The popularity of survival games has skyrocketed in recent years, from old-school survival horror games to cutting-edge survival simulators. If you’re an explorer who finds yourself at a loss for which emergent story or unexpected adventure to go upon, I’ve compiled the finest survival games to help you decide.
The Best Survival Games Are
1. Don’t Starve
The thought of having to survive in the wild all by yourself is terrifying. Since Don’t Starve is a solitary adventure, that’s precisely what you’ll have to accomplish. Thankfully, the beautiful Tim Burton–style 2D imagery and the assortment of completely strange animals hiding in this sepia-toned universe help to alleviate the horror of being left to fend for oneself in the wild. There are all sorts of ridiculous creatures out there waiting to cause trouble for you, such as werepigs, burgers, deerclops, etc.
To survive, crafting is essential in Don’t Starve, and you’ll spend a lot of time gathering resources.
Don’t Starve is one of the greatest PC co-op games, and it also enables you to play with a buddy.
2. This War of Mine
The most terrifying experience you will ever endure because of this game. This War of Mine review will show you that this is not your average survival game. It depicts the daily struggles of a group of citizens in a nation torn apart by conflict. It’s a game where every choice has dire implications, as you’re trapped in a home under siege by snipers and other survivors out to steal what you’ve uncovered. It’s an aspect of battle that is seldom seen in media.
There’s never any sign that the conflict will finish, and by the time it does, everyone will have likely perished. However, this is a must-play if you believe you can be at peace with yourself in such a precarious situation.
3. Conan Exiles
It seemed inevitable that a licensed IP would try their hand at the survival genre after the massive success of games like DayZ. In Conan Exiles, you’ll go back in time to the Hyborian Age to help everyone’s favorite barbarian duff up enemies and stay alive. Grow crops, construct towns, and club opponents to death; the setup is rather standard, but Conan has a back-of-the-box highlight that the rest of the pack lacks: human sacrifice. You may gain the favor of the gods and tip the scales in your favor if you confine an opponent to an altar and execute them. Conan Exiles stands out from the crowd because of its novel premise.
4. Minecraft
Minecraft is the finest survival crafting game currently available. Someone, at some time, apparently concluded that the key to staying alive is to subject yourself to severe punishment, make slow progress, and kill anybody who isn’t you.
Zombies that eat your face, insects, skeletons, and monsters are all out there, but at least in Minecraft, you can change your appearance so that you’re always pretty and blocky. If a cartoon monster ate you for breakfast, nobody would bat an eye.
More significantly, however, it is up to you to figure out how to live in Minecraft. It’s possible to construct a massive fortress and defend it against nightmarish invaders in this strategy game.
5. Subnautica
Subnautica is one of the finest exploration survival games on PC because of its dreamlike underwater scenery (partially developed by its community) and fascinating gameplay loop. When compared to other survival games, Subnautica is a lot more upbeat and soothing. Even though you play as a lone guy stranded on a foreign planet, the game is all about adapting to your new surroundings and establishing a home for yourself there.
With your submarine, you scour the ocean below for undiscovered resources like rare metals and exotic minerals. After gathering materials, you may start constructing underwater bases.
Like other survival games, Subnautica has limited resources like food and water, but oxygen is more of a concern.
6. ARK: Survival Evolved
Ark is not just the finest dinosaur survival game on the market; it is also among the best dinosaur games of all time. After all, dinosaurs improve upon any situation. It has all the standard elements of a survival game, like having to punch trees for wood, using that wood to construct a haven, killing animals for sustenance, and, of course, dying from dehydration. Ark isn’t your average survival game since it has dangerous leathery leviathans that you may either tame and devour or hunt and eat yourself.
Ark’s actions can always be relied upon. Although the survival mechanics are likely to seem familiar, they provide a solid foundation for the game’s more ambitious features.
7. DayZ
The first one that started everything. This shambling zombie snack is still a top pick among survival games. To put it another way, it’s the undisputed champion of zombie games. DayZ is one of the simplest survival games available today, with very little emphasis on crafting and no goals beyond just surviving. The lack of food and drink is a death sentence, and the same goes for ignoring the signs of illness. Without shoes, your feet are vulnerable to wounds and infections, and receiving the incorrect sort of blood may be fatal.
8. The Long Dark
This chilling trip is like a cross between those games and the finest horror games. When compared to the other games on our list, The Long Dark stands out because of its engaging narrative mode, Wintermute.
In The Long Dark, the undead are replaced by bears and exotic islands by terrible snow drifts. Your ultimate enemy here is Mother Nature, therefore you must fight back by eating enough, staying hydrated, and sleeping next to a raging fire.
9. Valheim
It didn’t take long for the Early Access Viking survival game with cooperative play to become popular, and the reasoning for this is obvious. Wonderfully complementing survival features like cooking and crafting are a vast dynamically generated landscape, terrifying monster encounters, and a solid system for constructing and upgrading bases. Players may build bases or go on treacherous excursions across the ocean in search of uncharted continents, and the game works well both alone and in cooperative play.
10. Grounded
Although Obsidian shrank you and placed you in an ordinary garden, you may as well be in the middle of a forest. You may construct a shelter by cutting down grass, and you can search for water and food by frying aphids and collecting droplets of dew, all while being attacked by lethal spiders, ravenous birds, and bothersome ants. From the viewpoint of an insect, the world is stunning and fascinating.
It’s an arty game thanks to its slick visuals, but don’t assume for a second that you’ll have to take your time and overthink every move.