25 Games Like Minecraft To Play In 2024
Finding games like Minecraft that are sure to capture your unwavering attention much like Mojang's sandbox gem can be a challenge. The 2011 masterpiece is one of the best-selling games of all time, after all, standing strong as one of the most highly played titles even more than a decade after its genre-defining release. It's even become a best-selling movie, which might have sparked your urge to play the classic sandbox once again.Of course, there are plenty of other games like Minecraft that offer similar gameplay but with vastly different experiences. Whether you personally enjoy Mojang's masterpiece more for the sandbox experience that it offers or for its fair yet challenging survival mechanics, you may have a difficult time trying to locate good games like Minecraft. You can always search for some on ever-growing game libraries like Steam via genre tags, but the sheer number you'll have to scroll through can make such a process seem daunting. We've got you covered here with 25 of our favorite games like Minecraft, from the dinosaur-ridden Ark to Vintage Story, an entry that found its roots as a mod for Mojang's sandbox sensation. Ark: Survival EvolvedDeveloper: Studio WildcardPlatform: Mobile, Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: June 2, 2015Ark: Survival Evolved and its recent remake, Ark: Survival Ascended, lean more into the crafting and survival genres than many sandbox titles like Minecraft do. Much like Mojang's own game, however, Ark strikes a fun balance between the calm of building and the thrill of exploration. You're thrust into a science fiction-esque version of the Jurassic Period and forced to build, craft, fight, and gather your way through a stunning yet largely unforgiving world made up of vibrant biomes. There are dinosaurs to tame, giant creatures to prove victorious against, technological advancements to achieve, and more. You can enjoy Ark with friends as well, or even try your hand at PvP online.Fanatical is owned by GameSpot parent company Fandom. See on Fanatical AstroneerDeveloper: System Era SoftworksPlatform: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: December 12, 2016If you thought dinosaurs were a big differentiator, how do you feel about an interstellar sandbox setting? Astroneer is a stunning open-world game that sees you exploring and reshaping distant worlds as you please. You can build alongside friends or alone, craft vehicles to help your planetary and intergalactic exploration, terraform to create anything you'd like to and gather materials, and much more. You can think of anything you see in Astroneer as clay waiting for you to remodel it to your liking with the handy in-game "deform" tool, whether it be for a base you're building or for easier travel. The sheer amount of creative possibilities makes Astroneer feel like a cozy space Minecraft of sorts. See on Steam Cube WorldDeveloper: PicromaPlatform: PCRelease Date: July 2, 2013Cube World is a voxel-based action RPG at its core, but, much like Minecraft, it focuses heavily on features typical of sandbox games including elements like crafting, exploration, taming, and more. If you favor Mojang's classic for such activities as well as its adorable blocky art style, Cube World may just be worth a look. It's ideal for fans of combat and magic-aligned Minecraft mods, too, with adventurous questing and classes such as mage, ranger, rogue, and warrior to choose from. The gameplay itself is non-linear, meaning that you can create, fight, forage, or search for magic artifacts as you please at your own pace. If you're looking to take the colorful procedurally generated world on with your friends in co-op, you can also opt to play online. See on Steam DinkumDeveloper: James BendonPlatform: PCRelease Date: July 14, 2022At first glance, you may not think of Dinkum as a good game like Minecraft. However, it has a lot more in common with Mojang's own than one might initially presume. While Stardew Valley-like elements such as farming and Animal Crossing-esque features like donating to a museum are indeed present, Dinkum is largely a sandbox experience in which you can build, craft, engage in combat, gather, mine, and traverse as you please. You're able to terraform the Australia-inspired world however you'd like, and you may just find that its charming blocky appearance is also reminiscent of Minecraft's. This is yet another entry that you can enjoy either alone or alongside friends, and we'd recommend it either way if you're searching for some cozy sandbox fun. See on Steam Don't StarveDeveloper: Klei EntertainmentPlatform: Mobile, Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: April 23, 2013Don't Starve blends its creepily cute art style with an unforgivingly cruel world and intriguing cast of characters to create a truly monumental experience. Much like in Minecraft, you can craft, explore, gather, and mine, but you'll have to focus far more on survival than you do in Mojang's sandbox game. With magic and science galore to aid you, you'll advance and take on everything from the dark (if you thought Minecraft's nights were punishing, think again) to hungry, monstrous creatures as you build your way through the randomly generated world you get in Don't Starve. If you'd prefer to explore the storybook-looking ins and outs of this game with friends, you can opt to play the multiplayer spin-off, Don't Starve Together. See on Fanatical Dragon Quest Builders 2Developer: Square EnixPlatform: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: December 20, 2018Players oftentimes describe Dragon Quest Builders 2 and its predecessor as Minecraft-like games with RPG features, and they're not wrong. Set in a fantasy land facing an evil threat, the game features a blocky art style reminiscent of Minecraft's iconic own and lets you battle, build, craft, farm, gather, and explore. You can play through the single-player campaign for a fun blend of sandbox elements and RPG features or opt to play through the dedicated online sandbox mode with up to three friends if you'd prefer to focus entirely on building instead. Dragon Quest Builders feels like a mashup of Dragon Quest's mainline series of games and Minecraft, and we'd recommend it to any fan of either for the creative outlet it provides as well as its quirky chibi-looking characters and compelling gameplay. See on Steam EcoDeveloper: Strange Loop GamesPlatform: PCRelease Date: February 6, 2018Eco is a sandbox game with building, crafting, harvesting, mining, and all of the features we love Minecraft for with an added difficulty thanks to its focus on real-world issues such as climate change and the destruction of ecosystems. In this unique entry, you'll need to advance and build up a society of people while also maintaining the natural world around you, taking care to not destroy it as you work to progress civilization. This is no easy feat when you consider the amount of terrain changes that building actually entails. If you do properly analyze the impact you have on the world and construct with care, you can create a bustling civilization in harmony with nature from the ground up. See on Steam Lego WorldsDeveloper: Traveller's TalesPlatform: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: June 1, 2015Minecraft, but make it Lego. That's sort of what Lego Worlds feels like as you play, allowing you to explore seamless landscapes and create anything you'd like using colorful Lego bricks. It's a childhood dream come true, a virtual Minecraft-like situation in which you have Lego bricks of all kinds at your disposal to build with. There's more to the game than just building, too, as you can use landscaping tools to terraform as you please and utilize everything from gorillas to helicopters to traverse the vibrant world. You'll also encounter all sorts of silly characters and creatures as well as shiny treasures to unearth. If you're a Lego fan or simply a sandbox stan, Lego Worlds is worth a look. See on Fanatical OutpathDeveloper: David Moralejo SanchezPlatform: PCRelease Date: October 16, 2023Clicker and idle games meet Minecraft in Outpath, a relaxing base-building experience that sees you crafting, creating, expanding, exploring, gathering, and more without any time limits or pressure to play at anything other than your own pace. The 3D art is vibrant and the music reacts to your actions, bringing the atmosphere to life while you build. You can choose to automate everything and play either actively or idly, engaging in chill activities when you do click, such as fishing and even platformer-esque parkour. Outpath is the perfect go-to game to de-stress and unwind with after a long day, packing many of our favorite Minecraft features without any of the anxiety that may usually accompany them. See on Fanatical PixArkDeveloper: Snail GamesPlatform: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: March 27, 2018While we've already covered Ark, you may be searching for a game that not only plays like Minecraft does, but one that also matches its cozy blocky style more closely. That's where PixArk comes in, a different version of Ark with all of the crafting and dinosaurs you could want but also a much more colorful, voxel-based aesthetic. You can still play either alone or with friends online and build, explore, farm, gather, and tame as you please. You'll advance much like you do in Ark, unlocking new technology to help you on your way while you traverse the game's procedurally generated Jurassic world and befriend or hunt down scaly creatures of all shapes and sizes. See on Steam RaftDeveloper: Redbeet InteractivePlatform: Mobile, PCRelease Date: May 23, 2018If you like Minecraft but want to change things up a bit and stray away from the mostly on-land setting, you may enjoy Raft. This sandbox game takes place almost entirely at sea, seeing you build up and customize a floating raft until it's a full-blown base island on water. You can play alone or with friends, but you may prefer to do the latter once you encounter the man-eating sharks that sporadically attack your raft. While you'll spend a good portion of time on the open water, you'll also explore land as you discover it and learn some of the game's backstory in between your building, crafting, farming, and scavenging. Raft is a must-have for sandbox and survival game stans alike. See on Steam RobloxDeveloper: Roblox CorporationPlatform: Mobile, Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: September 1, 2006Roblox is absolutely massive right now. With all of the possibilities it offers, it's no wonder. While Roblox itself is a free online game platform and creation system, you'll find countless crafting and sandbox experiences to try out within it. Whether you're looking to play a game exactly like Minecraft or one with heavier role-playing elements, you'll find something fit for your tastes in no time while exploring the available Roblox creations. Much like Minecraft, Roblox games also feature a unique blocky art style and an outlet for player creativity. If you end up tiring of a certain Roblox game or want to hop genres entirely, you can always do so. Download Roblox Sons of the ForestDeveloper: Endnight GamesPlatform: PCRelease Date: February 23, 2023Sons of the Forest stands strong as a solid survival game alongside its beloved predecessor The Forest. While it ticks all of the sandbox boxes you'd want it to, including building, crafting, exploring, and gathering, it also adds an element you may not usually expect from the genre: horror. While you're improving your base and trying your best to get by on a beautiful, seemingly untouched island after suffering a helicopter crash, you'll also have to face off against humanoid cannibals of all gruesome shapes and sizes. There's also a story to follow as you traverse caves and loot the map, which you can enjoy alone or alongside your friends in multiplayer. See on Steam StarboundDeveloper: ChucklefishPlatform: PCRelease Date: July 22, 2016Starbound stands out as it's not a 3D experience but rather a charming pixel-style 2D game that follows you as you try to survive in space aboard your damaged ship. You'll have to explore planets to try and build, craft, fight, and gather your way successfully through the stars, all while taking on quests and eventually, saving the universe itself. There are all sorts of customization options including seven playable races to choose from and discoveries waiting amid the procedurally generated universe galore, such as menacing bosses, colorful characters, dangerous dungeons, and more. If you'd prefer to play with some pals instead of traversing Starbound's interstellar challenges alone, you can do so. See on Steam SubnauticaDeveloper: Unknown Worlds EntertainmentPlatform: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: December 16, 2014Much like Raft, Subnautica is all about water. However, you'll be living under the sea in this game instead of above it, making use of what you find scattered about an alien ocean floor to build and craft your way to survival. You can make functional submarines, take on massive aquatic creatures, traverse underwater volcanoes, and much more in Subnautica, a sandbox experience that blends light horror with sci-fi. If you're hoping to build a giant base upon the sea floor with various nooks and crannies to decorate or are instead simply looking to make a vehicle and set out to learn more about your backstory, you can. Subnautica, while certainly story-driven when compared to other games of a similar genre, is a solid choice for all kinds of players. See on Fanatical TerrariaDeveloper: Re-LogicPlatform: Mobile, Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: May 16, 2011Terraria is Starbound's non-interstellar soul sister and spiritual predecessor, featuring a pixel 2D art style and the ability to build to your heart's content. You can customize your randomly generated world and its various biomes as you please, building massive homes for the various NPCs aboveground or mining your way through mushroom-ridden caverns below. There are Lovecraftian bosses to overcome and in-game events to prove victorious through as well, adding a more challenging flair to the sandbox-survival experience Terraria offers. The game is still receiving content updates over a decade after its 2011 release with a big one just on the horizon, meaning you'll likely never run out of things to do. We'd dare to say that Terraria may end up taking Minecraft's spot in your heart over once you've given it a go. See on Steam The Planet CrafterDeveloper: Miju GamesPlatform: PCRelease Date: March 24, 2022The Planet Crafter is another solid option for players looking to experience space survival and all of its intergalactic challenges. You can play this game with up to nine other friends, altering the ecosystem of an inhospitable planet to make it more habitable as you build, craft, gather, and explore. The alien land you find yourself on features various unique biomes, with some proving more unforgiving than others. You'll encounter everything from cute creatures to gnarly insects as you try to advance and build up a brand-new biosphere, terraforming the environment as you see fit for your tastes. There's definitely plenty of sandbox, sci-fi, and survival fun to be had in The Planet Crafter for Minecraft fans and newcomers to such genres alike. See on Steam ValheimDeveloper: Iron Gate StudioPlatform: PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: February 2, 2021While it may seem like a far cry from Minecraft, Valheim features many of the same core mechanics such as building, crafting, exploring, and gathering, albeit with Viking mythology and brutal challenges to face aplenty. If you want to set off on your own saga alone or with friends in multiplayer and tackle formidable foes while building impressive longhouses as you please in between battles, Valheim may just be the perfect game for you. The premise is certainly different and the gameplay will keep you hooked, with various distinct biomes to explore and seemingly endless opportunities for creative building. The game is still in early access, which means that even more content is underway as updates roll out and Valheim nears its full release. See on Steam Vintage StoryDeveloper: Anego StudiosPlatform: PCRelease Date: September 27, 2016Vintage Story stands out amid our other entries here as it's a game that actually started as a Minecraft mod. Due to this fact, it aesthetically appears much like Mojang's own game does, featuring the iconic blocky art style and handy tool hotbar. However, Vintage Story is much more difficult, with Lovecraftian challenges and unforgiving wilderness to overcome at all corners. You'll need to build, craft, explore, and gather just as you do in Minecraft, but you'll progress through various ages from the Stone Age onward as you advance. Thanks to its procedural technology, you can expect to traverse a vast open world with diverse climate conditions, geological features, and landscapes as well as all sorts of creates from the cute to the downright terrifying. If you want something truly akin to Minecraft, you should check this mod-turned-game out. See at Anego Studios EnshroudedDeveloper: Keen GamesPlatform: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: January 24, 2024Enshrouded has become an extremely popular survival game recently that features many of the qualities Minecraft fans look for in other games. There's a large emphasis on base building that goes hand in hand with the exploration of a large map with several different environments. In order to craft more structures, weapons, gear, and other items, you need to unlock new recipes that only come from finding additional resources out in the world. When you're not exploring, there's an in-depth story in Enshrouded that features plenty of characters, missions, and locations to find.While Enshrouded doesn't have a procedurally-generated world, its map is large enough that you can spend dozens of hours exploring it without revisiting the same place twice. The bases in Enshrouded can be quite impressive in size, and there's no shortage of structures, stations, and gear you can craft as long as you have the right recipes and resources. Enshrouded is also receiving major updates in 2025, such as the Thralls of Midnight update in May, which adds even more content to the game. See on Steam 7 Days to DieDeveloper: Fun PimpsPlatform: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|SRelease Date: December 13, 20137 Days to Die is a game that can't really be classified into one genre. It's a first-person "shooter" that mixes in survival and horror elements with RPG and strategy gameplay to make for a completely replayable experience. The game takes place across an open world map, and your job is simple: survive against the zombie apocalypse. To do that, you'll have to explore the map, craft new weapons and gear, unlock a fleet of vehicles, build massive forts to fend off the undead, and unlock skills to improve your character. The premise of 7 Days to Die can sound a little generic, but the depth of the game is really what makes it stand out among other survival games. You have access to thousands of items, over 100 skills, and a huge world that changes all of the time with updates.7 Days to Die has been going strong for over a decade, and it has evolved to become one of the best survival games on the market. Not only do you have a sandbox to fully explore and become engrossed in, but there's a story playing out in the background that allows you to meet characters and go on quests to improve your character. You can also opt to play the randomly generated version of 7 Days to Die instead of the base campaign mode. This alternate version features over 700 unique locations you can find across a world that evolves as you explore it. See on Steam Stardew ValleyDeveloper: Eric BaronePlatform: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, iOS, AndroidRelease Date: February 26, 2016Stardew Valley shares many similarities with Minecraft. Like the original version of Minecraft, Stardew Valley was initially created by a single developer. It features a large map with some randomly generated areas and has an emphasis on plants, livestock, and base-building. At the start of Stardew Valley, you inherit a small farm from your deceased relative, and it's your task to get the farm going again. You need to build out everything from the crops to the animals to your main house. To get all the materials you need, you can head out and explore a map full of surprises around every corner.While you can spend time in mines, caves, and other areas, some of which are randomly generated beyond a certain point, you'll spend a large chunk of your time in Stardew Valley's towns. The towns are full of NPCs that you can chat with and even pick up on some gossip occurring around the area. Some NPCs are also romanceable in Stardew Valley, which is one of the most cherished parts about the game. You can spend hours trying to romance certain characters and then even get married to the character you spend the most time with, adding an entire other layer to the game. See on Steam SatisfactoryDeveloper: Coffee Stain StudiosPlatform: PCRelease Date: March 19, 2019If you're looking for a slight switch-up on the base-building aspects of Minecraft, then you might want to check out Satisfactory. While the same basic gameplay loop of building up structures is present, Satisfactory adds another layer to the onion. Instead of building a base, you're instead building factories on an alien planet. The factories can be set up independently or to work together, but they all produce different items and materials that you can use to aid your exploration of the planet and establish new kinds of factories.The factories run on a conveyor belt system that can make it both complicated and rewarding to set everything up to run correctly. You can also make your factories more than one level, establish them over vast distances, and set them up in unique locations across the planet that might offer additional benefits. Satisfactory is a fantastic mix of the base building and exploration elements of Minecraft that still manages to offer a fresh experience. See on Steam Lego FortniteDeveloper: Epic GamesPlatform: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, AndroidRelease Date: December 7, 2023Fortnite has evolved tremendously since it blew up as a battle royale game in 2017. Over the years, Epic Games has designed and released several high-profile game modes to give players new experiences aside from the basic battle royale and creative modes. Arguably, the best of these modes is Lego Fortnite, which is a sandbox survival game that uses official Lego models. You can then use these Lego bricks and Fortnite's innovative building system to create huge structures and other contraptions across an open world full of varied environments.To build more and survive the elements of whatever environment you're in, you can also tame animals, enlist the help of NPC villagers, and find resources throughout the world to craft new items. There's also a huge boss battle that you can take on, and other enemies scattered all over the map. While the building aspect of Lego Fortnite is certainly at the forefront of the game, all the other content makes it a great experience regardless if you're a solo player or playing with friends. See on Epic Games No Man's SkyDeveloper: Hello GamesPlatform: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo SwitchRelease Date: August 9, 2016No Man's Sky has gone beyond its full-scale redemption arc in 2025, and now it's just one of the best open world survival games you can play. The ties to Minecraft are clear, as both games feature procedurally-generated worlds, building mechanics, and survival elements. However, No Man's Sky takes Minecraft's generated worlds to the next level, allowing you to find, explore, and conquer literally millions of planets across a near-infinite galaxy. On these planets, you can construct a base, collect resources, find unique creatures, discover lore left behind by the previous inhabitants, and even explore underwater caverns if the planet has water. You can now even discover and rebuild fossils thanks to one of the most recent No Man's Sky updates.When you're not exploring a planet, you can build and customize your own spaceship, visit hub stations chock-full of other real players and NPCs that offer quests and ways to make currency. No Man's Sky has truly become the ultimate sandbox, and if you're tired of always looking up at the stars in Minecraft, it's time you gave this one a chance. See on Fanatical
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