5 Best Games Like Sunset Overdrive

Sunset Overdrive is a one-of-a-kind third-person shooter game that set the stage alight back in 2014, a time during which the Xbox One was finding fresh exclusives to rival the PlayStation 4. With a stroke of luck, the bullet-riddled comedy wound up becoming one of the best games of the year, solidifying its place on the food chain with a slew of nominations and the favor of the general public along the way.

Of course, a fair few years have passed since Sunset Overdrive touched down on Xbox consoles, and yet there still appears to be no sign of any sequel or spiritual successor coming to fruition. Instead, we're left to brush over the closest alternatives, more so games that dabble in the same style, but are still a few worlds apart in terms of story and design. Even still, these are the five closest lookalikes we could conjure up.

5. Infamous

Infamous is a third-person action-adventure series in which you take control of power-wielding superhero and shape the future of a metropolis that's both oppressed and on the verge of collapse. Using a classic good-versus-bad scale, you are able to make choices that define your personality, which in turn affects the general public and the future of the world around you.

Although less comedic and vibrant, Infamous still taps into a similar gameplay style as Sunset Overdrive; on-rails, experimental, and explosive combat that lets you orchestrate mind-boggling and effortlessly fluid combos. It's also open world, which means you have an entire playground at your disposal to turn into your own home away from home. So, if you're in the mood to play god for a short while, then be sure to hit up any of the available Infamous chapters on PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4.

4. Agents of Mayhem

In light of Deep Silver's Saints Row series coming to an end, the studio brought Agents of Mayhem to the table, an all-new brash but ridiculously entertaining third-person shooter. Similar to its source material, the game revolves around the so-called Agents of Mayhem, a royal purple-sporting cast of unique personalities who must go to war with L.E.G.I.O.N., a corrupt organization that threatens to dismantle the world's nations.

Agents of Mayhem brings wildly addictive and replayable open-world combat to a wide selection of diverse levels, each coming with highly destructible environments similar to those in Sunset Overdrive. It's crammed with simple yet visually appealing art styles, a chaotic bullet-riddled playground, and a cast of oddly loveable heroes; three of the things that make Insomniac Games' quirky world the cult-classic title that it is.

3. Jet Set Radio

Before Sunset Overdrive came rolling along, fans of the on-rails category were able to get their fix elsewhere, in a classic game called Jet Set Radio. Much like Insomniac Games' spiritual successor to the Xbox exclusive, the Sega-led shooter mostly revolves around parading about on the power lines, tagging up a candy-popping concrete jungle, and challenging rival gangs for turf and credits. Its only major difference is, well—the general lack of brain-scrambled zombie folk roaming about with energy drinks glued to their palms.

In Jet Set Radio, you take control of a young rebel, one whose sole purpose is to transform the heart of Tokyo into a bustling playground for a youth gang known as The GGs. Your ultimate goal here is simple: avoid the authorities, eliminate rival firms, and spread the good, albeit incredibly rebel-infused word of the notorious GGs so that the whole of Japan can brandish its colors. Can you make it happen? Either get your hands on an old Dreamcast or a PlayStation 3 and see for yourself. Rumor has it it's also still knocking about on Android and iOS, too. Don't take our word on that, though.

2. Crackdown 3

Crackdown has been one of Xbox's all-time favorite franchises for the best part of fifteen years now, during which the series has seen a slew of instalments, DLC, and spin-offs span multiple generations. Although wavelengths apart from Sunset Overdrive in regards to story and setting, its gameplay is similarly addictive and chaotic, and equally loaded with open world elements that let you shape and manipulate the city to match your vision.

The goals that tie in with Crackdown 3 are elementary: set out on a journey and dissolve a criminal empire in any way you see fit. How its figureheads are torn from the roster is entirely up to you and the style you adopt, be it through stealth, strategy, or a reckless attitude with no concern for the well-being of the world and its surrounding citizens. It's hardness fun, clear as day, and it's well worth checking out if you enjoy hearty third-person shooters with more sandbox assets than four business simulation games combined.

1. Prototype

Prototype is a slept on third-person action-adventure series in which you shape a city through the use of powers and and a trusty moral compass. Much like Sucker Punch's Infamous, the Radical Entertainment-led saga revolves around consequences, most of which come from taking drastic actions in and around the game's open world. Also, the eviler you are, the more likely you are to cause a citywide rebellion, one that paints you as its number one target.

So, are there any obvious similarities between Prototype and Sunset Overdrive? Well, to put it short, not really. Or at least, not so much outside of the actual gameplay itself, which definitely shares a lot of elements with the latter—especially with the high-octane combat and sky-high combos. Apart from that, though, Prototype is still very much in a dimension of its own. And yet, it's still one of the closest things you'll get to a Sunset Overdrive clone in 2022.

So, what's your take? Do you agree with our top five? Will you be picking up any of the above lookalikes? Let us know over on our socials here or down in the comments below.