10 Best Games Like Minecraft in 2023, Ranked

If you're looking to get your fix outside of Mojang's popular sandbox, these games like Minecraft are the best the genre has to offer.

In terms of survival games, few have reached the heights like Minecraft has. The game's innovative take on a simplified, 3D pixel world didn't just introduce a unique setting where people could unleash their creative sparks, it also became an instant classic.

Minecraft left an indelible mark on the world that inspired thousands of other creators to put their own spin on the open-world survival sandbox. The changes within these contenders varies greatly, but they succeed in emulating what made Minecraft such a masterpiece: putting the player's inventiveness front and center.

Here are the top 10 games like Minecraft in 2023, ranked:

Top 10 Best Games Like Minecraft

Grounded

Taking inspiration from the classic “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids!” franchise, Grounded's simplistic plot shrinks you down to size and makes you brave the literal unseen dangers of your own backyard.

Developed by the same guys that brought you Fallout: New Vegas and Pillars of Eternity, Grounded takes the formula and gives it's own spin on the genre by cleverly adding in small bits of everyday life in its crafting/combat mechanics. Players who delve into this delightful co-op survival game only have one mission: get big and go home.

Raft

Raft gives you everything you need to survive out on the open sea.

Perhaps one of the most popular iterations to the survival genre, Raft places you in a precarious situation. Without any food or drinkable water, you are left floating on a large pallet of wood at the start of the game, scavenging what you can from the wreckage to keep your hydration meter in the green. At the same time, deadly dangers ranging from sharks to devastating thunderstorms can wreck your raft, so you'll constantly be improving your base. Additionally, you'll also get to explore small islets, oil rigs and more interesting locales as you progress.

Swedish developer Redbeet Interactive rolled out Raft's endgame update last June. Aptly named “The Final Chapter”, the culmination of 5 years of development came in the form of a massive 1.0 patch, so players in search for games like Minecraft won't be short on content here.

Astroneer

Astroneer is a sandbox space adventure that offers an entire solar system where you can  terraform planets, explore alien biomes and use the power of engineering to shape your own frontier.

Few games in the futuristic space genre manage to strike a balance between the cool factor and the complex technological advancements that, more often than not, bogs down the sci-fi game experience with a bunch of unnecessary mumbo-jumbo. Luckily, Astroneer's friendly game design manages to keep the cool factor while being an enjoyable space sim for players of all ages.

Ark: Survival Evolved

Ark: Survival Evolved is among some of the oldest games on this list. That said, the game holds up due to the fact that you can ride a freaking T-rex.

Players looking for more thrills in their encounters should have a stellar time fending off large pre-historic reptiles in Ark. There's simply nothing that can quite match the adrenaline-fueled panic you get when you're trying to fight off a pack of raptors with a large rock you picked up a minute ago. But that doesn't mean that your tools stay in the stone age.

Deep Rock Galactic

Hi-tech dwarves mining alien-infested caverns in space.

Don't let Deep Rock Galactic's low-poly aesthetic put you off, because there are literal tons of fun that can be had in it's deep, rocky tunnels. This badass take on the survival genre has you fending off hordes of killer aliens with the deadliest weapons in the galaxy while collecting rare minerals in a 100% destructible cave systems. On top of that, this team-based game has procedurally-generated game environments, so no two games will ever feel the same.

Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley's colorful retro graphics and surprisingly deep story blends together to make a magical farming sim that holds a profound message in its gameplay.

That said, Stardew Valley doesn't just emulate Minecraft's farming aspects. It focuses on the slow but often rewarding process of building your own farmstead within a community filled with other like-minded people.

Subnautica

Coming into our top 5 we have Subnautica, a popular survival sandbox that combines two things extremely well: terrifying killer aliens, and our paralyzing fear of the ocean.

What sets Subnautica apart from different survival games is its clever use of atmospheric lighting and realistic sound design to make you feel like you're miles below sea level.

Subnautica is high on our list of games like Minecraft because it succeeds in amplifying that feeling of paranoia you get when you adventure solo. At the same time, players will never run out of things to build as you expand your underwater base and unlock new ways to traverse Subnautica's treacherous alien waters.

Valheim

Valheim's beautiful retro graphics and open-world design made it an instant hit when Iron Gate Studio released the early-access indie game back in 2021. Procedurally-generated worlds with built-in co-op, challenging biomes and complete mod support makes for infinite possibilities, and that's exactly what this casual Viking sim offers.

Fans were quick to point out the similarities between Valheim and Minecraft, with both games having been made by indie game studios from Sweden. The two games also feature a seemingly endless map while giving players freedom to build anything they want. So if you're looking for some of the best games like Minecraft, Valheim definitely stands near the top.

Roblox

Roblox is a gaming app that combines social media and game development. One of the biggest free-to-play games out there, Roblox gives its players free rein to create the “places of your dreams” using it's in-built Roblox Studio.

The platform allows you to create your own games and play games other people have developed. As a result, Roblox players have spent a crazy amount of time learning the game's scripting language to create impossibly unique games within the game itself. First-person shooters, catastrophe survival sims and entire MMORPGs can be played within Roblox's game app, pushing the envelope on what made Mojang's sandbox so cool in the first place.

Terraria

Terraria tops our list of games like Minecraft, a 2D game that puts exploration, building, survival, mining and combat front and center.

Terraria is that sacrifices dimensionality in exchange for a plethora of in-game content that easily makes up for its simplistic look. Developed by Re-Logic and 4 other indie studios, Terraria's action-packed gameplay offers thousands of enemy types and craftable gear that effortlessly surpasses Minecraft's vanilla selection.

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