When one talks about some of the greatest video games of all time, it's only a matter before the classic that is Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is mentioned in the conversation. San Andreas was a game that was miles ahead of its competition at the time, featuring a massive open-world full to the brim with a whole host of main and side activities that could keep players occupied for hours upon hours.
One of the biggest draws of San Andreas was its well-crafted story, telling the story of a gangbanger by the name of Carl "CJ" Johnson who ends up back in Los Santos after his mother passed away in a drive-by. In a bid to make the Grove Street Families relevant once again, CJ decides to revert back to his former life in the city and gets embroiled in a controversy that keeps on growing in scale, before crashing back home in the most emphatic manner possible.
It's certainly quite an entertaining story, and fans of this game who'd want to experience more titles in the same vein can try out the following ten story-heavy games as well.
10 Horizon Zero Dawn
The PlayStation 4 is home to some truly imaginative new IPs that have become mainstays of modern gaming culture due to their impressive debuts. Horizon Zero Dawn is a great example of a title that was widely anticipated upon release and ended up blowing everyone's socks off due to just how amazing the title truly was.
While the combat is definitely a spectacular highlight of the series, it's the story of Horizon Zero Dawn that serves as a surprise of sorts due to how much time Guerrilla Games actually put into refining the lore, backstories, and plot in the world.
9 God Of War
Another PlayStation 4 exclusive that served as a fitting reboot of a franchise that had seen massive success back in the days of the PS2 was God of War, a title that humanized Kratos to a massive extent while also serving up the excellent combat that we've come to expect from the series.
Perhaps — just like Horizon Zero Down — the most surprising and unexpected part of God of War was the fact that the plot was on a whole another level when it came to the standards set by the franchise and actually ended up elevating the game to an entirely different level.
8 The Last Of Us
Of course, it would be impossible to talk about story-heavy PlayStation exclusives without mentioning The Last of Us. While its sequel definitely did experiment around with the plot somewhat, there's no denying the fact that the reception to The Last of Us Part II's story was way more mixed than the original's, with the latter just being an amazing ride from start to end.
The bond that forms between Joel and Ellie is truly heartwarming in every sense of the word and serves as the beating heart of the title in what is easily one of the best zombie titles out there.
7 Uncharted 4: A Thief's End
Another series by Naughty Dog that definitely ended on a high note was Uncharted 4: A Thief's End. After having the Uncharted series reign on the PlayStation 3, the developer decided to give this game a worthy send-off in the fourth title, which truly humanized Drake and the rest of the characters in a manner that simply hadn't been seen before.
The storytelling takes a gigantic leap in quality in the fourth title, further aided by the evolved gameplay of the series that allowed for a whole host of new and exciting encounters.
6 BioShock
There was a time when the only Ken Levine title that had acquired any form of popularity was System Shock 2 — a title that, while certainly great, wasn't really all that popular... albeit for all the wrong reasons.
The same can't be said about BioShock, which burst onto the scene as a spiritual successor to System Shock 2 and captured gamers' attention with an excellent plot and tight gameplay.
Of course, Ken Levine was far from done with the BioShock series, and he upped the stakes in the next title that he developed in the series...
5 BioShock Infinite
BioShock Infinite is the first game but with everything being bigger, better... and certainly more epic in scale.
From time travel to parallel universes, Ken Levine truly chucked everything but the kitchen sink into BioShock Infinite's development, and the end result is a title that features incredibly gameplay coupled with one of the greatest and most mind-boggling endings in video gaming history.
4 Sleeping Dogs
Sleeping Dogs is a title that was definitely inspired by Grand Theft Auto's open-world games, but there's no denying the fact that this title is far from just a mere copy of a greater franchise — rather, it's something special in its own way that needs to be experienced due to just how unique the overall experience is.
From the highly enjoyable combat to the excellent story — Sleeping Dogs is a game that no fan of modern open-world gaming should miss out on, especially if they're a fan of the Grand Theft Auto series.
3 Cyberpunk 2077
While Cyberpunk 2077 might've fallen prey to what is easily one of the most disastrous launches in gaming history, there's no denying the fact that under all the bugs and glitches lies an excellent title.
The narrative of Cyberpunk 2077 is the beating heart of the title, with every main mission and side quest being memorable in its own way for all the right reasons.
2 Grand Theft Auto IV
It might be cheating to put another Grand Theft Auto game in a list trying to find games similar to San Andreas, but one can't deny that Grand Theft Auto IV is a fitting game to play in this regard.
The story of Niko Bellic is definitely quite an enthralling one, with the depiction of New York in this game being an instant classic for its level of detail and realism.
1 Red Dead Redemption 2
However, there's only one Rockstar masterpiece that most people mention when it comes to talking about some of the greatest stories ever told in an open-world game — Red Dead Redemption 2.
Rockstar Games clearly invested a ton in the writing of this title, which is top-notch in every manner possible. Even after finishing this title, gamers would definitely be thinking fondly of Arthur Morgan and the sheer brilliance of his character.