A possible simple solution that would resemble the “sideways tabs” items linked by @coldwinds is a plugin (perhaps a core plugin) that replicates the “open editors” functionality in VSCode.
Basically, when you open VSCode the sidebar not only contains the file browser but above it is a separate section/pane that contains a clickable list of open files.
Note also that some capabilities users want may also be obtainable by combining:
- Workspaces (core plugin) - save and load various pane layouts & doc locations
- Cycle through panes (community plugin) - provides
Ctrl+Tabfor switching between docs just like browser tabs - Andy Mode (community plugin) - toggle on the rotated headers and let panes slide in and out as you cycle through them