The Best Multiplayer Survival Games

Best multiplayer survival games at a glance

How these multiplayer survival games were selected

The ranking considers:

• Whether multiplayer improves the core survival loop
• Useful division of labor between group members
• Exploration, crafting, building and resource management
• PvE, PvP or mixed-server options
• Long-term progression and reasons to maintain a shared world
• Variety across harsh, relaxed, realistic and fantasy survival
• Solo support where listed
• PC memory and storage requirements

Enshrouded, Grounded 2 and Project Zomboid are marked as Early Access. Their content, balance and system requirements can continue changing.

1. Valheim

Best overall multiplayer survival game

Valheim places one to ten players inside a procedurally generated afterlife inspired by Viking culture.

The group gathers materials, builds shelters, explores new biomes and prepares for increasingly dangerous bosses.

Progression gives each expedition a purpose. Defeating a boss unlocks tools or opportunities needed for harsher regions.

Building supports practical camps, defended settlements and elaborate longhouses. Sailing expands the world and turns distant journeys into group projects.

Food provides different combinations of health and stamina, allowing players to prepare for building, exploration or combat.

Valheim supports single-player and online co-op with full controller support. Minimum requirements include 8 GB RAM and 1 GB of storage.

Choose it for a balanced cooperative campaign where construction, exploration and combat all remain important.

2. Project Zomboid

Best multiplayer zombie survival simulation

Project Zomboid treats survival as a collection of small decisions that gradually determine how a character dies.

Players scavenge, build, cook, farm, fish and manage injuries while avoiding large groups of zombies.

Co-op naturally creates roles. One person can secure vehicles, another can maintain food production and another can reinforce a shared safehouse.

Noise, exhaustion and poor planning can turn an ordinary supply trip into a group emergency.

The sandbox is highly configurable, letting a server change difficulty and world behavior.

The game supports single-player, online co-op, online PvP and split-screen co-op. It remains in Early Access. Minimum requirements include 8 GB RAM and 10 GB of storage.

Choose it for detailed systems, persistent consequences and a slower zombie survival campaign.

3. Terraria

Best 2D multiplayer survival game

Terraria combines digging, crafting, exploration and boss progression inside a large two-dimensional world.

A multiplayer group can divide mining, building, equipment crafting and biome exploration.

Boss victories unlock materials, events and stronger equipment, giving a shared world clear stages of progression.

Different weapons and armor support melee, ranged, magic and summoning roles.

Construction can remain functional or grow into elaborate settlements for non-player characters.

Modes include single-player, online co-op and online PvP with full controller support.

Choose Terraria for deep crafting and combat progression in a compact 2D format.

4. 7 Days to Die

Best multiplayer horde-defense survival game

7 Days to Die combines first-person combat, crafting, building and recurring zombie pressure.

Players loot towns, improve skills and construct defenses before major attacks test the settlement.

Destructible environments mean walls and doors are temporary solutions rather than permanent safety.

Co-op supports useful specialization across scavenging, crafting, combat and construction.

World settings allow groups to adjust the intensity and timing of major threats.

The game supports single-player, LAN co-op, online co-op and online PvP with full controller support. Minimum requirements include 8 GB RAM and 15 GB of storage.

Choose it for a survival sandbox where base design is repeatedly tested by large zombie attacks.

5. Don’t Starve Together

Best demanding co-op survival game

Don’t Starve Together places players in a hand-drawn wilderness governed by hunger, seasons, darkness and unusual creatures.

Characters have different strengths and weaknesses, encouraging a group to build complementary roles.

Preparation matters because seasonal changes can introduce entirely new survival problems.

Food, sanity, temperature and equipment create overlapping pressures rather than one simple health meter.

A failed expedition can deprive the camp of resources needed for the next season.

The game supports single-player, LAN co-op, online co-op and PvP with full controller support. Minimum requirements include 1 GB RAM and 3 GB of storage.

Choose it for a difficult, system-heavy co-op experience with a distinctive visual identity.

6. Enshrouded

Best fantasy multiplayer survival RPG

Enshrouded combines survival crafting with action-RPG combat, character builds and large-scale construction.

Players explore a ruined fantasy world affected by a dangerous corrupting fog.

Skill choices support different combat roles, allowing a larger group to mix melee, ranged and magical approaches.

Voxel-based building supports detailed homes, fortified settlements and large communal projects.

Bosses and dangerous regions give the group objectives beyond resource gathering.

Enshrouded supports single-player and online co-op for up to 16 players with full controller support. It is marked as Early Access. Minimum requirements include 16 GB RAM and 60 GB of storage.

Choose it for fantasy combat, ambitious building and a larger cooperative server.

7. V Rising

Best vampire multiplayer survival game

V Rising begins with a weakened vampire rebuilding power in a hostile open world.

Players gather resources, construct castles and hunt powerful targets to unlock new abilities.

Action combat uses weapons, spells, movement and boss patterns rather than automatic attacks.

Blood types can provide different benefits, encouraging preparation before difficult encounters.

Servers can emphasize cooperative PvE, competitive PvP or a mixture of both.

The game supports single-player, LAN co-op, online co-op and online PvP. Minimum requirements include 12 GB RAM and 19 GB of storage.

Choose it for responsive action combat and a gothic survival fantasy built around castle progression.

8. The Forest

Best multiplayer survival-horror campaign

The Forest begins after a crash leaves survivors inside a dangerous wilderness.

Players gather food, craft equipment and build defenses while searching for answers underground.

Hostile mutants create uncertainty around the group’s base and exploration routes.

Caves turn resource preparation into tense expeditions where light, equipment and communication matter.

Co-op allows a group to divide construction and exploration while maintaining one continuing world.

The game supports single-player, LAN co-op and online co-op. Minimum requirements include 4 GB RAM and 5 GB of storage.

Choose it for a survival campaign where horror and discovery remain as important as building.

9. Green Hell

Best jungle multiplayer survival simulation

Green Hell places the group in an Amazon rainforest where injuries, nutrition and environmental knowledge determine survival.

Players inspect and treat wounds rather than relying on one abstract damage system.

Food provides different nutritional values, making diet part of long-term preparation.

Shelter, tools and fire require materials gathered from a dense and potentially dangerous environment.

Co-op lets participants divide medical treatment, gathering and construction.

The game supports single-player and online co-op. Minimum requirements include 4 GB RAM and 8 GB of storage.

Choose it for detailed wilderness survival and a stronger simulation focus than most building sandboxes.

10. ARK: Survival Evolved

Best dinosaur multiplayer survival game

ARK: Survival Evolved strands players in a world filled with prehistoric creatures and advanced technology.

Survival begins with basic gathering and crafting, then expands into large bases, equipment tiers and creature taming.

Tamed creatures can support transport, harvesting, combat and exploration.

A tribe allows players to share infrastructure and divide long production tasks.

Different server rules can make the experience cooperative or highly competitive.

The game supports single-player, co-op and multiplayer with full controller support. Minimum requirements include 8 GB RAM and 60 GB of storage.

Choose it for dinosaur taming, large-scale progression and long-running tribe play.

11. DayZ

Best high-tension online survival game

DayZ creates tension through scarcity, infection and unpredictable encounters with other players.

Food, medicine, ammunition and suitable clothing can determine whether a journey continues.

Other survivors may cooperate, trade, threaten or betray, making communication part of the risk.

Death can erase substantial progress, so carrying valuable equipment changes how players approach each encounter.

A trusted group improves security but also needs more supplies.

The game supports online co-op and online PvP. Minimum requirements include 8 GB RAM and 25 GB of storage.

Choose DayZ for an unscripted survival experience where human behavior remains the greatest variable.

12. ASTRONEER

Best relaxed multiplayer survival game

ASTRONEER emphasizes exploration, terraforming and automation across colorful planets.

The terrain tool can dig tunnels, create ramps and reshape a location for bases or transport.

Oxygen and power provide survival pressure without turning every outing into combat.

Co-op allows a group to divide research, resource collection, construction and planetary exploration.

Automation gradually changes the experience from manual gathering into systems design.

The game supports single-player and online co-op with full controller support. Minimum requirements include 4 GB RAM and 2 GB of storage.

Choose it for cooperative experimentation and a gentler survival loop centered on curiosity.

13. Satisfactory

Best multiplayer factory-building survival game

Satisfactory places players on an alien planet and asks them to construct increasingly complex production systems.

Resource extraction leads into conveyor belts, machines, power networks and multi-stage manufacturing.

A co-op group can divide exploration, logistics, construction and troubleshooting.

The open world provides terrain and hostile wildlife around the factory-building puzzle.

Expansion is less about immediate hunger and more about keeping production organized as demand grows.

The game supports single-player and online co-op. Minimum requirements include 8 GB RAM and 20 GB of storage.

Choose it for automation and collaborative engineering rather than harsh wilderness survival.

14. Grounded 2

Best miniature-scale multiplayer survival game

Grounded 2 shrinks its characters inside a large outdoor environment where insects become major threats.

Players craft weapons and armor, build bases and explore at a scale that changes the meaning of ordinary objects.

Co-op supports shared construction and group combat against creatures much larger than the characters.

Rideable buggies expand travel and provide another layer of group planning.

The game supports single-player and online co-op with full controller support. It is marked as Early Access, so content and balance can continue changing.

Minimum requirements include 16 GB RAM and 40 GB of storage.

Choose it for accessible cooperative exploration, insect combat and a playful miniature setting.

15. Escape from Tarkov

Best extraction survival shooter

Escape from Tarkov uses raid-based survival rather than one persistent base-building world.

Players bring equipment into a dangerous area, gather supplies and attempt to reach an extraction point.

Failure can mean losing carried gear, making preparation and risk assessment central to every raid.

A squad can cover routes and share information, but communication mistakes can become costly.

Detailed injuries, ammunition and equipment systems give survival a tactical military focus.

Modes include online co-op and online PvP. Minimum requirements include 16 GB RAM and 80 GB of storage.

Choose it for high-stakes raids and tactical shooting. Players wanting construction or a permanent shared settlement should choose Valheim, Enshrouded or 7 Days to Die.

Which multiplayer survival game should you play first?

Match the recommendation to the group:

• Balanced co-op exploration and building: Valheim
• Detailed zombie simulation: Project Zomboid
• 2D crafting and boss progression: Terraria
• Horde defense and destructible bases: 7 Days to Die
• Demanding seasonal survival: Don’t Starve Together
• Fantasy RPG combat and large-group building: Enshrouded
• Vampire action and castles: V Rising
• Survival horror and caves: The Forest
• Realistic jungle survival: Green Hell
• Dinosaurs and tribes: ARK: Survival Evolved
• Unpredictable player encounters: DayZ
• Relaxed exploration: ASTRONEER
• Factory automation: Satisfactory
• Miniature cooperative adventure: Grounded 2
• High-risk extraction raids: Escape from Tarkov

Valheim is the strongest first recommendation for a group seeking a continuing cooperative world. ASTRONEER is easiergoing, while Project Zomboid and DayZ demand much greater tolerance for loss.

Best co-op base-building survival games

Valheim combines practical shelters with ambitious settlements and long voyages.

Enshrouded offers the most detailed fantasy construction and supports a larger group.

7 Days to Die turns base design into preparation for recurring attacks.

V Rising makes the castle itself part of vampire progression, while ARK supports large tribe infrastructure.

Satisfactory replaces traditional shelter building with factories and logistical networks.

Best multiplayer zombie survival games

Project Zomboid provides the deepest everyday survival simulation, including food, skills, injuries and vulnerable safehouses.

7 Days to Die focuses more heavily on fortification, crafting and recurring hordes.

DayZ combines infected with unpredictable human encounters and harsh loss.

Each suits a different group. Choose Project Zomboid for systems, 7 Days to Die for building defenses or DayZ for online tension.

Best competitive multiplayer survival games

DayZ creates unscripted PvP through encounters in a shared survival environment.

V Rising and 7 Days to Die support PvP alongside cooperative options.

Escape from Tarkov concentrates competition into high-risk raids where extraction determines whether loot is retained.

Project Zomboid and Don’t Starve Together also list PvP, but many groups use those games primarily for cooperation.

Server rules matter. Check whether the intended community uses PvE, PvP or mixed settings before investing in a long-term world.

Best multiplayer survival games for lower-spec PCs

Don’t Starve Together lists 1 GB RAM and 3 GB of storage, the lightest overall listed requirements.

ASTRONEER lists 4 GB RAM and 2 GB of storage. The Forest lists 4 GB RAM and 5 GB.

Valheim has the smallest listed installation at 1 GB but requires 8 GB RAM.

Green Hell lists 4 GB RAM and 8 GB of storage, while Project Zomboid lists 8 GB RAM and 10 GB.

Minimum requirements do not guarantee ideal performance, particularly on busy multiplayer servers. Compare the complete current requirements with the intended PC before purchasing.

How to choose a multiplayer survival game

Start by deciding how much loss the group will tolerate. DayZ and Escape from Tarkov can erase valuable progress quickly, while ASTRONEER is more forgiving.

Choose the desired structure. Valheim and Enshrouded provide boss-led progression, Project Zomboid offers an open sandbox and Satisfactory centers long-term production goals.

Consider server style. PvP creates tension but can threaten a group’s base and supplies. PvE allows more focus on exploration and cooperative construction.

Finally, match the group size and commitment. A continuing shared world requires people willing to return, maintain resources and agree on major projects.

Final recommendations

Valheim is the best overall multiplayer survival game for exploration, building and cooperative progression. Project Zomboid leads for zombie simulation, 7 Days to Die for horde defense and Enshrouded for fantasy survival RPG systems.

Choose ASTRONEER for relaxed exploration, Satisfactory for automation, The Forest for horror, Green Hell for jungle simulation or ARK: Survival Evolved for dinosaur taming.

Groups seeking harsher player-driven danger should choose DayZ or Escape from Tarkov, while Terraria, Don’t Starve Together and Grounded 2 offer distinctive alternatives to conventional first-person survival.

The right choice depends on what the group wants to preserve between sessions: a fortress, a factory, a character, a supply cache, a fleet of creatures or simply the story of how everyone survived one more night.