The best games, like Terraria, will satisfy your need to dig and explore if strange enemies constantly stress you out.
One of the best crafting and exploration games out there is Terraria. Any game where players must mine spider webs and fend off slimes to build a home attractive enough to draw in outsiders must be pretty unique, right?
You already know the drill: create weapons, fend off monsters, and draw visitors to help you on your missions.
The game’s creators, Re-Logic, released the final significant content patch for Terraria in 2020.
The appropriately named Journey’s End update marked the end of nearly a decade of continuous development. During that time, the game emerged from Minecraft’s enormous shadow and became a titan in its own right.
What should a Terraria fan do now that the game’s creators, Re-Logic, are prepared to move on to their next endeavor?
Fortunately, many amazing games share Terraria’s exploration and emergent creativity philosophy. Here, we’ve compiled a list of some of the best games like terraria.
Starbound
As a result of how similar Terraria looks, feels, and plays, Starbound is frequently referred to as “Terraria in space.” But unlike Terraria, which places you in a world-spanning adventure. Starbound restricts you to a single, randomly generated map, despite its size.
Fans of Terraria will adore Starbound’s countless worlds for their extreme variety. To guarantee a distinctive experience each time you set foot on a new planet.
The geography of each world is procedurally generated from more than a dozen types. Also, you’ll never run out of things to do in Starbound because there are so many different places to explore.
Each with its wildlife and environmental challenges. However, no planet in Starbound can compare to the sheer scale of a map in Terraria.
Furthermore, very few games compare to Terraria more closely than Starbound. Fans of Terraria should have no trouble making the switch to Starbound, thanks to the similarities.
Scrapnaut
Scrapnaut is a straightforward survival game emphasizing base construction and a steampunk aesthetic. Players journey through a future world that wants to suffocate you, but you won’t let it.
Use your cunning and ingenuity to make a home for yourself in this harsh environment. You can cultivate and harvest crops, build walls and shelters, and even install electricity and water systems for your comfort.
Furthermore, outside your walls, the land is filled with monsters. Create armor and weapons to increase your chances of survival.
Players are forced to leave the security of their home bases and take a chance on a run through the unpredictable danger of the outside world to find the valuable materials and rare weapons essential to their survival. This is one of the best games like Terraira.
Valheim
Since its release on February 2nd, Valheim has dominated the gaming industry. Breaking Terraria’s record for the number of concurrent players.
Also, the player can assume the role of a Viking warrior in this fantastic open-world survival craft game who must fight, construct, and conquer to restore order to Valheim.
Similar to Terraria, Valheim lets players gather a ton of items. Battle unusual and difficult enemies, and essentially build whatever they want, whenever they want, provided they have the right tools. It’s a game you shouldn’t miss and merits the attention it’s getting.
Don’t Starve
Players in Don’t Starve gather resources and make their tools and equipment to survive in a grim fantasy world straight out of a Tim Burton fever dream.
Even the shadows are out to drive you insane on Don’t Starve’s cold and ruthless island. Every moment spent away from the safety of your campfire is filled with genuine fear, thanks to its bestiary of monsters and creepy crawlies, which includes a race of pig men that will make your skin crawl.
Additionally, the vivid, colorful maps of Terraria stand in stark contrast to the depressing monochrome and jagged, jigsaw-like edges.
Furthermore, Don’t Starve emphasizes imaginative exploration and problem-solving that will draw you in for hours at a time, despite not resembling Terraria. This is one of the best games like terraria.
Planet Centauri
In the 2D sandbox survival-adventure game Planet Centauri. Players must construct and defend a tribe of NPCs in danger from outside invaders.
Gathering resources, creating items, and fending off enemies are all standard gameplay mechanics in any good open-world creative game. Still, the main selling point of Planet Centauri is its monster taming.
The game is set on a planet where you can capture various animals to use in battle. Ranging from chickens to dinosaurs the size of buildings. Planet Centauri currently has more than 50 types of monsters, and more are constantly being added.
Furthermore, you can modify the game, and the community has created a ton of mods that enhance the AI, add new features, and add monsters. You can even begin creating your mods if you are familiar with the LUA script.
Although Planet Centauri is still in Early Access and has some rough spots, it is supported by a dedicated development team that regularly releases updates. Look no further if you want Terraria with spellcasting, story-driven city-building, and a dash of Pokémon.
Space Engineers
For those who prefer something a little more grounded in reality, there is a voxel-based multiplayer sandbox called Space Engineers. A robust physics system that gives the world more realism powers the game’s gameplay.
You can build a base on an alien planet, plunder a planet for resources until it runs out, or build your spacecraft to fight AI-controlled or player-controlled rival factions in starfighters.
Having so much freedom can sometimes be overwhelming. What should you do when you have so much power? Space Engineers only provides a virtual universe for you to live in; it doesn’t provide any solutions or a clear point of view.
Furthermore, Space Engineers is both a simulation and a creative game. Many Terraria players will be turned off by Space Engineers’ unwavering commitment to physics realism.
Still, if you stick with it and learn the controls, the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction is unmatched. This is one of the best games like terraria.
Subnautica
Two games that transport you to another world have been discussed. You descend into the ocean deep in Subnautica.
Your spaceship crash lands on an alien planet, trapping you in an escape pod floating in the middle of the ocean as the lone survivor.
As is customary in survival-adventure games, you must investigate your surroundings. Gather supplies, and make items that will eventually allow you to get home and call for help.
Things get off to a harmless start. The environment is stunning, the wildlife is harmless, and the waters are crystal clear. However, the farther you venture from your lander.
The deeper and darker the waters become, and who knows what creatures may be waiting in the shadows for their next meal.
However, compared to many of the games on this list, Subnautica emphasizes exploration. Additionally, it’s a deep sea horror with excellent pacing that will keep your heart pounding.
Grounded
In the survival game Grounded, the player is reduced to a bug’s size and dropped into their backyard. To survive in this enormous world where ants are the size of a triceratops.
Up to four players can form a group. To survive, you must gather resources and engage in combat using a collection of improvised weapons made from twigs and leaves.
Although it’s still developing, the game’s story mode explores how and why the players ended up in their bite-sized problem (the game is in early access).
Of course, the sandbox survival mode, where the real challenge is, will be where players will spend the majority of their time.
Make sure to bring a few friends along for the ride because Grounded is a good solo experience enhanced by some excellent multiplayer. This is one of the best games like terraria.
Raft
In Raft, players construct flotsam-and-jetsam fortresses to rule the open seas. When you first start, you only have your raft to work with. But you can gather trash and shipwrecks to add to your boat.
Things quickly spiral out of control. You eventually collect enough floating trash to make some insanely complex patterns. Not only do we refer to large boats, but you can construct a floating mansion out of debris and duct tape.
What could be worse than dying of thirst in the middle of the ocean? Just remember to put together the tools you need to stay alive.
Furthermore, Raft isn’t afraid to move slowly, making the experience relaxing with the sporadic threat, like sharks or dive-bombing birds, to get your heart pounding.
Factorio
Factorio demonstrates that creating machines that do everything for you is the only activity more enjoyable than gathering things to craft into other things.
This automation/management simulation aims to create automated industrial monsters that will drain a planet’s natural resources.
You are unrestrained to mine, strip, and excavate every square inch of the surface on a planet devoid of human life without considering the unfavorable effects of extreme pollution and climate change.
Build ground-breaking extractors that can extract raw materials from the earth. Then transport them via enormous conveyor belts that span miles of wilderness, feeding them into yet another machine, and so on. You’ll develop an obsession with extreme machine efficiency after playing Factorio.
Rust
Rust is a shining illustration of what we can achieve when we put our collective efforts and limited resources to use. A quick search on YouTube can yield hundreds of genuinely astounding sheet metal and brick constructions.
Rust also provides a horrifying window into the potential depravity of people who possess anonymity. Regular torture, bullying, and humiliation of new players occur without apparent cause and serve neither the abuser nor the victim.
You can’t even fall asleep for fear of waking up the following day to find you broke all your loot and your doors.
The compelling survival challenge in Rust’s dog-eat-dog post-apocalypse is best suited for those with steely nerves (or psychopathic tendencies). Just be ready to have a little less faith in people. This is one of the best games like terraria.
Eco
You are left on a barren island by Eco, who orders you to shoot down the meteor hurtling toward Earth. The only issue is that you only have 30 days to finish it while avoiding polluting the environment.
This is an improvement over Terraria because it emphasizes learning as you go. But playing with friends is still a ton of fun. And don’t worry, if necessary, you can turn the meteor off.
Tinkertown
The building mechanics that so many Terraria players loved are the main focus of the independent adventure RPG Tinkertown.
Even though it’s still in early access, it looks like a game worth keeping an eye on for those who have played through Terraria’s update and are tired of it; additionally, it has several updates coming with brand-new threats and items!
Any Terraria fan looking for a fresh experience will find Tinkertown charmingly understated in appearance. Any fan of Terraria will find this exploration of a very Minecraft-like experience appealing. Where you can create and explore to your heart’s content.
Spelunky 2
With Spelunky 2, a game with players exploring the Moon, we’re keeping the extraterrestrial theme going!
That’s right, go looking for both treasure and missing members of your family. It is illogical, strange, and eccentric—exactly what we expect from one of the best independent Switch games!
As you overcome obstacles in this vast side-scrolling world, go for gold on your own or in groups with your online friends.
If you enjoyed the first Spelunky, you’d be delighted with the follow-up. It has a ton more detail, giving the levels a textural depth akin to Rayman.
You and your friends can play together from the same couch. Taking the mystery into your own hands and discussing plans and theories as you go, in addition to playing online. This is one of the Best Games like Terraria.
Dig-N- Rig
Dig-N-Rig is a 2D mining game set in the future that tests players’ ability to find and manage resources through innovative rig-building mechanics.
The game offers hours of entertainment and challenge as players learn how to use the tools at their disposal.
Similar to Tag’s creations, The Power of Paint and Narbacular Drop Dig-N-Rig was developed as a student project. And this is evident in the game’s simple 2D graphical style, aside from the occasional difficulty in differentiating between objects.
This does not generally take away from the game’s unique mechanics. This is one of the best games like terraria.
Oxygen Not Included
You are faced with the challenge of a space colony simulation in Oxygen Not Included across various procedurally generated worlds that each present a unique struggle for survival.
You’ll need to lead your colonists to survive and eventually thrive in a civilization that is self-sufficient and safe from external threats because food, warmth, and even oxygen are resources that are constantly under threat.
Furthermore, this space adventure, released in 2019 for Windows, Mac, and Linux, share some survival mechanics with Klei Entertainment’s other survival simulation, Don’t Starve, even though you won’t be an isolated explorer this time.
Stabreak
By utilizing platforming mechanics and encasing it in a science fiction setting with roguelike challenges, StarBreak provides a distinctive 2D MMO experience.
The result is a game with MapleStory-like elements, Metroidvania-style vibes, and all the essential MMO features like community, loot, quests, and dungeons.
You will be resurrected as a spark to exact revenge in a world where the deadly Watcher has wiped out humans, thanks to the potent AI that humans created before the extinction event.
Furthermore, the four-game shells that serve as the game classes and bring various attacks, equipment, stats, and playstyles are the cornerstone of your StarBreak adventure.
Also, your first such shell will be that of Wildfire, a ranged fighter who is unlocked at the game’s beginning and prefers to fire enemies from cover by relying on reasonable speed and potent weapon ammo. This is one of the best games like terraria.
A Valley Without Wind
Instead of simply copying previous video game experiences. A Valley Without Wind explores a different route by fusing various genres into a single action strategy.
And adventure game that you improved upon in the follow-up. In A Valley Without Wind, you must restore order while saving the world from self-destruction at the hands of an evil overlord in a post-ice age setting.
A Valley Without Wind is essentially a 2D side-scrolling game with a good amount of player freedom that is the foundation for the entire adventure.
Moreover, the ability to battle the end game boss at any time and the freedom to roam the game world are clear examples of this, though the more time you put into a single run, the greater your chance of success.
The Blockheads
A 2D sandbox experience is provided by the free iOS game The Blockheads. The game even supports multiplayer and is set in a 2D block-based game world.
Majic Jungle Software created the game. You can dig up blocks, make various tools, and explore the vast game world of The Blockheads.
In contrast to other games that excel on the iPad, Blockheads achieves excellent gameplay on the smaller iPhone with a streamlined interface and straightforward controls. This is one of the best games like Terraira.
Junk Jack
The best sandbox game for your iOS device might be Junk Jack. Players can explore a randomly generated game world in Junk Jack while they craft, construct, and hopefully survive. The independent gaming company known as Pixbits created Junk Jack.
Furthermore, players must spend significant time exploring the randomly generated world in Junk Jack to find various resources and buried treasures.
The game has a lot of biomes that give it a realistic feel and a ton of different monsters that give it a lot of variety (especially considering it is only an iOS game).
Minecraft
The ultimate sandbox adventure, Minecraft, was sold by its independent developer to Microsoft for a sizable sum after rising from modest beginnings to become one of the most popular and successful games of all time.
Not only has Minecraft been an enormous success. But it has also inspired a whole new genre of blocky sandbox games that either thoroughly copied the Minecraft formula or put their spin on the adventure.
Furthermore, since it first began to be developed in 2009 and was fully released in 2011, Minecraft has undergone more than ten years of improvements, enhancements, and development.
Some players have been playing the game intermittently for over ten years. This is one of the best games like terraria.
Magicite
Players in Magicite will have to gather materials from trees, ores, and enemies to craft increasingly better equipment to survive and advance in the game’s randomly generated dungeons.
In the end, you get a game that sits somewhere between Spelunky and Terraria, which is a fun mix. Before beginning their randomly generated adventure, players must select one of the 14 available races.
Each offers a unique set of strengths and starting gear. Everyone will have a favorite character because they are each suited to achieving various objectives and supporting various playstyles.
In addition to picking your race. You’ll also get to select a hat and be given two random traits (which can be re-rolled) that give minor stat boosts or other passive bonuses to define your play style further. This is one of the best games like terraria.
Growtopia
Growtopia is a 2D creative sandbox game for mobile devices primarily intended for multiplayer and social building (iOS and Android). Following Growtopia’s success on mobile platforms.
The game was ported to Windows/Mac, consoles (PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Switch), and handheld devices (PlayStation 3 and Switch) with essentially the same experience, though appropriately optimized for devices. However, console support and servers on those platforms were discontinued in the middle of 2020.
