1. Rust (PC, XBOX, PS4)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGcECozNXEw&ab_channel=Facepunch
Released for early access in 2013 for PC only, it was a mix of some of the most popular games at the time. A survival MMO based on DayZ, Minecraft, and other iconic titles such as the ARMA collection.
Rust is meant for the survival enthusiast, starting playing offs with nothing but a rock, forcing them to gather, steal or hunt for materials to survive. Rust has classic survival mechanics such as hunger and thirst which the player must manage correctly to survive.
Rust’s community is massive! Players often join massive servers to fight against one another, using a mix of melee weapons and firearms. It’s also common to see raids against fighting factions bases to become the dominant clan on the server.
Rust has continued to develop and release for the console in 2021, keeping the community alive and building.
2. Ark: Survival Evolved (PC, XBOX, PS4)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fIAPcVdZO8&ab_channel=ARK%3ASurvivalEvolved
Similar to Rust’s mechanics, Ark: Survival Evolved which was released in 2017, is set in a pre-historic landscape with free-roaming dinosaurs and other players. The Player's main aim is to survive and conquer, building bases and domesticating dinosaurs for their own use.
Similar to clans in Rust, Ark uses tribes that groups players together allowing them to pool their efforts together.
A unique feature to Ark is the emphasis on taming. Almost all dinosaurs in the game can be tamed by sedating them, then allowing the player to command the dinosaur, and it will follow, giving players access to unique features of each pre-historic animal such as speed and agility.
3. Sea of Thieves (PC, XBOX, PS4)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5JIBaasuE8&ab_channel=SeaofThieves
A culmination of efforts after the great rise of Rust, DayZ, and several other titles, Sea of Thieves was released in 2018 for Windows and Xbox.
Players are given the role of a pirate whose aim is to explore the open sea world, accepting and completing voyages granted to them by the big trading companies, taking inspiration from movies such as Pirates of the Caribbean.
During a ‘pirates’ adventures, they will naturally float upon several other players which they can form a pact with or fight to the death. However, the game is not designed for players to have constant interaction with other players, as they stated they aimed for other players to see another ‘player controlled’ ship every 15-30 minutes.
An interesting addition is how keen the developers were to push skills such as map reading onto the player base, becoming a key feature in the game to date.
4. Scum (PC, Steam)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h488fgqQtZQ&ab_channel=GameSpotTrailers
Released for early access in late 2018, Scum’s developers created an open world, prison riot survival game. Limited to 64 players per server, each player aims to survive and ultimately leave the island by removing an implant stuck in them, which is currently preventing them from leaving.
With a heavy emphasis on ‘real survival’, one part of Scum’s vital gameplay is the BCU monitor that tracks the player’s health, vitamins, calories, and other real-life statistics. Players who delve into this system can reap the benefits of heightened stamina, strength, and speed, as would happen in real life.
In love with realism, Scum even implemented novel features such as the liquidation of food if a player were to have their teeth knocked out. Such in-depth features really force the player to have complete control over their character and have a mastery of the game and its features to win.
5. DayZ (PC, XBOX, PS4)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jk8prJA9nI&ab_channel=GameSpotTrailers
One of the most iconic games of the last two decades, DayZ ushered in players' desires for survival MMO’s. Released as a standalone game for windows in late 2018, DayZ was initially a mod for ARMA 2.
Players are born into a post-soviet Chernarus, where a plague has infected most of the population, turning them into zombies. As with most survival MMO’s, the aim is to SURVIVE and stay healthy, while traversing and facing the difficulties of the DayZ landscape.
Not only is DayZ rife with gangs and advanced role play users, dedicating thousands of hours to the game, players must also fight off real diseases implemented into the game, such as Cholera and Hepatitis - caught through dirty water or food and must be cured by the correct medicines.
DayZ boasts a massive open-world area of 225 square kilometers, taking players over an hour and a half to run from corner to corner.
