Survival games test players’ creativity, and the best ones force them to make tough choices. From hunger and thirst meters to dangerous creatures and bloodthirsty other players, survival games put your resolve under the spotlight.
Minecraft may not be to everyone’s tastes, but this colorful survival sandbox game still provides plenty of entertainment value. For an alternate take on this genre check out DayZ, which allows players to go from being an isolated survivor to part of a combatant community of survivors.
Minecraft
Minecraft offers players the chance to build and explore worlds made from blocks. While not to everyone’s taste, Minecraft stands out among survival games with its unique sandbox style and open world gameplay.
Rust takes hardcore survival to an entirely different level with its cutthroat multiplayer gameplay. Consistent server wipes ensure fair play for all, while bizarre monsters such as Werepigs and Beargers ramp up tension even further.
If multiplayer survival gaming isn’t quite your cup of tea, Astroneer offers an intriguing take on the genre that lets up to seven online friends explore a whole new planet together. Or if dinosaurs are your thing, Ark might just be what you need!
Ark: Survival Evolved
Survival games provide something for every type of gamer, from taming leviathans to building shelter from the elements. From indie titles to triple-A releases, there’s something to enjoy for every survival enthusiast in these tough adventures that test one’s mettle against nature.
While many of these games feature subtle storylines that players can explore at their leisure, others like V Rising go further by pushing genre boundaries. V Rising merges vampire lore with survival game mechanics for an engaging gameplay experience.
Ark from studio Wildcard is an engaging dinosaur-themed survival adventure game with great promise. Long-term goals like taming a T-Rex add an additional dimension that many other titles struggle to match.
Terraria
Terraria has come into its own over time through updates and patches. This indie game boasts an endearing aesthetic with unique mechanics that bring this open-world to life, filling you with wonder as you explore. There will be Triffid-like plants, giant skeletons and floating eyeballs; defeating these evils will bring huge rewards that propel the player towards reaching Terraria’s climax.
Many games have tried to mimic Minecraft, but few have seen as much success as Terraria has. This two-dimensional block-builder has sold over 27 million copies on multiple platforms.
Grounded
Grounded’s take on the survival genre is exciting and engaging. While familiar mechanics such as resource gathering and combat make for an engaging adventure, its youthful flair makes Grounded a thrilling journey!
Grounded has finally launched as a full-fledged game after an extended Early Access period. Boasting an engaging campaign and various accessibility options (including an Arachnophobia mode), this unique and immersive title from Obsidian is sure to appeal even those unfamiliar with survival gaming – making Grounded one of the finest survival titles ever created!
Frostpunk
Frostpunk stands out as an exceptional survival game, taking elements from 4X, city-building and base-building genres and turning them into an atmospheric steampunk world with political conflicts and moral decisions to address.
It’s the kind of game where you could spend hours just exploring and completing side missions, making it the ideal way to experience survival through an immersive narrative lens. Plus, its expansive open world provides endless adventures!
V Rising is another innovative addition to PC gaming’s roster, combining vampire mythology with survival gameplay mechanics in a captivating blend. Thanks to its beautiful graphics, this combination has proven successful.
The Forest
The Forest stands out from other releases in its genre by emphasizing survival mechanics and environmental storytelling, providing players with abandoned camps, crayon drawings from your son, and the remains of other unfortunate survivors to create an immersive tale that transcends basic mechanics.
This game keeps things straightforward by quickly immersing you in an environment filled with tribal warriors, mutants and cannibals who all pose serious threats to your survival. Furthermore, The Forest features intuitive building and crafting systems incorporated within an atmosphere that’s truly dangerous; plus you have up to eight-player co-op multiplayer if that appeals. It is sure to satisfy survival enthusiasts!
