If you are looking for the Best Games Like Subnautica you are in the right place. With more than 70,000 reviews on Steam, the majority of which are positive and put in a good light, Subnautica is easily one of the most surprising hits to be released over the past two years. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end.
After having spent more than a hundred hours playing Subnautica, you’ve either finished with your underground journey, or you want to take a break and try something similar but also different at the same time. Regardless of which of the two players you are, we’ve got exactly what you need.
Below, we rounded up some of the best games out there that are like Subnautica.
10. Stranded Deep
Apologies to anyone afraid of riding planes for fear of it crashing into a remote island, because, that’s exactly what the premise of Stranded Deep is all about.
An early access game that’s available exclusively on Steam, Stranded Deep has been in development for the better part of the past half-decade. But, don’t let that fool you — this is a full-fledged procedural open-world game that will have you on your wit’s ends as you try to survive being stuck on a deserted island.
From crafting, building, swimming, and hunting, Stranded Deep has it all.
The best part?
Every time you start again, you end up in a completely different world, making every new game you play a different kind of challenge. If you’re a huge fan of the classic movie Cast Away featuring Tom Hanks, then Stranded Deep is its video game equivalent.
9. The Forest
From the ocean and the tropics, we got to the literal forest with The Forest. As is the case with every other survival game, The Forest puts you in the shoes of a protagonist who crash lands in the middle of the forest and has to fend for himself in an environment where everything and anything is out to kill you.
For example, have you ever had a pack of natives start praying to you only for them to turn and want to kill you just a few minutes later? The Forest is weird, captivating, and interesting, which is all the more reason why you should play it.
8. Green Hell
Just as the name suggests, Green Hell puts you in the rainforest, where, just like in The Forest, everything around you either wants to eat you or kill you.
7. Raft
A much-needed breath of fresh air from the titles that we featured on our list, Raft has you focusing less on survival and more on trying to build your very own floating sanctuary.
At the start of the game, you have nothing more than your hook, a rope, as well as an ocean to serve as your playground. However, eventually, after reeling in trash after trash, you’ll be able to expand and build a bigger home in the ocean for you. Of course, a game like Raft wouldn’t be complete if it didn’t have any major setbacks.
Although we did mention that the game focuses less on the survival aspect, that doesn’t mean that nothing out in the ocean is out to get you, as you’ll also have to spend time fending off sharks that will stop at nothing to destroy your raft. For a more relaxing ocean exploration and building experience, Raft is a good choice.
6. No Man’s Sky
From the oceans to the forest, we now go to outer space, where No Man’s Sky has you exploring the entire universe in search of whatever it is that you’re searching for.
While it’s true that No Man’s Sky received a lot of flack for under-delivering upon release, the game has improved significantly since, and it’s now a lot closer to the kind of game that it was initially billed as, and thus, is much more worthy of your time.
If the promise of exploring a never-ending universe excites you, then you might want to give No Man’s Sky a try.
5. Lost in the Pacific
Just like pretty much every other survival game already out there, Lost in Pacific puts you in the shoes of a lone adventure who somehow found himself trapped and lost somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. What makes the game different and stand out though is its sheer attention to detail. Whereas other games on this list bombard you with numerous features, Lost in Pacific only has a few of them, but each one begs your attention.
Taking note of weather conditions designed to mirror those of the in-game ocean’s real-life counterpart, a latitude mechanic that changes based on your location, and the ability to build things from complex blueprints, Lost in Pacific is an excellent choice for those seeking a more realistic approach to the survival genre.
4. Astroneer
Where No Man’s Sky takes you to the known universe and beyond, Astroneer is a sandbox game whose setting is more contained. Nevertheless, the game has been a huge hit, with version 1.0 being released in February of 2019, three years after it went “early access” in 2016.
Astroneer can be likened to Minecraft in space, with a more toned-down survival aspect compared to Subnautica.
This means that you’re not just going to have your hands full scavenging for materials and valuable resources, but you’re also going to spend time doing research, building structures and vehicles alike, as well as changing the terrain to suit your needs.
This creative and experimental approach, paired with the 4-player online co-op mechanic, makes Astroneer a must-play, regardless of whether you’re a fan of Subnautica or not.
3. Osiris: New Dawn
Osiris: New Dawn gives players a glimpse of what could very well be humanity’s future when Earth’s resources are finally depleted.
As part of the team sent to examine habitable planets, your job is to colonize other planets. But, just as with every other title on this list, something goes wrong, and you find yourself stranded on a planet named “Proteus 2”.
From there, you’ll spend every waking minute trying to survive, whether it involves fending off the planet’s wildlife or trying to brave its harsh weather conditions. Along the way, you’ll also find out what happened to the first team sent before you, as well as other gripping mysteries that will surely pique your interest.
Featuring a full-fledged multiplayer mode, Osiris: New Dawn is the space-survival sim that you never thought that you wanted.
2. Rust
If Subnautica’s more solitary underwater journey has been gnawing at you already, Rust offers a more social approach to the survival genre. Just like Subnautica, all the standard elements of survival games are still there. The only difference is that the social aspect makes Rust more social, and at the same time, more challenging.
Because you can team up with other players, the same goes for others too, which means you can expect to find yourself dying often and starting from scratch way more than you’d like. If you’re up for something more challenging and intense, Rust’s brand of survival-action gameplay should be right up your alley.
1. The Long Dark
Substitute Subnautica’s underwater adventures with snow and you’ve got a pretty good idea of what The Long Dark is all about.
The game’s episodic story mode cleverly explains the world’s melancholic state, revealing the harshness of survival in a world where you are at the mercy of Mother Nature. As a player, you must manage hunger, fatigue, and thirst while attempting to cling to whatever meager supplies you can scrounge up.
The world may not have come to an end in The Long Dark, but it very well should have given how harsh it is. Make no mistake. There are no better survival games on our list, nor worse ones. Instead, you can think of each one we rounded up as alternatives to cater to a wide range of audiences, each with varying tastes.
With ten Subnautica-like titles for you to choose from, you’re bound to find the game that you’ll sink in (pun intended) as many hours in if not more.
