Games Like ARK: Survival Ascended

Stranded on the shores of a mysterious island, you must learn to survive. Use your cunning to kill or tame the primeval creatures roaming the land, and encounter other players to survive, dominate... and escape!

Why similar: Dinosaurs 30.7% ★, Survival 15.5%, Open World 11.3%, Crafting 8.1%, Building 7.4%

Why You'll Like It: The original ARK is still the closest match, with the same core loop of dinosaur taming, breeding, base-building, tribe warfare, and open-world survival progression.

Enter a world of mystery, danger, ancient dinosaurs, mythical beasts, and cubes! Work by yourself or with a tribe of others to gather materials, craft useful items, tame wild creatures, and build huge bases to survive in PixARK!

Why similar: Dinosaurs 27.6% ★, Survival 15%, Open World 11.6%, Massively Multiplayer 8.9%, Multiplayer 6.7%

Why You'll Like It: It reworks ARK’s creature-taming, crafting, exploration, and multiplayer survival into a voxel sandbox while keeping a very similar progression structure.

Fight, farm, build and work alongside mysterious creatures called "Pals" in this completely new multiplayer, open world survival and crafting game!

Why similar: Open World 23.2%, Survival 22.4%, Multiplayer 12.6%, Crafting 12%, Base Building 11%

Why You'll Like It: Its open-world survival loop of capturing, breeding, riding, and using creatures alongside multiplayer base-building feels like a more playful spin on ARK’s formula.

Conan Exiles Enhanced is an open world survival game set in the mythical lands of Hyboria, now fully upgraded to Unreal Engine 5 with stunning visuals and improved performance. SURVIVE, BUILD, and DOMINATE alone or with friends in a world brimming with adventure!

Why similar: Survival 24.1%, Open World 19.1%, Building 12.9%, Crafting 12%, Multiplayer 8.5%

Why You'll Like It: Like ARK, it is built around dangerous open-world survival, resource gathering, fortress construction, mounts, thralls, and online clan competition.

Experience a big adventure on a tiny scale! Enjoy multiplayer survival in a vast, hazardous world. Preparation is key when you're this small & at the bottom of the food chain. Craft weapons & armour, tame & ride creatures, build encampments & explore a strange new land.

Why similar: Survival 17.6%, Base Building 15.2%, Open World 13.8%, Crafting 11.8%, Building 11.3%

Why You'll Like It: This survival sandbox emphasizes crafting, base-building, taming rideable creatures, and co-op exploration in a hostile world full of oversized wildlife.

Set sail for the ultimate pirate experience! Embark on a grand adventure alongside thousands of other players in one of the largest game worlds ever built (and even claim a piece of it to call your own). Build your ship, assemble your crew, sail the high seas, and become a pirate legend!

Why similar: Survival 21.3%, Open World 18.4%, Massively Multiplayer 13.2%, Crafting 12.2%, Multiplayer 8.2%

Why You'll Like It: Made on much of the same framework as ARK, it delivers large-scale multiplayer survival, taming, building, and territorial conflict in a pirate setting.

Don the Ancient Mask. Wield the power of gods. Possess any of your tribespeople, recruit followers, and build a thriving automated civilization. Survive, expand, and forge your own legacy across a vast ancient open world — together with friends.

Why similar: Survival 18.9%, Base Building 18.1%, Open World 17.3%, Crafting 15.2%, Sandbox 10.7%

Why You'll Like It: Its tribal survival, deep building systems, recruitable followers, mounts, and long-term sandbox progression make it one of the closest modern ARK-like experiences.

You are Flameborn, last ember of hope of a dying race. Awaken, survive the terror of a corrupting fog, and reclaim the lost beauty of your kingdom. Venture into a vast world, vanquish punishing bosses, build grand halls and forge your path in this co-op survival action RPG for up to 16 players.

Why similar: Open World 18.6%, Survival 17.9%, Base Building 15.2%, Crafting 10.7%, Multiplayer 8.9%

Why You'll Like It: It offers a polished mix of survival, exploration, co-op, and elaborate base-building that scratches the same sandbox progression itch even without creature taming.

The world is a vast, beautiful and dangerous place – especially when you have been shrunk to the size of an ant. Can you thrive alongside the hordes of giant insects, fighting to survive the perils of the backyard?

Why similar: Survival 29.4%, Base Building 19.1%, Multiplayer 14.7%, Open World 13.7%, Crafting 13.4%

Why You'll Like It: Its co-op survival, building, creature-heavy exploration, and constant feeling of being prey in a wild ecosystem make it very appealing to ARK fans.

A brutal exploration and survival game for 1-10 players, set in a procedurally-generated purgatory inspired by viking culture. Battle, build, and conquer your way to a saga worthy of Odin’s patronage!

Why similar: Survival 19.8%, Open World 17%, Base Building 13.6%, Building 12.5%, Crafting 12%

Why You'll Like It: Valheim shares ARK’s satisfying blend of gathering, crafting, boss-driven progression, base construction, and multiplayer adventure across a dangerous world.

Dark and Light is a vast sandbox survival RPG set in a world dominated by powerful elemental forces. Find your way in a meticulously crafted world, featuring breathtaking landscapes, a wide variety of mythical creatures, and limitless possibility to craft, build, and unlock dozens of powerful weapons, spells, and skills.

Why similar: Survival 21.3%, Open World 21%, Massively Multiplayer 16.7%, Sandbox 11.2%, Base Building 5.8%

Why You'll Like It: It follows a very ARK-like formula of survival, building, creature taming, and multiplayer sandbox progression, just in a fantasy setting.

Nightingale is an open world survival crafting game, where you’ll adventure across the mysterious and dangerous Fae Realms. As a daring Realmwalker, you’ll defeat monstrous enemies, survive hostile environments, and build elaborate estates in a visually stunning Gaslamp Fantasy world.

Why similar: Survival 18.9%, Open World 16.6%, Base Building 14.5%, Crafting 13.1%, Building 12.6%

Why You'll Like It: Its multiplayer survival crafting, base-building, creature threats, and big emphasis on exploration and progression make it a strong fit for ARK players.

This massive online sandbox RPG features elements of magic, spellcasting, building, exploring and crafting. As a newly minted apprentice of the magic arts, you will set off to the dangerous world of Ignus. Tame mighty beasts, forge alliances, explore uncharted territories or fight for dominance!

Why similar: Open World 20.6%, Survival 16.9%, Massively Multiplayer 14.5%, Crafting 8.2%, Sandbox 8.1%

Why You'll Like It: This fantasy survival sandbox mirrors ARK’s structure with online building, crafting, open-world progression, and taming magical creatures instead of dinosaurs.

Myth of Empires is a multiplayer war sandbox game featuring a high degree of freedom and multiple civilizations. Players must survive, craft, create, and lead troops in their quest to conquer PVE or PVP territory and build their own empire. Xizhou Civilization Pack is now officially released!

Why similar: Survival 17.6%, Open World 17.3%, Building 16.4%, Base Building 16%, Sandbox 12.4%

Why You'll Like It: It combines open-world survival, extensive building, horse taming, guild play, and large-scale PvP in a persistent sandbox much like ARK’s tribal warfare side.

ICARUS is a solo or multiplayer PvE survival game. Explore a savage wilderness in the aftermath of terraforming gone wrong. Complete narrative quests as either Open World operations or Individual Missions. Explore, build, craft and hunt while seeking your fortune and prospecting for exotic matter.

Why similar: Survival 21.9%, Base Building 16.9%, Open World 14.3%, Crafting 12.8%, Multiplayer 11.3%

Why You'll Like It: ICARUS focuses on session-based survival, tech progression, building, and fighting hostile wildlife in a way that strongly appeals to players who enjoy ARK’s survival grind.

Experience fierce open world survival gameplay as you attempt to stay alive on an unforgiving island inhabited by dinosaurs! Hunt. Grow. Survive.

Why similar: Dinosaurs 51.7% ★, Survival 15.6%, Open World 12.7%, Multiplayer 7.8%, Massively Multiplayer 6.4%

Why You'll Like It: It drops the crafting and building side but is one of the strongest dinosaur survival games if the prehistoric ecosystem fantasy is what you value most in ARK.

Nomadic Survival MMO. Build wooden walking machines to travel to new lands. Create clans and fight for territory. Resources deplete fast, so take your sword and scavenge, pirate, and trade to stay alive.

Why similar: Survival 19.7%, Massively Multiplayer 16.7%, Open World 16.1%, Crafting 10%, Building 9.1%

Why You'll Like It: Its clan-based survival, mobile base-building, open-world PvP, and harsh resource competition echo ARK’s more competitive server-driven experiences.

Once Human is a Strange Worlds Survival Game set in a strange, post-apocalyptic future. Unite with friends to fight monstrous enemies, uncover secret plots, compete for resources, and build your own territory. Once, you were merely human. Now, you have the power to remake the world.

Why similar: Survival 16%, Open World 15%, Base Building 13.6%, Crafting 11.5%, Massively Multiplayer 11.3%

Why You'll Like It: Once Human blends persistent open-world survival, base-building, online co-op, and weird-creature combat in a way that lands close to ARK’s sandbox feel.

Dune: Awakening is an Open World Survival game with immersive adventure and RPG gameplay. Explore, build, craft, and unravel a cinematic Dune story alone or with friends as you rise from survival to greatness on the most legendary planet in the universe. Just remember: the sandworm always comes.

Why similar: Survival 11.9%, Base Building 11.3%, Open World 11%, Crafting 9.1%, Massively Multiplayer 8.9%

Why You'll Like It: It delivers persistent open-world survival, resource control, base-building, and multiplayer faction conflict in a hostile world that should appeal to ARK’s survival-sandbox fans.

Play as a dinosaur and become part of a player-created ecosystem! Beasts of Bermuda is a multiplayer game where players endure catastrophic storms and fearsome foes while growing to monstrous sizes. Do you have what it takes to survive in the Bermuda Triangle?

Why similar: Dinosaurs 48.6% ★, Survival 15.5%, Massively Multiplayer 10.1%, Open World 9.9%, Multiplayer 6.2%

Why You'll Like It: This multiplayer dinosaur survival game captures the tension of growing, surviving, and competing in a living prehistoric world, even though it is less builder-focused than ARK.

7 Days to Die is an open-world game that is a unique combination of first-person shooter, survival horror, tower defense, and role-playing games. Play the definitive zombie survival sandbox RPG that came first. Navezgane awaits!

Why similar: Survival 26.3%, Open World 17.1%, Base Building 15.9%, Building 11.8%, Multiplayer 11%

Why You'll Like It: While more zombie-focused, it nails the same addictive loop of scavenging, crafting, building defensible bases, and surviving in an evolving multiplayer sandbox.

The only aim in Rust is to survive. Everything wants you to die - the island’s wildlife, other inhabitants, the environment, and other survivors. Do whatever it takes to last another night.

Why similar: Survival 29.9%, Open World 16.9%, Crafting 15.6%, Multiplayer 11.3%, Building 10.6%

Why You'll Like It: Rust captures ARK’s tension of building up, defending territory, and dealing with unpredictable players in a punishing online survival world.

Welcome to SCUM, a ruthless open-world survival game where deep character customization defines the prisoner you become. Loot, craft, hunt, build, and fight to outlast a hostile island where every choice can change your fate. Stay alive. Stay dangerous. Become harder to kill.

Why similar: Survival 20.3%, Open World 18.9%, Massively Multiplayer 16.4%, Crafting 13.2%, Sandbox 9.6%

Why You'll Like It: SCUM offers a similarly brutal multiplayer survival sandbox with base-building, long-term progression, and emergent PvP stories, but with a more realistic tone.

Saurian is a survival-simulation experience about living the life of a dinosaur. Starting from the egg, you must survive to adulthood amidst the perilous Hell Creek ecosystem of 66 million years ago, meticulously reconstructed with the help of professional paleontologists.

Why similar: Dinosaurs 60.2% ★, Survival 19.9%, Open World 15%, Multiplayer 3.6%, Singleplayer 0.8%

Why You'll Like It: If your favorite part of ARK is simply inhabiting a dinosaur world, Saurian offers a more simulation-heavy prehistoric survival experience.

Get ready for a Waterworld-themed survival game with modular base building, sunken city scavenging, crafting, base defense, and invasions of NPC clans for resources and territory. Ready for the water apocalypse?

Why similar: Survival 24.4%, Base Building 18.4%, Open World 14.4%, Crafting 13.8%, Multiplayer 12.1%

Why You'll Like It: Its open-world survival, scavenging, co-op, and modular base-building give it a familiar sandbox rhythm for players who like ARK’s progression loop.

The Front is a survival open-world crafting sandbox game. You are a resistance fighter sent back in time to stop the rise of a tyrannical empire. Collect resources, craft tech, build shelters, and fight monsters to accomplish your mission.

Why similar: Survival 16.4%, Base Building 14.4%, Open World 13.6%, Crafting 12.5%, Building 11.7%

Why You'll Like It: The Front leans into open-world survival crafting, base defense, vehicles, and multiplayer progression in a way that feels very familiar to ARK players.

Build and explore in a true space sandbox survival adventure. Construct mighty capital vessels, sprawling planetary settlements, and vast space stations in your galactic journey to discover the mysteries of Empyrion!

Why similar: Survival 18.5%, Open World 16.8%, Building 14.3%, Crafting 12.4%, Sandbox 10%

Why You'll Like It: Its mix of survival, crafting, large-scale building, exploration, and multiplayer sandbox progression makes it a strong sci-fi alternative to ARK.

Raft™ throws you and your friends into an epic oceanic adventure! Alone or together, players battle to survive a perilous voyage across a vast sea! Gather debris, scavenge reefs and build your own floating home, but be wary of the man-eating sharks!

Why similar: Survival 28.3%, Multiplayer 14.8%, Open World 12.9%, Crafting 12.7%, Base Building 11.5%

Why You'll Like It: Raft shares ARK’s cooperative survival, crafting, base expansion, and exploration loop, just with a lighter focus on combat and a seafaring setting.

Build your own Jurassic World. Nurture generations of dinosaurs with the series debut of juveniles, create and manage sprawling prehistoric parks around the globe, and let your imagination roar with powerful new creative options.

Why similar: Dinosaurs 54% ★, Sandbox 10.2%, Survival 9.1%, Base Building 7.9%, Open World 6%

Plunge into the open-world survival simulation set in the extreme conditions of the uncharted Amazon jungle. Use real-life survival techniques to craft, hunt, fight, and gather resources, set a makeshift shelter, or raise a fortress. Survive alone or team up with your friends and challenge the jungle together.

Why similar: Survival 27.2%, Multiplayer 15.6%, Open World 15.4%, Crafting 12.9%, Base Building 12.2%

Why You'll Like It: Green Hell emphasizes immersive survival systems, crafting, shelter building, and hostile wildlife for players who enjoy ARK’s struggle-against-nature side.

Subsistence is a sandbox, first person, solo or co-op, PvE open-world survival game. Struggle through changing seasons to build a base, develop technology and gear-up in the hostile environment. Defend yourself from wildlife, the elements and AI hunters (who also build bases in the world).

Why similar: Survival 24.9%, Open World 16.4%, Crafting 15.7%, Base Building 12.1%, Multiplayer 11.7%

Why You'll Like It: Subsistence is a slower, harsher take on gathering, crafting, hunting, and base-building that appeals to players who mainly want ARK’s survival tension and self-sufficiency.

Place yourself at the heart of the Jurassic franchise and build your own Jurassic World. Bioengineer dinosaurs that think, feel and react intelligently to the world around them and face threats posed by espionage, breakouts and devastating tropical storms in an uncertain world where life always finds a way.

Why similar: Dinosaurs 58.5% ★, Building 17.9%, Sandbox 8.9%, Open World 5.3%, Survival 3.3%

Jurassic World Evolution 2 is the much-anticipated sequel to Frontier’s highly successful Jurassic World Evolution. This bold new era in the Jurassic World Evolution game franchise builds upon the ground-breaking and immersive 2018 management simulation.

Why similar: Dinosaurs 53% ★, Building 15%, Sandbox 10.1%, Open World 7.9%, Survival 3.5%

ARK: The Survival of the Fittest is a prototype spin-off of ARK: Survival Evolved, pitting up to 60 combatants against each other in a fast-paced, action-packed struggle for survival, where players are ultimately pushed into an epic final showdown leading their Dinosaur Armies into battle.

Why similar: Dinosaurs 39.8% ★, Survival 18.2%, Open World 10.6%, Multiplayer 7.6%, Massively Multiplayer 7.3%

Take on the role of park manager and design the ultimate zoo for nature's greatest creations.

Why similar: Dinosaurs 65.2% ★, Building 15.6%, Sandbox 12.5%, Sci-fi 3.4%, Adventure 1.9%

Shrunk again, but the world is much larger. In this open-world, single-player or co-op survival adventure, craft weapons and armor, build your base, and traverse the playground on your buggy. But something else is out there—and it hasn’t forgotten you.

Why similar: Survival 25.3%, Base Building 18%, Open World 16.2%, Crafting 12.4%, Multiplayer 11.9%

Come to the world of beasts 95 million years ago, you can experience prey, grow, die, and survive as best you can.As you grow, you will hone your speed, stamina, and aggression to become the king of the century.

Why similar: Dinosaurs 55.3% ★, Massively Multiplayer 14.6%, Survival 10.5%, Open World 8.3%, Multiplayer 6.3%

A savage online shooter, where players do battle as man or beast in class-based deathmatches and a frantic escape mode. Unleash your inner dinosaur!

Why similar: Dinosaurs 70.8% ★, Multiplayer 9%, Open World 5.9%, Survival 5.4%, PvP 3%

On RuneScape's forgotten continent of Ashenfall, dragons have awoken. Gather, build, skill and craft in this co-operative survival adventure. Only by mastering survival and uncovering ancient secrets can you hope to face the ferocious Dragon Queen.

Why similar: Open World 19.8%, Survival 19.3%, Base Building 12.2%, Crafting 12%, Multiplayer 11.2%

A new Viking age dawns with you at its helm. Forge a thriving colony from nothing in this mythic open-world survival sim. Earn the gods' favor and survive in a land ruled by ancient terrors and unforgiving seasons. Rally unique villagers, expand your settlement and defend your tribe - solo or co-op!

Why similar: Survival 19.4%, Base Building 18.4%, Open World 13.9%, Crafting 12.2%, Sandbox 11.9%

Day of Dragons is an online creature survival game set in a large, beautiful, sandbox open world with multiple biomes and distinct creatures. Rule the world as one of several dragon species, or play as an elemental.

Why similar: Survival 21.1%, Open World 17%, Massively Multiplayer 15.5%, Multiplayer 12.1%, Sandbox 11.7%

Renown is an intense medieval multiplayer survival experience set in a vast, ever-evolving world. Whether alone or rallying allies, gather resources, build powerful strongholds, and engage in brutal battles for dominance.

Why similar: Survival 14.9%, Open World 13.4%, Crafting 11.9%, Base Building 11%, Building 10.6%

In ARK Park, engage in close encounters with primal species through a series of theme park attractions. Enter by yourself or with a group of adventurous friends, and witness dinosaurs roaming in the wild with your own eyes!

Why similar: Dinosaurs 65.5% ★, Survival 12%, Open World 10.2%, Multiplayer 4.9%, Adventure 4.4%

Ashes of Creation is an old-school take on the modern MMORPG set in a living, reactive world where your choices shape civilization. In this PvX open world sandbox, players will build cities, forge empires, and lay siege to foes. Uncover the Ancients as you fight to reclaim the fallen world of Verra.

Why similar: Crafting 32%, Base Building 24.2%, Character Customization 21%, RPG 8.7%, Adventure 7.7%

Live as your favourite african animal, choose between being a carnivore, herbivore or omnivore, predator or prey. In this multiplayer ecosystem, with a realistic open world, choose to become a lion, a elephant or even a swift gazelle! But remember, the savannahs law is to survive at any cost!

Why similar: Survival 32.3%, Open World 25.8%, Multiplayer 14%, PvP 12.7%, PvE 11.5%

Struggle to survive in a harsh medieval world. Hunt wildlife, mine resources, build structures, and craft weapons and armor in order to protect yourself. You may form a guild, bring war to all opposition, and try to seize the throne and become king!

Why similar: Survival 22.4%, Open World 19.5%, Crafting 15.2%, Building 13.3%, Multiplayer 11.4%

The Cenozoic Era is a realistic animal survival game taking place during the rise of mammals, take control of a variety of animals and fight to survive among other players to reach the top of the food chain. Death, Destruction, Survival, Scavenge, Nature, Thrive, Conquer, Hunt. The Cenozoic Era

Why similar: Dinosaurs 87.5% ★, Adventure 6.7%, Action 5.8%

VEIN is a post-apocalyptic survival multiplayer sandbox game. Gather supplies to survive, explore abandoned buildings, defend your home, and rebuild society, whether alone or with friends.

Why similar: Survival 23.3%, Open World 20.8%, Base Building 17.8%, Crafting 11%, Multiplayer 10%

You are the Defier, a Spartan beginning your afterlife on the Crossroads. In this Greek myth-inspired survival craft, ascend from weak soldier to god-like anti-hero. Build impressive Greek structures, craft legendary gear, and break the seals of the Underworld with up to 3 friends.

Why similar: Survival 20.2%, Base Building 15.4%, Open World 14%, Building 10.8%, Multiplayer 9.9%

A challenging exploration and survival adventure, set in the dying world of Dragons. Only those who harness the power of Frozen Flame have the means to survive the harsh conditions of the realm and able to muster the strength to cleanse it for good.

Why similar: Survival 14.9%, Base Building 14.7%, Open World 14%, Crafting 11.1%, Building 11%

TIME TRAVEL through history to BECOME GOD 🚀 Ride dinosaurs, forge tools, sail dunes, build a colony, siege castles, automate and fly, mine underground, launch to the moon, build a dyson sphere! An insane, unforgettable and revolutionary survival crafting base building open world adventure.

Why similar: Dinosaurs 24.1% ★, Survival 16.3%, Base Building 15.4%, Open World 13.2%, Crafting 12.3%

Immerse yourself in a prehistoric ecosystem brought back from extinction. Survive and carve out your niche on islands teeming with danger and opportunity!

Why similar: Dinosaurs 42.2% ★, Survival 15%, Open World 11.2%, Sandbox 8.1%, Multiplayer 6.3%

Work together to survive the devastating Dinosaur horde in huge, endless environments.

Why similar: Dinosaurs 74.5% ★, Multiplayer 9.9%, Open World 7.4%, Action 2.8%, Sci-fi 2.1%

Create your dragon, customize it, level it. Explore the world of Draconia and unravel its story. Draconia is an MORPG where YOU play as the dragon!

Why similar: Survival 24.4%, Open World 18.3%, Multiplayer 15.3%, Base Building 11%, Character Customization 10.3%

Hunt humans, slay dinosaurs. It's chaotic prehistoric PvP, pick a side. Think fast, or you're extinct!

Why similar: Dinosaurs 62.5% ★, Multiplayer 14%, Character Customization 10.3%, PvP 9.5%, Action 2.9%

Awaken as a Vampire. Hunt for blood in nearby settlements to regain your strength and evade the scorching sun to survive. Raise your castle and thrive in an ever-changing, open world full of mystery. Gain allies online and conquer the land of the living.

Why similar: Survival 16.1%, Open World 14.9%, Base Building 13.9%, Crafting 9.8%, Massively Multiplayer 7.6%

Explore a stunning open-world filled with majestic creatures and quirky characters. Nurture the barren land into vibrant ecosystems and flex your creativity as you build a thriving civilization in balance with nature.

Why similar: Open World 17.4%, Base Building 17.2%, Crafting 14.5%, Building 13.1%, Sandbox 9.6%