Survival games are very popular among a lot of video game fans. The fantasy of surviving and thriving in a hostile world with nothing but clothes on one’s back is compelling, and video games let players live out that fantasy from the comfort of their own homes.
These thrilling survival experiences can be even more fun to share with friends, though.Building a stable baseand stockpiling resources is a very satisfying way to spend a few hours with a group of trusted allies by one’s side. Here are ten of the best survival games that four players can enjoy together.
As the name suggests,Don’t Starve Togetherrefines the survival gameplay of its prequel,Don’t Starve, andlets players team upin an attempt to survive the game’s uncompromising wilderness.Don’t Starve Togetheris a very striking title, combining a stylized cartoon art style with unforgiving danger and harsh conditions.
The result feels reminiscent of a Tim Burton film, combining whimsy and menace to create something unique and engaging. The game’s multiplayer function increases players' odds of surviving together in this cruel and capricious sandbox, but the game is still brutally difficult, and players will likely need multiple tries to get it right.
Vampires are generally depicted as very powerful creatures, which one would think would be ill-suited for a survival game. ButV Risingcasts players as vampires who’ve been asleep for centuries and are now weakened and hungry for blood. By blending survival hallmarks with RPG mechanics,V Risinglets aspiring vampiric overlords crawl their way back up the food chain.
The game’s online co-op support lets groups of friends assemble a vampiric consortium together andbuild up their communal castle. The game also has PvP, allowing groups of vampires to compete for dominance in the game’s open world. Once players have invested enough time and resources, they can live the power fantasy of being an immortal creature of the night.
As the name suggests,Green Hellis not for the faint of heart. This game strands players deep in the Amazon rainforest and forces them to contend with hostile natives and ferocious wildlife. Fans will need to be resourceful and strategic in order to survive.
This game also supports four-player co-op, letting a group of friends take on the Amazonian wilderness together. With a solid team of trusted allies, players should be able to carve out a chunk of the world’s largest rainforest for them to call their own.
The online world ofConan Exilesis rife with danger and menace. Players will have to be truly mighty to overcome the threats of this inhospitable desert world. Of course, fans can also rely on the old adage of strength in numbers and brave the Exiled Lands together.
With a reliable team of warriors, players can build their base andturn it into a thriving city. In true Conan fashion, battles are bloody and fierce, and in the heat of a bloodbath, it’s important to have a reliable team of warriors watching one’s back.
Terrariais one of the most prominent games in the survival genre. While many have dismissed it as simply 2DMinecraft, the game has demonstrated significantly more content and staying power than such a moniker would suggest. Despite its simplistic art style and 2D interface,Terrariahas a staggering amount of depth.
Given how massiveTerrariais in scope, it’s definitely worth exploring with friends. PlayingTerrariain co-op makes acquiring resources and upgrading equipment much easier, and lets players tackle some of the most imposing bosses in the game with much more confidence and ease.
Survival games and zombies go together like peanut butter and jelly. Some of the most iconic pieces of zombie media show a group of battered survivors desperately trying to hold out against the endless scourge, and this experience translates very well to video games.Project Zomboidis a very prominent example of this.
This isometric survival game tasks a group of friends to survive against the zombie hordes as long as they can. The game’s robust survival mechanics let teams of survivors build a truly intricate base for themselves and even restore electricity to abandoned homes. As prosperous as players can be inProject Zomboid, though, the undead threat is never-ending, and groups must always watch each others' backs.
In spite of its very difficult launch,No Man’s Skythrives as a massive and immersive space survival experience that groups of players can team up to explore together. Thanks to the game’s expansive history of upgrades and expansions, there are plenty of activities for players to take part in together, like raids on abandoned freighters and missions on hostile worlds.
Outside of scripted missions like these, players can simply enjoyNo Man’s Sky’s gargantuan survival sandboxtogether. Groups of explorers can build their own settlements, captain freighters, and even take over alien towns. The title’s emergent gameplay is rich with possible stories, and with an almost limitless number of planets to explore, the possibilities are truly vast.
Valheimis a big name in the survival space. This distinctive title casts players as Vikings on a quest to conquer the afterlife and prove themselves worthy of Valhalla. Even though it’s still in early access, it’s already made a big splash, and with the full release on the way, hopefully, the best is yet to come.
While players can venture out solo, the game truly shines in co-op, with Vikings assisting each other on dangerous hunts and ambitious building projects. Even though the general aesthetic is certainly more limited than games likeMinecraft, players have still usedValheim’s tools and resources to create some truly impressive structures. And the feeling of accomplishment after feeling a particularly nasty boss as a team is deeply satisfying in its own right.
Groundedis a very distinct survival game with a unique premise. Players control a group of teens who have been shrunk to the size of ants and stranded in a backyard full of insects and other threats. Players must adapt to their strange new perspective on the world and utilize their surroundings as best they can to survive andfind out how to unshrink themselves.
Playing in a group is the best way to experienceGrounded. The hard work of farming insects and securing a base is achieved much more efficiently if players share the load. It’s also much easier to explore the treacherous reaches of the backyard if players have a companion watching their backs and fending off the game’s notorious spiders.
The iconicMinecraftis the undisputed king of the survival game genre, and it’s easy to see why. The game’s procedurally generated sandboxes are functionally infinite landscapes for players to explore at their leisure, and the expansive crafting system lets them build almost anything they can dream of.
The versatility of the platform allows for even more depth and variety. While players can group up in a survival world and try to defeat some ofMinecraft’s most intimidating foes, they can also play in Creative and build something grand and impressive together.Fan-made servers and modsoffer even more twists on the game’s survival formula. With a group of creative and clever friends,Minecraftcan be whatever a player wants it to be.
