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Damien Mason's avatar
Damien Mason

Everything

It feels like a cop-out answer, but you can't boil survival games down to any one element. Exploration, resource gathering and management, base building, gear crafting, and weathering natural elements all make the genre what it is.

Sable is an exploration game, but it's far from survival, given it lacks the other elements. Astroneer has base building but sits more in the adventure camp with its lack of threats. Just about every looter shooter lets you craft gear. The point is that survival games are born from a specifically unique mixture. Remove any core ingredient, and the dish becomes something different entirely.

I think the more pertinent question is 'what keeps you playing a survival game'? The answer to that is twofold:

Exploration The world needs to be big enough to sink tens, or perhaps even over 100 hours into. That said, it needs to feel full enough to be rewarding. Vast landscapes get boring quickly if you feel as though all you're doing is hopping across essential deserts. On that point, traversal is important. It should be difficult at first, but once you're in the swing of things, you should unlock items or skills that make it easier and fun to venture out.

Base building If resources are aplenty and there's a good progression to the things you can build, you can sink endless amounts of hours into building elaborate and rewarding bases. Minecraft is still strong today because of its versatility with creativity.

Alex Sinclair's avatar
Alex SinclairMod
Damien Mason

I don't think it's a cop-out answer, I think it's a great answer. Survival games' mechanics all compliment one other. When they're all individually great, that's when you know you have a winner on your hands.

Lanah Tyra's avatar
Lanah Tyra

I don't think I've ever played a specifically survival game, but starting from playing Star Trek Online, I always loved to explore a huge world with varying landscapes and to do different missions let them be trading supplies, hunting down monsters which are threatening the locals or simply gathering supplies.

It's a perfect game to play alone and see how long you can go without relying on others, but it also has that excitement of meeting other players and support each other from the beginning, building a strong community.

I love the logistics of base building, planning what resources to get, what to expand on first, and how everything links together into a building plan where you are not stuck waiting on stuff to come in, but actually get the place kind of running on its own.

B
Bobster707

I love the sense of wonder and exploration that open-world survival crafting games provide. Getting dropped into a mysterious new landscape and having to figure things out from scratch is a thrill. I kinda like the grind of gathering resources, slowly improving your gear and skills, and making your shelter feel more like a home.

The ability to shape the world around you through building is tremendously appealing. I spend hours organizing my little villages and outposts in games like Valheim and Green Hell. It's so satisfying to make your own safe havens and bases of operations. The risk of permadeath or just losing items also makes survival that much more intense.

But what I think I like the most is how these games are TRUE sandboxes. There's no set path to follow, just do whatever you want. I can choose my own goals like exploring, searching for treasure, or crafting and making elaborate builds. I'm always eager to see what's over the next hill in Minecraft or around the next island in Raft. That sense of wonder and possibility is endless.

Alex Sinclair's avatar
Alex SinclairMod
Bobster707

Great submission Bobster! I agree with what you say about the grind too. I find it tedious after a while in MMORPGs, but it's so much more rewarding in survival sandbox games!

I don't know Green Hell. Would you recommend it?

Sturmer's avatar
Sturmer

For me, it's primarily three aspects (in order of importance) :

  1. Exploration and Discovery These games offer a vast, open world ripe for exploration, where every corner turned reveals something new and unexpected. This sense of discovery, whether it's a hidden landscape, a rare resource, a mini-boss, or a mysterious relic, keeps the game exciting and engaging. The joy of charting unknown territories and uncovering secrets of the game world is a key element that draws me in.

  2. Character and Technological Progression Starting with basic tools like a simple rock-on-a-stick and gradually advancing to complex crafting involving metallurgy and chemical reactions is immensely satisfying. This progression not only showcases character development but also gives a sense of achievement as you master the environment and its resources. The journey from basic survival to technological mastery reflects a story of growth and adaptation, making the gameplay experience deeply rewarding.

  3. Intelligent Building and Resource Utilization I'm not a big fan of building fancy castles for tea ceremonies. What truly fascinates me is the strategic use of resources to enhance efficiency and comfort. Crafting automated sorting systems in 'Minecraft' or experience farms in 'Valheim' requires not just creativity but also a smart application of game mechanics. This aspect of gameplay provides a satisfying blend of creativity, strategy, and practical problem-solving.

GameofBeardz's avatar
GameofBeardz

Being an Adult with little time.

Honestly. In a world where time is precious and your time for gaming is limited quite frequently, sometimes it is nice to play a game where there are no time constraints, no pressures, you can jump in and out at any time, make as little or as much progress as you want, and just relax! The option to do this Solo or with friends also helps a lot.

Also, sometimes real life can suck and it's nice to put yourself in a World where you are in control and you can forget about Life's worries, if even for a short time.

Alex Sinclair's avatar
Alex SinclairMod
GameofBeardz

100%

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