Best Survival Games

Survival games

have grown reasonably popular in recent years, even if the genre will likely always be somewhat niche. These projects came in many shapes, sizes, and tones too, ranging from cartoonish grind-fest like

Dysmantle

to hellish open-world projects such as

The Long Dark

. Basically, there should be a survival game for just about anyone, and the genre’s mechanics even occasionally show up in non-representative titles like

Breath of the Wild

and

Days Gone

.

Indie releases, triple-A offerings, and some truly unique titles have made their way to the survival genre, offering players who want to challenge themselves against a harsh world a place to flex their muscles. When it comes to

the best survival games

, there are more than a few candidates.

17


Valheim

Metascore: N/A

Valheim

was definitely one of the most enthralling Indie releases to come out in 2021. It gives players access to all the things they’ve come to know and love with releases like

Terraria

and

Minecraft

while simultaneously ramping up the difficulty to appease gamers who are craving more of a challenge. It’s pretty easy to be overwhelmed in

Valheim

, and the bosses can be downright punishing for those who are unprepared.

Players seeking a hardcore adventure that will challenge their survival skills by forcing them to contend with hordes of enemies, strong bosses, and even the elements, will love what

Valheim

has to offer.

16


Raft

Metascore: N/A

Those looking for something a little different should definitely consider loading up

Raft

. This survival release pits players against the islands, forcing them to begin their journey adrift at sea. When things start, players will find themselves fighting for survival with a

Raft

, which they can then use to help them navigate to nearby islands.

While an explorative release,

Raft

is still very much a survival game as players will need to outmaneuver man-eating sharks in their quest to survive. The best part is that

Raft

can be enjoyed solo or with a friend in an enthralling cooperative mode.

15


Grounded

Metascore: 83

Grounded

is one of the most unique survival titles of the last couple of years. This

Honey, I Shrunk the Kids

style adventure drops players into a suburban backyard. There’s nothing particularly scary about being in a backyard, unless, players find themselves shrunk down to microscopic size.

This twist has gamers trying to survive against massive ants, spiders, and other dangers as they attempt to build bases and survive in a landscape that isn’t threatening at all to someone who’s “normal size.”

Grounded

is a lot of fun solo, but one of its strongest selling points is that it can be enjoyed with other players online.

14


Frostpunk

Metascore: 87

Some

survival games

are much more “realistic” than others. Many of the genre’s titles feature mechanics that players must follow in order to “survive,” but a few of them are skewed or simply non-existent. The hunger meter is annoying for some in

Minecraft

, but it won’t outright kill the player. That’s what makes games like

Frostpunk

such an engrossing and difficult experience. The survival aspects in this top-down strategy survival game aren’t there as “side mechanics,” they actually matter.

Those who can’t correctly allocate their food storage, fuel supplies, and other assorted materials will find themselves with a dying population bent on civil war.

Frostpunk

isn’t just about surviving, it’s about ensuring EVERYONE survives, and that can be an incredibly difficult task. Players won’t just need to collect supplies in this game, they’ll also have to answer tough questions and make hard decisions to make it out alive.

13


Minecraft

Metascore: 93

Minecraft

is perhaps the most influential

open-world survival game

to hit the market in the last decade. Love it or hate it, there’s no denying that this multiplayer build-fest helped to shape and mold the current “survival” genre.

Sure,

Minecraft’s

survival mechanics are pretty simple (eat and don’t take too much damage) but it still offers a great (and highly accessible for all age groups) adventure. The game has players constructing a base, gathering materials, and letting their imagination run wild while they fight back hordes of monsters and sometimes other players.

12


The Forest

Metascore: 83

When

The Forest

first popped up on Steam, it suffered from a lot of the same issues that “pre-release” titles do. It offered a great shell and some unique gameplay elements but was very devoid of content. The story was in tatters and there were a lot of mechanics that simply didn’t work as intended. This is enough to cause strife for any game, but the developers behind

The Forest

stuck with their

project

and continued to polish their 3D first-person survival adventure.

The “finished product” is an absolute blast to play and one of the best cooperative horror-survival experiences of all time. Also,

Sons of the Forest

is a

great survival game

in its own right, although it is still in early access.

11


Green Hell

Metascore: 81

Green Hell

tends to be compared to

The Forest

since they are both survival games set in similar locations, with the former opting for the Amazon Jungle. Out of the two titles,

Green Hell

arguably leans more into its survival mechanics over things like combat, which gives it a slight edge in this discussion. Set in a dense world, this 2019 release does a great job of immersing players in a beautiful but consistently dangerous area, and exploration is a central part of the campaign. Along with a survival mode,

Green Hell

comes with a fairly lengthy story that has some emotional weight to it.

In terms of survival elements,

Green Hell

has all the basics one might expect from the genre. Players have access to a watch that monitors their vitals, and they will need to go out hunting to find food and resources for crafting. The latter is one of the game’s

highlights

.

10


Pathologic

Metascore: 76 (Classic HD Version)

While certainly drenched in horror imagery,

Pathologic

is primarily a survival game, and it is among the genre’s hardest entries. Released in 2005 and available in the form of a Classic HD version, this Russian project sends players to an isolated village that becomes infested with a disease that quickly begins to ravage the population. As one of three characters, players have only 12 days to figure out the cause behind the illness, and survival is far from guaranteed.

Besides having a core story that is literally about survival,

Pathologic

also has plenty of mechanics that are synonymous with the genre, including stuff like hunger and exhaustion. However, earning the things needed to remain breathing is painfully difficult, especially since stuff like money and food are extremely hard to come by. Players will be constantly making decisions that, more often than not, require sacrifices in one area. Beyond the core mechanics,

Pathologic

also builds a tense and unforgiving atmosphere through its unsettling and unpredictable NPCs.

9


Terraria

Metascore: 85

Like

Minecraft

but prefer 2D side-scrolling games? If so,

Terraria

is the ideal pick. These two titles are so beloved and friendly with one another that they actually reference each other in their title screens (via randomized welcome messages).

Terraria

actually has a lot more to offer than

Minecraft

, from a “gameplay perspective.” People craving a more structured adventure will enjoy all its bosses, dungeons, and other “quests.” It’s not to say that there isn’t an endgame present in

Minecraft

, but

Terraria

packs much more into its 2D world.

8


Don’t Starve

Metascore: 87

Like the

Minecraft

–

Terraria

connection, one can argue that

The Forest

and

Don’t Starve

share a similar relationship. One is a 3D adventure teeming with feralistic cannibals and the other is a 2D top-down survival game filled to the brim with all types of cartoonish horrors.

Although it may look silly and Tim Burton-esque (which is honestly a selling point in our eyes),

Don’t Starve

has a lot to offer in terms of survival mechanics and “village building.”

Don’t Starve Together

is also a great option for people looking to play with friends.

7


Dying Light

Metascore: 75

Many survival games feature subtle side-tracked storylines that can be completed at the player’s leisure.

Dying Light

is very much the same, but it has a much wider and deeper story than most survival releases. Players are free to explore the open-world and collect supplies and weapons as they see fit, completing the array of side quests that can be found littered throughout the expansive cityscape.

Yet, when players want to engross themselves in the storyline, they will find a wonderfully executed tale of struggle and hardship during a post-apocalyptic

zombie

outbreak.

6


State Of Decay

Metascore: 79

Zombies seem to be the subject of a lot of survival games, which is fine since most people seem to enjoy the thrill of escaping ravenous hordes of the undead. There is something quite electric about being surrounded by so much danger, and

State of Decay

puts players in the driver’s seat when it comes to post-apocalyptic planning and survival.

The title is a mixture of traditional scavenging and world-building, where survivors will need to establish a base and keep as many survivors safe as they can. After all, there’s strength in numbers.

State of Decay 2

builds on its predecessor well and is another fun survival option.

5


ARK: Survival Evolved

Metascore: 70

In

ARK: Survival Evolved

, players start their adventure with absolutely nothing, and they will need to quite literally punch trees and craft the bare necessities just to make it through the night. Those who can quickly establish a base and craft weapons to defend themselves will find a world teeming with possibilities and dinosaurs.

That’s right,

ARK

lets players hunt and tame dinosaurs, which they can then turn into their own personal pack mules.

ARK

is also unique in the

sense

that players will go from a primitive tool to a full-blown armored gun-wielding T-rex-rider over the course of their adventure.

Ark: Survival Ascended

gives the base game an Unreal Engine 5 makeover, and it is currently in early access on Steam.

4


DayZ

Metascore: 56

Like

The Forest

,

DayZ

had its fair share of pre-release woes. Fast-forward a few years, and

DayZ

has been given a lot more polish and work to round out its jagged edges. The experience is still not perfect, but there is no denying that it offers one of the most captivating survival experiences on the market.

DayZ

firmly believes that zombies are not the only threats in a post-apocalyptic world. Other players could be just as dangerous and sadistic, and this game gave users the option to play however they wanted to. In 2023,

DayZ

is arguably better than ever, and its PvP aspect is arguably still among the best in the survival genre.

3


Rust

Metascore: 69

If

DayZ

helped to start the “hardcore survival” formula that took over years ago, players can point to

Rust

for refining it. Stripping away the zombie hordes,

Rust

focuses instead on straight survival, tossing players into the fray against other players in a bid for dominance over a particular area. Thanks to consistent server wipes, players are kept from getting “too strong” and must start all over at each interval, leveling the playing field for those who jump in during these crucial times.

Rust

is just as much a game of deception and cutthroat decision-making, as it is a tale of survival. Only those who can avoid danger, keep a level head, and grow stronger will truly come out on top.

2


No Man’s Sky

Metascore: 83

There was a time in which

No Man’s Sky

was the absolute laughingstock of the entire gaming world. It was the prime example of why players shouldn’t fall too deeply into the Kickstarter craze and there is absolutely no denying that the game failed big time to deliver all of its promises to a wide-eyed and hopeful fanbase.

But the developers stuck by their creation and took all the criticism and backlash in stride. A few years later,

No Man’s Sky

has blossomed into one of the

best survival games

on the market. It’s a much, much better release now and can be an absolute blast to play with friends. It’s definitely one of the more unique options out there and is absolutely beautiful to boot.

1


Subnautica

Metascore: 87

The

ocean

is terrifying. Much like space, there are areas and channels within the deepest waters that are untouched by man, untamable, and even unexplorable. Fear of the unknown is a very real thing and the ocean presents it in spades.

Subnautica

plays on these fears by forcing its players to survive in a vast aquatic world. On the outside, this seems like a happy-go-lucky diving adventure, but veterans of this world will attest that this release leans into survival-horror territory.

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