They don’t get as much attention as Grand Theft Auto or God of War, but the survival genre is one of the most popular in video games. From Minecraft to Valheim, survival games consistently attract large and passionate fan bases dedicated to building their own unique worlds. They are driven by rugged challenges, an endless amount of content and the sheer satisfaction of building an ax and a campfire to town, settlements and even entire cities.
Each entry is unique, but they all share the common element of inviting you to create your own survival in a hostile world, be it filled with monsters, dinosaurs, or giant ants. We picked up our tools and made our own list of the best survival games, choosing the ones with the most vibrant communities; the most interesting mechanics and the most exciting worlds. Here’s our list of the top 10 survival games.
10. Rust
If you have a high pain tolerance, then Rest might be for you! That said, if you’re looking for a survival game that will keep you on your toes, Rust is equally exciting and very hard. Have we underlined enough that this game isn’t easy? Rust advertises itself with only one main goal: to survive in a place where everything wants to kill you – the terrain, wildlife, the weather and oh yes, other players.
The game is multiplayer only, so if you thought you would build your rustic home in peace, you were wrong. At first glance, this game is very similar to Ark: Survival Evolved, but the open-world and FPS elements are completely different. With factions, raids, a power system, a huge variety of vehicles including hot air balloons and a huge network of trains, different types of highly customizable servers, a robust player base, and fairly frequent improvements and updates, Rust goes way beyond the “you get naked and alone.” wake up in a deserted area” concept. Bring a friend or several if you want to make the most of it. Rust will consume a lot of your time and you shall is being demolished.
Read our review of Rust.
9. Grounded
When Grounded was released in Early Access in 2020, it was a concept we couldn’t believe didn’t exist yet. The movie “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids” already established that there is a very small world that our normal human eyes could never comprehend, so it only makes sense that that idea would make its way into a video game. Grounded took that and built a fully realized survival game around it. Let’s face it, if you were suddenly reduced to the size of an insect and thrown into a backyard, you’d be happy to survive that ordeal, too.
The bones Obsidian Grounded built on are typical, but solid, for a survival game. The enemies are all sorts of creepy crawling creatures, and everything else is used to keep yourself alive.
You build clubs from sticks, build bases with blades of grass, and even wear armor made from the cacasses of the slain. Grounded has a lot to offer, and it’s early access only. We can’t wait to see what Obsidian cooks up when this micro-sized beast of a game hits its full release.
Read our review of Grounded.
8. Valheim
Valheim’s semi-impressionist aesthetic and diverse biomes give players plenty to explore and loot in the 10th world of the Yggdrasil. Contrasting calm and idyllic base building in early biomes, with heartbreaking battles against giant trolls and deadly mosquitoes as you set off from the center of the world; Valheim provides hours of entertainment for warriors, farmers and architects. Progress in this game depends on defeating the bosses in each biome, which in turn increases the diversity of resources you can access, crafting recipes, and special abilities such as reduced damage or increased stamina.
If you have the warrior spirit, Valheim is the perfect game to fight as Odin’s champion and claim your place in Valhalla.
Read our review of Valheim.
7. This war of mine
This War of Mine is a survival game that will stay with you long after you have completed the campaign. From its gritty, sober, tousled setting, to its diverse and elaborate characters and a story that packs no punches. This War of Mine is one of the most heartfelt depictions of what it’s like to be a civilian trying to survive in the middle of a brutal and unforgiving civil war.
The intuitive gameplay makes it easy to get lost in the morally ambiguous story and the tough decisions you have to make to ensure the survival of your party. Whether you want to play as an emphatic leader or a ruthless survivor, This War of Mine is a game you can return to many times and still find something new.
Read our review of This War of Mine.
6. No Man’s Sky
In 2016, there was no game more hyped than No Man’s Sky, even making the move from gaming spaces to the mainstream with developers running late night talk shows to talk about the game before it was released. It all seemed to come crashing down when it was released in August, with no features people thought would be included and with very little gameplay to the point where massive amounts of people were demanding refunds.
However, if 2016 was the last time you thought of No Man’s Sky, then you’re doing yourself a disservice. In the years since, No Man’s Sky has been constantly updated and not only is it now the game many of us thought we would get in 2016, it’s so much more. You can choose between focusing on scientific research, studying cultures and languages, locating Sentinels, categorizing plant and animal life, or a combination of all of these. The game is huge and a very different journey for each person who launches it.
And yes, not only can you now find strangers in the game – although really only in the mysterious Anomaly – you can also take your friends on your adventure. The game is totally what you make it, making it one of the most exciting survival games on this list.
Read our review of No Man’s Sky.
5. Subnautics
Few survival games capture both the terror and isolation of the environment as Subnautica. With a lone survivor stranded on an alien world, it travels deep into alien waters filled with monsters big and small (but mostly large and sometimes absolutely gigantic). Along the way, build submarines, submarine bases and other equipment on your way to unraveling the mysteries of the planet.
Subnautica, first released in 2016, is now available on virtually every major platform and also supports VR headsets. Despite the stage, the terrifying underwater visuals still hold up very well, and few survival games match the fear of watching your depleted food and oxygen gauges as you dive deep trenches and underwater caves. When you finally return to the safety of the Cyclops, it’s almost always with a sharp sigh of relief – the ideal survival game experience.
Read our review of Subnautica.
4. Don’t starve together
Don’t Starve Together is a tough but fair game that is as addictive as its art style is captivating. Don’t Starve Together’s Sanity meter is what sets this grim gothic adventure apart from its contemporaries – spend too much time in the dark or ignore treating your sanity for too long, and your fears will begin to manifest in shadow creatures who will put an end to your running faster than an empty stomach.
Don’t Starve Together’s difficult but intuitive gameplay loop gives the game an exceptionally high value and replayability. Add some friends to the mix and you’re in for a good time; just stay out of the dark.
3. The Long Darkness
If you’re looking for something that doesn’t involve science fiction or magic, buckle up and get ready for an adventure into the Canadian wilderness. The Long Dark was released in 2017, but constant updates mean it’s fresh for new and old players alike.
While there is a story mode called Wintermute (in which the final episode has yet to be released), the real gem of the game is both the endless survival mode and the various challenges you can choose from. And while there’s no multiplayer, there’s endless fun challenging your friends and seeing who can survive the longest in the relentless winter storms with wolves, bears and moose all chasing you.
If you’re looking for something a little more casual, you can open Survival Mode in Pilgrim difficulty and enjoy exploring parts of the map and the different items to discover along the way. The Long Dark remains a snowy delight after all these years.
2. The forest
Like almost any horror survival game, The Forest allows you to get to know the land before pestering you with monsters galore. What it does differently, though, is undermine your expectations about how these cannibal creatures react to your actions. Unlike many other video game enemies, The Forest’s cannibals aren’t suicidally aggressive, which is what makes them so disturbing. They run towards you, stopping just before your reach, studying you before sprinting away never to be seen again.
Endnight’s smart AI-powered tactics make you doubt every move you make. Do you have to destroy that cannibal-built effigy? Do you have to burn the bodies of the fallen? You can’t be sure, but what you can count on is that the creatures of The Forest are always watching.
Aside from its fantastic AI, The Forest also offers quite a large island to explore, chock full of animals to skin and eat, berries and flowers to forage, and of course an almost unlimited amount of trees to cut down to build bases with freedom that’s only matched by the next game on our list. With a fully interlocking cave system to dive into, tons of collectibles and a compelling story with a crazy ending, The Forest is an absolute must for any survival fan.
Read our review of The Forest.
1. Minecraft
It’s easy to write Minecraft off, but it’s just as easy to forget how excellent a survival game can be. A literal decade of updates and an almost unfathomable level of success has stretched it from creative servers to a role-playing platform to a classroom curriculum.
But the variety of experiences it allows does not detract from the consistent fact that Minecraft is simultaneously one of the deepest and most accessible survival games ever created. You can go all the way from hiding from zombies in a filthy dump while cutting apples to literally building working computers out of Redstone mechanics without ever switching servers.
Few games (if any) can make this traditionally challenging genre accessible to such a wide audience, but the possibilities it offers are nothing short of remarkable.
Read our review of Minecraft.
And there you have it, our picks for the top 10 survival games of all time. Which games do you think should be on the list? Let us know in the comments below and check out our lists of the best fighting games, the best open world games and much more. And for everything else in gaming, stick with IGN.
List jointly chosen by: Tayo Oyekan, Kim Horcher, Alan Wheeler, Nick Maillet, Chelsea Miller, Tom Marks
Blurbs written by: Kim Horcher, Alan Wheeler, Nick Maillet, Chelsea Miller, Tom Marks, Kat Bailey
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