New World is a fantastic MMORPG with a world and setting that captivates you. But what if you’re specifically put off by the MMO aspects and want to focus on the RPG elements? We at MeinMMO have the alternatives for you.
What is this list about? MeinMMO author Mark Sellner stated shortly after the release: “I have more fun in New World than ever, but one thing annoys me: You other players.” Many might disagree, but for some, New World was a successful single-player experience.
The world, the story, and the setting of New World offer various aspects that single-player fans can also enjoy. However, at some point, these fans are disturbed by the MMO variants of the game.
Some fans have simply had enough of New World due to various bugs and other issues. However, they are still not tired of the setting. MeinMMO shows you how to experience the New World feeling solo and which games are particularly suitable for this.
How was this list created? The titles listed each represent a specific aspect of New World as a single-player RPG. The order of the titles does not matter in this article. Each of the mentioned games has its own strengths and weaknesses, but we do not want to evaluate them against each other here.
1. Risen
What kind of game is this? Risen is an RPG from the German developer studio Piranha Bytes. It was released in October 2009, but it is still enjoyable today and, thanks to its appealing graphic style, still looks decent.
The premise of the game is nothing less than to save the world. For this, you also land on an island where mysterious magic awaits you. The gods have left the world, making way for the titans, who now roam there.
In about 30 to 60 hours of gameplay, you explore the island, become increasingly stronger, and discover what the magical temples that suddenly appeared are all about.
To do this, you join one of three factions. Either a magic-oriented group, a warrior band of cutthroats, or the monastery-loyal Order warriors. Does that sound like New World to you? It gets even better.
What does this have to do with New World? The start in the RPG should be familiar to all New World fans. You practically start naked on a beach and have to gather the essentials.
This happens because your ship capsized, which was supposed to take you to the island. So, for the time being, there is no way to leave this island. Shortly after the start, various weapons become available to you to master.
The start in Risen 
The start in New World
Shortly after that, you will already meet the three factions, who will have you do things for them until they accept you. After that, you’ll have to finish even more tasks for them to rise in rank within the factions and unlock new armors.
The main focus of the game is on the story and exploring the world, where there’s always something to gain around every corner. However, your loot is often guarded by nasty monsters that you must defeat. Thus, you loot and level up through the world, from one interesting place to the next.
If you liked the world and the feeling in New World that there are things to discover everywhere, you will love Risen.
How can you play? You can currently buy Risen for €9.99 on Steam. It has an 89% positive rating from 4,837 entries, classifying it as “very positive.” If you enjoy the game, Risen 2 and 3 are also waiting for you, which we can also recommend.
2. GreedFall
What kind of game is this? In GreedFall, the RPG and the combat system are the focus. The action RPG from the French studio Spiders was released in September 2019 and allows you to explore and colonize an island. Here, you are supposed to embark on a new world.
However, you arrive several years later. By this time, a large part of the island has already been colonized by various factions. Now it is up to you to communicate between them. You take on the role of a legate for one of the factions on the island.
As a legate, it is your task to get along with the different factions on the island of Teer Fradee or to make it difficult for them. You do this best by completing missions and quests related to them.
Usually, you have several options, each benefiting a different party. However, it’s not just about politics, as you are also searching for the magic that inhabits the island and causes a mysterious illness.
What does this have to do with New World? Similar to New World, GreedFall shares the same setting, as it uses a practically identical backdrop. You explore an island where magic can be found and are positioned between various factions.
It also takes place around the same time. GreedFall is set at the beginning of the 17th century. There is no fixed class system in the RPG either. You skill up and essentially are whatever you are currently wearing.
GreedFall 
New World
In this game, you can choose between magic, various melee weapons, and ranged firearms. The combat system is very similar to the one known from New World. You can actively switch between two weapons, dodge and block, and have only a few active skills in your bar.
If you want to be the same spell-casting musketeer in heavy armor as in New World, you can do that anytime in GreedFall.
As quest hubs, the different cities on the island serve, which look significantly different depending on which faction they belong to. However, the underlying structure of the cities remains almost identical. Another thing you are already familiar with from New World.
If you preferred the story and setting in New World and always thought that the combat system really doesn’t need this stamina bar, then GreedFall is just right for you.
How can you play? GreedFall is available for all current and next-gen consoles and PC. You can currently purchase the game for €34.99 on Steam and enjoy approximately 50 hours of gameplay. 12,327 reviews label GreedFall on Steam as “mostly positive.”
3. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
What kind of game is this? Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is a classic action RPG whose graphic style is more reminiscent of World of Warcraft than of New World. Nevertheless, the game offers many interesting aspects and is still worth playing today, several years after its release.
This was ensured in part by the remaster Re-Reckoning, which re-released the game originally released in 2012 in September 2020 and adjusted its graphics. In December 2021, a new expansion for the RPG titled Fatesworn was also released.
The premise of the title is that in the world of Kingdoms of Amalur, every character has a predetermined fate that cannot be changed. Everything is predetermined until you enter the world. Because under mysterious circumstances, you rise from the dead and no longer have a predetermined fate.
This inevitably makes you a hero for all since you can now determine your own fate and thus change that of the other inhabitants of the world. Kingdoms of Amalur offers you about 60 hours of content for your money. With all expansions, however, it can quickly become 80 to 90 hours of gameplay.
What does this have to do with New World? Although you play Kingdoms of Amalur alone, the title feels like an MMORPG in many places. You explore a vast open world with various biomes, stumble upon many collectibles, side quests, and exciting NPCs.
You explore the map and constantly find new things that look interesting and often hold minor secrets for you. However, it’s not just the world and its layout that remind of an MMO, but unfortunately also the quests, which sometimes do not go beyond “Kill X and bring Y.”
Furthermore, Reckoning also offers you several factions to choose from, where you can decide on one and annoy the others a bit. For New World players, the classless system of KoA:R should also be familiar.
You distribute your points as you like across various skill trees and are not bound to weapons or classes. Here too, you can be a fireball-throwing warrior in leather armor if you want. Through the fate card system, no combination is useless.
The system gives you strong buffs whenever you meet certain conditions. The cards exist for every conceivable build and thus buff even the wildest ideas.
How can you play? The game originally released in 2012 is available on almost all common consoles, from the Nintendo Switch to the Xbox 360. However, the remaster Re-Reckoning is only available for PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series, and PS4 & 5.
Currently, you can purchase the remastered version of the game for €39.99 on Steam. Of the 3,534 reviews, 74% are positive. Thus, the game is considered “mostly positive.”
4. Cyberpunk 2077
What kind of game is this? There are hardly any gamers who have completely overlooked the new role-playing game of the Witcher developers in 2020 and 2021. If so, that’s not a big deal.
In Cyberpunk 2077, you are a nobody in a large dystopian city full of gangsters and want to become a gangster yourself. To make that happen, you steal new technology from the mega-corporation Arasaka, which unfortunately contains the complete consciousness of a deceased rock giant and terrorist.
From then on, the cynical rocker Johnny Silverhand is in your head, and you are sadly resigned to death. You try with all means to prevent this. Thus, the story of Cyberpunk 2077 gains momentum and reaches unprecedented emotional depth.
Gameplay-wise, you can expect a true role-playing experience, where decisions are just as important as the values of your equipment and the distribution of your skill points.
What does this have to do with New World? At first glance, the settings and premises of both games could not be further apart. However, looking closer, Cyberpunk offers more similarities to New World than you might think.
In Cyberpunk, the exploration of the world is primarily in focus. You can find chests and rewards everywhere and spot locations that passively convey a good story.
Cyberpunk also relies on a classless character system where you have a variety of different weapons and hacking tools to choose from and can specialize or simply learn a bit of everything.
However, what resembles New World the most are the extremely satisfying progress bars for almost everything you can do in the world. One of the major aspects in New World is that it rewards you for nearly everything. At least with a brief progress display that tells you how skilled you are with your weapon or logging.
In Cyberpunk 2077, this also happens. You hack a camera? Great, here are some points for hacking. You shoot an enemy? Awesome, here are some points for weapon handling. Did you slice an opponent with a katana? Perfect, here are some experience points for the blade.
This creates a satisfying gameplay flow similar to New World, making everything you do feel meaningful, and that’s a lot of fun.
How can you play? Cyberpunk 2077 was released on Xbox Series, PS5, PC, and last-gen consoles. However, the PS4 and Xbox One version is not recommended. On the new consoles and PC, the title runs smoothly now and is playable without issues.
On Steam, you can get the year-old game for €59.99. After the buggy launch difficulties of Cyberpunk, the reviews have also improved. 81% of the recently written 31,576 reviews are positive.
5. Middle-Earth: Shadow of War
What kind of game is this? In Middle-Earth: Shadow of War, you experience an action-adventure in the Tolkien universe, which takes place long before the well-known films. Similar to Cyberpunk, you have to share your mind here, but not with a rockstar but with the Ringmaker himself.
The motive is not to survive but primarily to take revenge on the evil troops that kill your family at the very beginning of the first part. The ranger from back then can’t let that go and embarks on a quest for vengeance.
Particularly highlighted is the Nemesis System, where certain orcs keep reappearing and have a rank within the enemy hierarchy. If you kill an orc, his place is freed up, and the next one will take his spot.
If an orc kills you, he levels up and effectively becomes your arch-nemesis. This adds dynamics to the gameplay flow. If you defeat one of the leaders, you can not only kill him but also control him and later even make orcs battle against each other.
What does this have to do with New World? In Middle-Earth, you’ll find parallels to many more well-known titles, as the game openly borrows from famous inspirations. It feels like a mix of Assassin’s Creed and the Batman Arkham series while playing. So if you enjoy jumping around and sneaking, this game is something for you.
For the New World fans among you, it gets interesting when it comes to the large battles. That’s also the reason why only the second part, Shadow of War, is included in this list. In the first part, Shadow of Mordor, these occur significantly less often.
In these battles, you lead your own, mind-controlled orc army into battle against enemy orcs. These fights are breathtakingly staged and feel authentic. They playfully remind one of the conquest battles in New World.
If that is the reason you liked New World and you want to experience the same thing alone and with orcs, we highly recommend Middle-Earth: Shadow of War.
How can you play? You can experience Shadow of War on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. The game will keep you occupied for about 20 to 35 hours and is currently available on Steam for €39.99.
If you are still unsure, you can also play a free demo of the title released in 2017. Many users agree, as 87% of the 52,944 reviews for Middle-Earth: Shadow of War are positive entries saved. Thus, it is considered “very positive.”
Do you have any other single-player games that remind you of New World? Please write them down for us here at MeinMMO in the comments.
If you prefer to stay with New World, a reason for that is certainly the great soundscape that already captivated author Mark Sellner.
