Top 10 Multiplayer Survival Games for PC

Discover the best PC survival games multiplayer enthusiasts are playing right now. Whether you're looking to band together with friends or compete against them, the world of multiplayer survival games offers endless excitement and challenges. From harsh environments and mythical creatures to zombie apocalypses, there's a survival game out there for every type of player. Get ready to explore, build, and survive together in these top-rated games.

Explore the Best PC Survival Games Multiplayer Style

This in-depth guide dives into the heart of survival gaming, showcasing the top 10 multiplayer survival games for PC. Each game presents a unique set of challenges and adventures, promising hours of collaborative or competitive gameplay. Whether you prefer to tame the wilderness or face off against zombies, this list has something for every survival game enthusiast.

List of Top Choices

• 1. Rust
• 2. Valheim
• 3. Ark: Survival Evolved
• 4. 7 Days to Die
• 5. The Forest
• 6. Don't Starve Together
• 7. Raft
• 8. Subnautica
• 9. Project Zomboid
• 10. DayZ

1. Rust

• Multiplayer survival in its rawest form
• PvP-centric with a focus on resource gathering and base building
• Open-world environment with constant threats from other players and wildlife

Rust stands out as a merciless multiplayer survival game where the environment isn't the only thing you have to worry about. Other players can be just as deadly, if not more. The game drops you into a hostile world with nothing but a rock and a torch. From there, it’s all about gathering resources, crafting gear, and building a stronghold to protect yourself and your collected items. Rust’s open-world PvP experience encourages alliances as much as it does betrayals, making every interaction unpredictable. Its unwavering emphasis on survival through resource management and player interaction makes it a thrilling experience for anyone looking for a challenging multiplayer survival game.

2. Valheim

• Inspired by Norse mythology
• Focus on exploration, crafting, and combat
• Supports co-op gameplay for up to 10 players

Valheim offers players a unique blend of survival, crafting, and exploration elements, all under the backdrop of a vast Norse mythology-inspired world. It caters to both the lone wolf and cooperative players, supporting up to 10 players in a shared world. The game emphasizes exploration, encouraging players to sail to new territories, fight mythical creatures, and build Viking strongholds and outposts. With a procedurally generated world, Valheim ensures that no two adventures are the same, providing a fresh experience with each playthrough. It’s the perfect game for players looking for a survival title that combines myth with the thrill of exploration and community building.

3. Ark: Survival Evolved

• Dinosaur and prehistoric theme
• Extensive base building and creature taming
• Huge, explorable islands with diverse ecosystems

Ark: Survival Evolved transports players to a mysterious island where dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures roam free. Survival is key, but taming the island's beasts adds a unique twist to the genre. Players can capture and tame everything from small dodos to massive tyrannosaurs, using them for transport, combat, or just companionship. The game features an enormous open world filled with a variety of ecosystems, each home to its own set of challenges and creatures. Building a base, forming tribes with other players, and exploring the vast islands are just the beginning. Ark’s blend of survival mechanics with its dinosaur theme creates a distinct and immersive experience that’s hard to find elsewhere.

4. 7 Days to Die

• Combines first-person shooter, survival horror, tower defense, and role-playing elements
• Zombie apocalypse setting with horde nights that increase in difficulty
• Open world, voxel-based sandbox game offering great building freedom

7 Days to Die brings a fresh twist to the survival genre, mixing elements of first-person shooters, survival horror, tower defense, and role-playing games into one challenging experience. Set in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by the undead, the game’s central feature is its horde night - a terrifying event where waves of zombies besiege the player’s fortifications in increasing numbers. This element adds a sense of urgency and preparation not found in many other survival games. Players must gather resources, build defenses, and craft weapons while exploring a vast, open-world environment to survive. The game's voxel-based design allows for unparalleled creativity in building, making it as much about constructing indestructible fortresses as it is about surviving the horrors that come at night.

5. The Forest

• Survival horror set on a mysterious island
• Build, explore, and survive against a society of cannibalistic mutants
• Stunning visuals and open-ended gameplay

The Forest drops players onto a remote, forested peninsula where surviving means more than just fighting hunger and the elements. In this game, a society of cannibalistic mutants also poses a constant threat. Players need to build shelters, craft weapons, and find food while exploring the island's network of caves and dense woods. The game challenges players to survive by their wits, with a focus on stealth and fortification. The Forest combines the thrill of exploration with the dread of survival horror, all while presenting a visually stunning open-world experience. Its unique blend of crafting, building, and survival elements, against the backdrop of a mysterious narrative, makes The Forest an unforgettable journey into the heart of darkness.

6. Don't Starve Together

• Unique, hand-drawn art style
• Emphasis on cooperative gameplay and survival
• Randomly generated worlds filled with strange creatures and challenges

Don't Starve Together brings the quirky, gothic charm of the original Don't Starve to the multiplayer stage, allowing friends to face the game's daunting world together. It's a game that doesn't hold your hand, pushing you to explore, experiment, and survive in its ever-evolving world. The art style is immediately striking, transforming the survival experience into something that feels both old-fashioned and refreshingly innovative. With each world being randomly generated, players are guaranteed a unique experience full of surprises and challenges. The focus on cooperation not only makes surviving easier but also adds a layer of strategy as players balance resources, battle monsters, and uncover the game's mysteries together.

7. Raft

• Survival on the open sea
• Resource gathering and crafting on a floating raft
• Exploration of islands and underwater environments

Raft starts players on a tiny floating platform in the middle of the ocean, making the vast, open sea both a picturesque backdrop and an ever-present threat. The game is as much about survival as it is about expansion, pushing players to extend their raft into a more substantial living space by gathering debris and resources from the water. Exploration is encouraged, with islands and underwater reefs offering valuable materials, new crafting options, and a break from the endless blue of the ocean. The constant threat of shark attacks adds an extra layer of tension to resource gathering. Raft’s unique premise and focus on marine exploration set it apart in a genre typically dominated by land-based survival games.

8. Subnautica

• Underwater exploration and survival
• Alien ocean world with a rich ecosystem
• Base-building under the sea

Subnautica draws players into the depths of an alien ocean world, filled with bizarre creatures and sprawling coral kingdoms. Unlike most survival games, Subnautica’s setting beneath the waves offers a breathtaking and often peaceful experience that contrasts sharply with the survival challenges it presents. Players must manage oxygen levels, hunt for resources, and avoid or confront the predators of the deep, all while unraveling the planet's mysteries. The game excels in its ability to balance exploration and survival, with the creation of underwater habitats providing a home base to return to after each venture into the unknown. Subnautica is a masterpiece of environmental storytelling, enriching the survival experience with awe-inspiring sights and a compelling narrative.

9. Project Zomboid

• Isometric zombie survival sandbox
• Realistic survival mechanics
• Open world with a focus on longevity and resource management

Project Zomboid takes a grittier, more realistic approach to the zombie survival genre. It offers an isometric perspective on the apocalypse, focusing on the minutiae of survival such as hunger, illness, and mental health. The game’s open world is unforgiving, packed with zombies and scarce in resources, demanding players plan, scavenge, and fortify to stay alive. Its detailed simulation of survival mechanics sets it apart, immersing players in the challenge of enduring in a world gone to the undead. Multiplayer adds a social dimension, allowing survivors to band together and increase their chances of survival through teamwork. Project Zomboid's commitment to realism and player choice makes it a deeply engaging survival experience.

10. DayZ

• Massive multiplayer online experience
• Post-apocalyptic world rife with zombies and human threats
• Emphasis on interaction, whether cooperative or confrontational

DayZ stands as a testament to the enduring appeal of the zombie genre in gaming, thrusting players into a vast, post-apocalyptic world where the undead are far from the only threat. It’s a game that emphasizes interaction, offering encounters that can end in cooperative survival or bloody conflict. The massive multiplayer environment ensures that no two experiences are the same, with survival often hinging on the whims of encounter. Players must scavenge for food, weapons, and other resources to survive, all while battling or avoiding zombies and other players. The open-world design of DayZ encourages exploration and story-making, with the player's choices significantly influencing their survival. Its blend of survival, sandbox, and horror elements make DayZ an unforgettable experience in the multiplayer survival genre.

In the world of PC gaming, the survival genre offers an incredibly diverse array of experiences that challenge, scare, and even inspire. From the bleak, open seas of Raft to the terrifying nights of 7 Days to Die, each game on this list provides a unique take on survival and multiplayer gameplay. Whether you're banding together with friends to fend off cannibalistic mutants in The Forest, exploring the eerie depths of an alien ocean in Subnautica, or fighting for your life against zombies and other survivors in DayZ, there's something deeply engaging about testing your limits in these virtual worlds. These top 10 multiplayer survival games for PC not only push players to their gaming best but also bring them together in the spirit of cooperation, competition, and, most importantly, survival.