Games like Valheim | Cooperative Sandbox Survival Games

Rust

The first title on our list shares a lot of features with Valheim. First of all, a vast, open-world setting. Second of all, the survival gameplay mechanics.

Thirdly, a multiplayer mode, in which the players can work together or against each other in order to overcome the odds given to them by the unforgiving world. All that’s missing is the Norse theme, and Facepunch Studios could sue the creators of Valheim for parroting their idea!

Luckily, Rust’s features make it unique enough to avoid a lengthy legal battle. In Facepunch Studios’ game, the player is dropped in the middle of an open-world arena, where they have to survive not only against the dangerous fauna and other players but also starvation, hypothermia, and other phenomena.

The game emphasizes crafting, which allows the player to create anything from a rudimentary torch to an expansive base. Frequent drops give the player access to more advanced tools and items, including weapons and vehicles. The game’s multiplayer-only – players can either work together as clans or fight against each other for every scrap in a true battle royale fashion.

Rust

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ARK Survival Evolved

It’s funny how most survival games have the player character wake up in an unknown place and immediately try to harvest everything within sight.

Valheim does it. Rust did it. And so does ARK: Survival Evolved, one of the most popular survival games on the market.

Its commonalities with Valheim become apparent as soon as the player launches the title – the game pushes the player to craft items, build bases, and bend nature to their will in order to not die. Instead of Nordic monsters, there are dinosaurs. Strange, apparently alien, technology is scattered around the map.

Generally, everything is really, really weird. The only thing that isn’t weird is the gameplay. Like in Rust, the player has to keep an eye on their stats – hunger, thirst, general physical condition – to survive. Building shelter to avoid sunstrokes, searching for water to quench thirst and not die from dehydration, and hunting for meat-giving wildlife – these will be usual pastimes of the players who decide to take a trip to the world of ARK.

ARK Survival Evolved

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Conan Exiles

The fans of playing as a barbarian will appreciate what Conan Exiles has to offer. The game is set in the Exiled Lands, where all sorts of bandits and warlords fight over scarce resources.

In that respect, CE is similar to Valheim. Other similarities are found in its action-adventure/survival gameplay, in which the player has to keep up with their character’s stats to survive in the Exiled Lands.

Conan Exiles offers quite a few RPG mechanics, including the character progression system and quite an advanced character creator. The players can adjust the appearance of their in-game avatar in very intimate details.

An interesting mechanic is the religion system, which will determine how certain NPCs respond to the player’s character – followers of the same religion will be inclined more positively, while others might react with violence to the player’s blasphemous ways. Other than that, the game introduces a system of thralls – followers who grant different perks to the players growing forces.

All in all, Conan Exiles is an interesting proposition for the fans of survival games with elements of RPG.

Conan Exiles

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Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey

At first glance, Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey might not have a lot to do with Valheim. You might miss the similarities even at the second, third, and fourth glances.

But the deeper you go into the game about a birth of a new species, the more you’ll realize that just like in Valheim, you are a part of a journey on a mythical scale. There’s a reason the subtitle uses the word “odyssey.”

In Panache Digital Games’ indie title, the player takes the fate of a clan of primates into their hands. The apes are initially skittish and simple-minded, concentrated only on their basic needs. But as the player explores the world of the game, the clan will grow not only in numbers but evolutional advancement.

Throughout the game, the player will be able to unlock various skills necessary to move onto the next stage of evolution – hunting, crafting, building shelter, etc. Witnessing the slow but steady growth of the clan into a brand new species is an unforgettable experience.

Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey

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The Forest

After journeying in the past for a while, you might miss the convenience of the modern age. The internet, cell phones, and fast means of transportation are a true godsend when you need them most.

Unless you are the protagonist of The Forest and your plane crashed on a plateau, your phone is dead, and some alien-looking fell kidnapped your child. Bummer. Maybe the past wasn’t so bad after all

The Forest and Valheim feature similar mechanics of exploration, crafting, and constructing shelter. As the only survivor of the plane crash, the player must use anything at their disposal to survive in a very hostile environment and locate their abducted son.

The Forest

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Assassin's Creed Valhalla

Finally, a game that not only matches Valheim in its gameplay mechanics but also setting. The newest installment of the Assassin’s Creed franchise tackles the theme of Norse mythology and Viking invasions, mixing it with the usual AC lore.

In AC Valhalla, the player will be able to do a lot of Viking stuff, such as robbing, pillaging, and murdering, as well as singing songs and participating in drinking contests!

Assassin’s Creed Valhalla doesn’t change much in comparison to previous installments of the revamped franchise. However, what it does change is significant enough that the players who had given up on the series might want to give it another shot.

Enemy levels have been removed, character progression is now less tedious, and the overall gameplay focuses more on carefully choosing equipable skills than mindless grinding. Valhalla sees the return of the settlement mechanic, in which player gets to expand their home with new facilities to make additional profits. Combined with a well-written story and beautifully designed open-world environment, all this makes for one of the best Viking games currently available.

Assassin's Creed Valhalla

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Grounded

If you ever wondered what would be the gaming equivalent of movies “Ant Bully” and “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids”, then Obsidian Entertainment’s Early-Access game is your answer.

Grounded is a survival game, which by default makes it worthy of a place on our list. However, Valheim and Grounded share more than the genre they represent, as you will soon find out.

In Grounded, the player (or layers, as the game offers a 4-player co-op mode) is shrunk to the size of an ant must survive the ordeal of exploring their backyard to find the reasons for this unexpected downsizing. While fending off various animals – bees, spiders, etc. – the player will also have to look after their hydration and starvation stats. Nothing can be more unpleasant than passing out from thirst and becoming the dinner of a very hungry caterpillar!

Grounded

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Don’t Starve Together

Don’t Starve Together is an answered prayer of the fans of Klei Entertainment’s survival game. It’s also an excellent game for the fans of Valheim, filled with exploration and survival mechanics that will satisfy the most demanding connoisseurs of the genre.

The premise of Don’t Starve Together is simple – take the mechanics of the original game and add multiplayer to it. DTS can be placed in several modes – Survival, Wilderness, and Endless. Each mode’s rules are different, giving the player a chance to find one that best suits their needs. A new feature added in DTS are ghosts, the revenants of deceased players who can haunt various items and locations. Good luck making it out of the woods alive with them roaming about!

Don’t Starve Together

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Citadel: Forged With Fire

Citadel: Forged With Fire probably takes the cake on our list of games like Valheim for the sheer scale of the world and freedom of action it gives the player.

While it has a fantasy setting, similar to Valheim, Citadel is a more complex title full of intricate mechanics that fans of sandbox titles are definitely going to love.

In Forged With Fire, the player controls a novice magician thrown into a conflict between several kingdoms, vying for control over the land. And boy, what land it is. A 36-kilometer-square-wide map is open for players’ exploration, offering stunning vistas and plenty of nook and crannies hiding treasures and items of all kinds.

Gameplay-wise, the game is similar to The Elder Scrolls Online, with the player gaining experience, leveling up and forming clans with other players. A cherry on top is the castle building mechanic through which you can build and expand the headquarters of your newly formed clan.

Citadel: Forged With Fire

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GreedFall

The final item on our list is GreedFall, the game that could not have come out at a better time. Think about it – an action-action adventure title about an army of colonists oppressing the natives of a remote island

A mercenary protagonist who can switch sides at any time, fulfilling both the white savior and traitorous colonizer

GreedFall takes the player to a tropical island, where they can put their mercenary skills to use, fighting either on the side of various colonizing nations or helping the natives protect their land. Throughout the game, the player will meet various NPCs, interactions with which will define their standing among multiple factions.

Like in Valheim, in GreedFall the player will encounter a variety of enemies and bosses, both human (on colonizer and native side) and supernatural (various beasts inhabiting the island). To fight them, the player will be able to use different weapons and skills dependent on chosen class. All these features make GreedFall a title all the fans of Valheim – a game about conquering a mysterious land – will definitely appreciate.

GreedFall

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