15. AWAY The Survival Series (Xbox One, PS4, PC, PS5)
AWAY: The Survival Series - Release Date Announcement Trailer | PS5, PS4
Okay, so it’s not the most polished game on this list, but AWAY definitely deserves to be talked about for ambition and innovation alone. You play as a baby sugar glider (basically a flying squirrel) on a journey across a forest to save your family.
If you like nature documentaries, then you are sure to appreciate what AWAY is going for here. The game is worth playing for the first 20 minutes alone as it shows off its allure and atmosphere. There’s some interesting ideas and fun set pieces that are worth checking out and this can certainly be the start of something truly special.
14. Breathedge (Xbox One, PS4, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS5)
Breathedge - Launch Trailer | PS5
You’re alone in space, like Sandra Bullock in Gravity, and the only thing you got going for you is your wits and even a few funnies. That’s right, there’s a refreshing amount of dark comedy in a game that is about a guy trying to carry his grandfather’s ashes to a galactic funeral only to discover some conspiracies along the way.
You can tell that this was a labour of love for the game developers as they took so much inspiration from retrofuturism and soviet aesthetics to the spooked out atmosphere of your lost ship. Unlike other survival games this one is packed with personality and is sure to keep you both intrigued and entertained the whole way through.
13. The Persistence (Xbox One, PS4, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS5)
The Persistence Enhanced - Update Launch Trailer | PS5
Get this if you’re not into space humour: you’re orbiting a black hole, your crew has died, you’re a clone of your dead self, and your dead crew are now zombies trying to kill you. A cool set piece for sure, The Persistence knows how to set the scene.
The dreary atmosphere of the spaceship immerses you well as you sneak around trying to jumpstart the ship's engine. There’s a great sense of progress as you begin with limited resources and rack them up so that more of your clones can survive; it’s a pretty fresh take on the survival/horror/sci-fi genre.
12. Vigor (Xbox One, PS4, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS5)
Vigor – Launch Trailer | PS5, PS4
A game that really makes you think about the scarcity of resources and picking your battles wisely. Vigor is an online survival shooter set in post-apocalyptic Norway where you are tasked with upgrading an abandoned shelter in order to survive the harsh environment.
You’re thrusted into a world where other online players scavenge for resources and you’re pretty much having to kill each other to do so. Wow, that’s not stressful at all. And be careful, if another player kills you, you lose everything you’ve collected to that point. It’s a real fight for survival when it ain’t AI against you, but players that match or even surpass your skill. Good luck.
11. Dead By Daylight (Xbox One, PS4, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS5)
Dead by Daylight - Launch Trailer | PS5
If you and your friends ever liked tag in grade school and slasher films in high school, oh boy, is this game for you guys. Dead by Daylight is a 4vs1 multiplayer, horror-survival game where four players play as victims and one as the savage killer trying to hunt them down.
Here’s another online game utilized brilliantly, this time with a take on the old slasher genre. It’s about time games brought the thrill of an old Jason movie to the gaming platform and put players in the shoes of both victim and perpetrator. This is an innovative idea that paid off pretty well and gets your heart pumping harder than movie theatres ever could.
10. No Man’s Sky (Xbox One, PS4, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS5)
No Man's Sky - Expeditions Trailer | PS5, PS4
While not always the favorite talk of the town, No Man’s Sky is still going strong so they must be doing something right. The initial innovation is not lost on players, where story is thin but having to survive an infinite, procedurally generated galaxies still has fans gripped.
Even 6 years later, No Man’s Sky still offers tons of cool rewards, upgrades and exhibitions. Maybe it’s not for everyone, but no online game has been able to provide fans with the sense of wonder and surprise you get from discovering literal new worlds. This is the closest you’ll get to the scary, survival mode Matthew McCounaughey felt in Interstellar, except it’s a bit more fun than what he had to go through. Thank God.
9. Among Us (Xbox One, PS4, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS5)
Among Us is coming to PlayStation 4 & 5!
Not all survival games need to be dire and bleak. Among Us is quite quirky and cute in its game design and an absolute blast when you start to get the hang of it. You play with other online crewmates trying to complete tasks on a spaceship while an “Imposter” tries to kill you in secret.
This game surprisingly knows how to build tension and suspense in the simple action of performing a task that takes the form of a fun minigame. Similar to Dead by Daylight the Imposter is also an online player that is forced to lie to the crew and the rest of you need to develop some serious sleuthing skills to prevent them from taking you out. Not sure if deceiving your friends should be as fun as it is, but hey, that reward of teamwork is here too.
8. Returnal (PS5)
Returnal - Ascension State of Play March 2022 Trailer | PS5
If Alien met Groundhog Day, you’ve got Returnal. You play as an astronaut who crash lands on a planet that is, of course, infested with all sorts of wild aliens ready to destroy you and now it is up to you to survive and find your way out.
This is a great blend of horror/survival with classic Action/RPG where combat is fast and fun but leaves you at the edge of your seat, making sure you get it right before being “returned” to the beginning of the game. There’s plenty of good backstory and collectibles to find as you trek through this strange world all by your lonesome. Godspeed.
7. Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Extraction (PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series, PC, PS5)
Rainbow Six Extraction: Launch Accolades Trailer | Ubisoft [NA]
Man, did the aliens really have to bring a parasite with them?! You and up to three friends have to fly out to the infected zones where an alien parasite has broken out across the world.
These zones are beautifully disgusting as you duck and weave through collapsing streets and gooey, overgrown, parasitic monsters. The game definitely knows how to challenge players who are accustomed to these outbreak type scenarios, a game that really makes you earn your title of “survivor”.
6. Tribes of Midgard (PS4, PC, PS5)
Tribes of Midgard - Giants Are Coming Trailer | PS5, PS4
Not many games combine survival with mythology, who knew they’d go together so well. You and your team are tasked with protecting the Seed of Yggdrasil from night invasions by Giants, hell-bent on destroying it.
You are a true Midgardian, having to venture beyond thy settlement to collect resources, thwart demons and upgrade thy town from the inevitable attacks by the Johtenar. Much like Dying Light, it’s best if you do your best work in the day, because nighttime is when things get real dicey, and you’ll have to put your all into taking down the minions of Hel that are relentless in their pursuit to take you down. You got this.
5. Subnautica (PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS5)
Subnautica – Announce Trailer | PS4
There’s nothing like a deep, black ocean and the prospect of losing your breath that will raise your anxiety levels to unprecedented heights. You are stranded on an alien planet, forced to dive through the planet’s ocean to establish some kind of habitable order lest you drown on an alien planet.
This is where beauty and horror commingle in one intoxicating experience. You’ll be forced to take on sea creatures, big and small, and craft resources to make sure you’re always prepared for the next fight. This is not a passive game, remember to keep your eyes and ears open at all times else you’ll end up in a place much worse than a whale’s belly.
4. A Plague Tale: Innocence (PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series, PC, Nintendo Switch, PS5)
A Plague Tale: Innocence - Now in 4K UHD | PS5
In this intimate, story driven experience, you play as a sister trying to survive and protect your younger brother from a plague in Victorian times. This game hits home as you are no warrior or master hunter, but a young girl with minimal weapons, training and a one hit kill.
You, of course, are forced to become a fighter to protect your young brother and the game fills you with enough heart that you’ll actually feel compelled to do so. If you like Victorian aesthetic, you’ll definitely feel immersed in this wrenching tale of survival and war.
3. Subnautica: Below Zero (Xbox One, PS4, Xbox Series, Nintendo Switch, PC, PS5)
Subnautica: Below Zero at State of Play | PS5, PS4
Yup, they did it again, and this time with a graphical upgrade. Now you play as a scientist who returns to the same planet from the original game in search of the research team that has gone missing.
This adventure is a lot more personal and emotional than the previous, as you are still expected to dive deep into the alien ocean and scrounge for resources to survive and build bases. The game is as beautiful as ever and there is much more at stake here as you uncover a dastardly plot that put you there to begin with. While the story is engaging, this is still a survival game where you are expected to use resources wisely. Don’t get lazy.
2. Horizon Forbidden West (PS4, PS5)
Horizon Forbidden West - Story Trailer | PS5, PS4
If this isn’t the ultimate survival story, God only knows what is. Turns out, the big, sprawling plot that was Horizon Zero Dawn was just the beginning of Aloy’s adventure. She must now venture to the Forbidden West in search for answers lest the land crumble and humanity is forever lost.
To say this game is breathtakingly gorgeous would be an understatement. Forbidden West improves on the first game in so many ways and if you thought the lore in the first game was dense, wait till you get a load of what’s in store for this new, epic chapter. Nothing like having to survive primitive tribes, Mother Nature, and the technological beasts that trample her lands. Is nothing safe anymore?
1. The Last of Us Part II (PS4, PS5)
The Last of Us Part II - Enhanced Performance Patch | PS5
The story may be controversial among the fanbase, but there’s no denying that The Last of Us Part II is one hell of an immersive and horrific experience. You play as Ellie on a vengeful hunt across the dilapidated streets of Seattle still trying to survive an incurable plague.
This game definitely keeps you on your toes as you weave through broken walls and floors where the infected are sure to be lurking. You’re never safe, and you have to make sure you’re well stocked and perfecting your aim lest you join the infected, or end up somebody's dinner. That revenge better taste sweet after this bitter road trip.
