Building games, unlike survival simulations, have been around for a long time – at least a few decades. True, they rarely ventured outside certain genres such as city-planning simulations in the past. Minecraft, on the other hand, shown that building bases, residences, and other objects is perfectly acceptable even when construction is not the primary goal, as in the same “survival games.” We recommend that you familiarize yourself with the top five games in which buildings play a major part, in our opinion.
Terraria
Terraria was not just ahead of the release of Minecraft, but it was also ahead of the release of the original. While Markus Persson was putting the finishing touches on the beta version of his invention, the small studio Re-Logic was impressed by his work and developed a two-dimensional adaption of the same concept in a matter of months. Terraria, on the other hand, throws the player into a massive, perilous environment with no clear guidance. Attempts to investigate the surroundings generally end in death at first because there are numerous opponents everywhere, and you can’t fight them off with crude weaponry. As a result, you must first construct a refuge for yourself, and then delve deep into the earth’s bowels in search of rich resources, eventually constructing a network of tunnels and linking more and more caverns to your underground kingdom.
Terraria’s emphasis on action set it apart from its predecessor: more adversaries and weaponry, more sensible pumping, full-fledged boss encounters… It is to play Terraria, which is both more challenging and exciting than Minecraft. And the fixes that were issued over the course of the next 10 years made the game world increasingly richer and more distinct, allowing Terraria to stand the test of time. For those who like 2D, it’s still a good Minecraft option. You are only restricted by your imagination when it comes to construction: you can build a mediaeval fortress, a massive statue, or an inventive device. The most enjoyable aspect of studying architecture is, of course, doing so with friends.
Space Engineers
Engineers in space have the good fortune of being in the right location at the right time. In 2013, the market for “survivors,” particularly those dedicated to space exploration, was not yet oversaturated. Despite the fact that the game’s Early Access version only included a creative mode focused solely on constructing, it was he who made Space Engineers popular. The “enjoy yourself” rule was based on the opportunities that low gravity and the infinite nothingness of space provided. Exploration of undiscovered worlds, development of a reliable physical model for various spacecraft (from small fighters to “Death Stars”), construction of space stations and ports in orbit, and planetary bases in hollow asteroids. At the very least, be involved in the creation process, and plan large-scale fights on your own ships.
And when the game’s survival mode was added, along with the support of mods, Space Engineers went from an intriguing but underdeveloped concept to a full-fledged game for people who enjoy mining asteroids and moving solely via hype jumping. If things were simple with her before, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to tell whether gamers prefer survival or creative mode today.
ARK: Survival Evolved
Even before it left Early Access, Studio Wildcard’s inaugural project had sold over 5.5 million copies. The reason for such strong sales was not simply the genre’s rapid rise in popularity, but also the odd setting: the game required players to survive on a futuristic island straight out of Jurassic Park. From swift raptors and hardy Triceratops to tyrannosaurs, enormous squids, and more, the world of ARK: Survival Evolved is home to a diverse range of prehistoric creatures. And if you have to use a wooden spear to collect your own food at the start of the adventure, as the game progresses, different clans of survivors attack each other’s bases atop dinosaurs – including flying ones. And that’s with rifles drawn.
The success of ARK led to the development of not only console copies of the game, but also multiple spin-offs and a full-fledged sequel with a backlog of a story campaign. By the way, the primary character in the ARK sequel will be Vin Diesel, who, according to his own admission, put in over 1000 hours in the original film. There were some jokes about the brotherhood and the tribe set against the backdrop of the character Dominic Toretto from “The Fast and the Furious,” firmly rooted in the actor, but who knows – for the first time, the authors succeeded. What if the sequel isn’t as good as the first?
Satisfactory
Factorio from the world of “survivors” is Satisfactory by Coffee Stain Studios (the creators of the legendary Goat Simulator). If the damaged astronaut had to master the planet’s natural resources in order to create a rocket and escape an alien world in that game, here the player, as a corporation employee, must establish a full planetary factory. Satisfactory is based on the creation of complicated production networks, hence there are almost no survival components in the game. Why labor through the sweat of your brow when you can entirely automate resource extraction, raw material processing, and delivery to their final destination? Components are delivered to dozens of assemblers by kilometers of conveyors, and the finished product is delivered to the corporation’s needs via a space elevator. Pumps deliver water and oil to generators, while power lines supply electricity to the factory.
In a nutshell, the challenge proves to be both intricate and exciting – especially if you were previously a fan of “production” mods for Minecraft but were disappointed by their lack of depth and flexibility. Even if Satisfactory environment isn’t procedural, you can spend dozens of hours exploring it without getting bored. Also included is a sociological commentary on how the corporate sector degrades the environment for its own avarice.
Valheim
Valheim used the setting of Scandinavian mythology to great effect. Its development began in 2018 with the release of God of War, which persuaded the writers of the impending indie smash that Vikings were in style. Valheim was released on Early Access in January 2021, shortly after Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, an open-world action game lacking the emergence found in survival and building games. Valheim effectively met this public need, blending aspects from several of its predecessors in a cohesive manner.
Valheim and her story of a fallen Viking who was condemned to a prison realm gave a amount of content and a ton of mechanics as part of Early Access, unlike many of its indie rivals. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was used as inspiration. Cooking meals and experimenting with character parameters pique interest in research: what resources are buried in another uncharted area, and what will happen if you combine the first, second, third, and tenth in a cauldron? Then it turns out that the new site is covered with permafrost, and without a warm clothing (or a special potion), death will rapidly overwhelm the hero. How many “survivors” force the player to ventilate the room in order for his ward not to die of carbon monoxide poisoning? How about the actual physics of trees, which allows a crookedly sawn trunk to nab a lumberjack? In Valheim, you can construct at least White run and the Eiffel Tower, but only in accordance with safety regulations; otherwise, workplace accidents will occur. However, as indicated by the tremendous enthusiasm on Steam, it was the unpredictable events coming from realistic physics that were recalled by the people.