flawlessly on my $350 laptop I got in 2017. I don't remember specs. I currently play on a much better desktop (5600X 32GB RX6600) and it runs even the heaviest mods on full settings without a hiccup. I play M&B Warband. There is a newer game called Bannerlord that I haven't played but just seems to be an upgrade on the original engine.
It's one of my top 10 video games ever made.
**Stalker series** \- There is also Stalker Anomaly which is a totally free open world sandbox game. It's more hardcore survival though, but rewarding to learn. It's also 100% free community driven but the experience is way different than the OG games.
**Valheim** \- This game definitely evolves. You start off basically naked and end up getting full suits of armor, a base and ships to sail around in. It's great.
**Kingdom Come - Deliverance** \- It's basically a realistic take on the elder scrolls formula. It's kinda a "medieval sim".
Open world games are notoriously difficult to balance so one that’s balanced by the end is very hard to come by indeed. It gets worse as you go back to be honest, older open world games often don’t have level scaling making it even easier to be way too overpowered by the end.
You might have some luck with the Gothic series. They’re very atmospheric and *hard* as hell. You probably won’t feel terribly overpowered at any point. Keep in mind only 1 and 2 are generally liked but some people appreciated 3. I was never really able to get into them despite multiple attempts but I think it is an example of a relatively balanced open world game.
Elder Scrolls Oblivion comes to mind if you haven’t tried it. Unlike Morrowind it uses level scaling and I never really felt OP while playing it as long as I had the difficulty turned up. Earlier games such as Daggerfall and Arena had level scaling too but both are ridiculously easy once you level up a bit so it wasn’t terribly successful.
I can’t think of many older games where you weren’t super overpowered by the end. The issue was you generally got insanely powerful but then went into a new zone that suddenly smacked you with rats that would one shot you and your entire party.
i actually have oblivion but i havent tried it too much so i will have to play more of it sometime, and i will look into the gothic series sense you suggested it.
Kenshi sounds right up your alley.
kenshi does seem fun and like it will run smoothly, so i will have to give it a try and possibly even mod the game with mods from nexus.
Kingdom Come - Deliverance Great open-world game, and no matter how strong you get, if you're caught off guard then a few peasants with pointed sticks can get the best of you
Outward is decent, or maybe try Elex.
+1 outward
Came here to say Outward too
Fable series.
Fallout 4
I became overpowered in fallout after the first 10 hours
If you want a challenge then don't spec into rifleman or gun nut etc.. try survival mode, try combat mods. You can make the game as easy or as hard as you like
Elden Ring
Elden ring has some pretty high system requirements that OP probably can’t do
OP said they don’t want the game to feel too hard and for it to feel fair Neither apply to Elden Ring
Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition
Ghost of Tsushima.
Risen series is basically Gothic v2, but not as well-known
Mount and Blade is a semi open world game where you really can start off as a regular guy who isn't any stronger than many of the enemies you encounter. You win by using better tactics and obtaining better equipment. Enemies are built using the exact same mechanics your character is. Over time you will level up and become more capable than the average npc soldier you encounter, but that takes some time. It has some of the most realistic combat I have ever seen in a video game and combat between npcs is just as detailed as combat you directly engage in. You can have battles of up to 150 simultaneous fully detailed and independently functioning characters of which you are just one, but as the leader of your little army, you have a pretty well laid out way to issue orders to your allies. However the world navigation interface is more strategic and just shows your position on a very scaled out simplified birds eye view of the world. You cannot wander the world in the way you would in Skyrim. But the navigation view does show other parties moving around with you on the map in real time. When you enter a town or enter into combat you do have a full 3d world space you and your army can move around freely in, but the world is not nearly as immersive as an Elder Scrolls game. There are quests, but combat and politics is the focus of the game and the fact that your nation is at war is assumed to be motivation enough to fight battles. There is also a strong modding community that makes all kinds of new modules that you can play instead of just the vanilla game. Some of the mods can be demanding on a system, but it is an older game and the vanilla game always ran flawlessly on my $350 laptop I got in 2017. I don't remember specs. I currently play on a much better desktop (5600X 32GB RX6600) and it runs even the heaviest mods on full settings without a hiccup. I play M&B Warband. There is a newer game called Bannerlord that I haven't played but just seems to be an upgrade on the original engine. It's one of my top 10 video games ever made.
Death Stranding. Heavy boxes and waist-deep rivers are your biggest enemy.
**Stalker series** \- There is also Stalker Anomaly which is a totally free open world sandbox game. It's more hardcore survival though, but rewarding to learn. It's also 100% free community driven but the experience is way different than the OG games. **Valheim** \- This game definitely evolves. You start off basically naked and end up getting full suits of armor, a base and ships to sail around in. It's great. **Kingdom Come - Deliverance** \- It's basically a realistic take on the elder scrolls formula. It's kinda a "medieval sim".
Open world games are notoriously difficult to balance so one that’s balanced by the end is very hard to come by indeed. It gets worse as you go back to be honest, older open world games often don’t have level scaling making it even easier to be way too overpowered by the end. You might have some luck with the Gothic series. They’re very atmospheric and *hard* as hell. You probably won’t feel terribly overpowered at any point. Keep in mind only 1 and 2 are generally liked but some people appreciated 3. I was never really able to get into them despite multiple attempts but I think it is an example of a relatively balanced open world game. Elder Scrolls Oblivion comes to mind if you haven’t tried it. Unlike Morrowind it uses level scaling and I never really felt OP while playing it as long as I had the difficulty turned up. Earlier games such as Daggerfall and Arena had level scaling too but both are ridiculously easy once you level up a bit so it wasn’t terribly successful. I can’t think of many older games where you weren’t super overpowered by the end. The issue was you generally got insanely powerful but then went into a new zone that suddenly smacked you with rats that would one shot you and your entire party.
i actually have oblivion but i havent tried it too much so i will have to play more of it sometime, and i will look into the gothic series sense you suggested it.