The highly anticipated Grounded by Obsidian Entertainment has finally left early access and is fully released. Of course, that means it is now out there with the plethora of games that have the same genres, the survival and adventure genre to be specific.
And with these genres having existed for over a decade, it has a lot of competition. Thankfully Grounded stands out in terms of its competitors, its unique theme is something not many games have. But if the topic is great games with the aforementioned genres that have the co-op connect ability, Grounded's uniqueness may not be that unique.
Green Hell
Survival is never easy, not even in a video game. Green Hell is an open-world survival game that challenges the players against not only the prey that stalk the jungle but the harsh environment that kills people with a single misstep. From poisonous foods to mental decay, Green Hell challenges a player's patience and mental fortitude to do whatever it takes to survive.
Thankfully exploring such a dangerous place alone is only an option, Green Hell allows up to 4 players to harsh its world. Similarly to Grounded, players will have to tackle the environment and the creatures that inhabit it, whether it be snakes, crocodiles, or other aggressive creatures you'd expect in a jungle-like environment. All while trying to gather the resources to sustain their selves.
ARK: Survival Evolved
ARK: Survival Evolved is one of the few games that pioneered the survival and adventure genre. Its premise is simple but tantalizing enough, wake up on an island full of dinosaurs, and survive. Similarly to Grounded, players can build bases and tame creatures to aid in their adventure.
In a non-dedicated server, players can bring up to 3 other players to aid them in their journey. As one of the best games where you have to survive in the wilderness, ARK has a ton of content such as alpha dinos who are extremely stronger than the normal dinosaur but drop great loot, and raids where players summon a boss to fight and survive against.
No Man's Sky
Nothing says going on an adventure in an unfamiliar world like literally taking a spaceship and traveling to different galaxies. No Man's Sky suffered a catastrophic release when it first launched, but since then dozens of improvements have been made. Now players can travel across galaxies with up to 4 people. This game has a ton of unique environments similar to Grounded's world, the experience of exploring a totally new area is the same too.
Build bases, fight enemies, and gather resources, No Man's Sky provides a great experience for players looking to get their survival game fix. With numerous DLCs to boot, players can be expected to have at least tens of hours occupied as they familiarize themselves with this amazing space co-op game.
Don't Starve Together
Going by the name of the game, one can easily infer the intention behind it. Don't Starve Together is a standalone multiplayer expansion to the highly rated Don't Starve. Take up to 6 players into a whimsical world full of monsters and creatures whose weaknesses can only be learned by trial and error. The only way to survive is by gathering materials, crafting, and sticking together.
As of this time, there is a total of 25 playable characters each with their own respective properties that make them unique. As is most cases for these kinds of games, and definitely in the case of Grounded, players will need to delegate chores to each other to keep their team afloat. Such as collecting food, and water, making sure bugs don't destroy property, and scouting for dangers.
Valheim
Valheim is one game inspired by mythology, Norse mythology to be specific. The player spawns in carried by Odin's familiar crow, thrown into the world to fight and defeat legendary enemies beyond mortal standards. The best thing yet is that you can take up to 10 friends to accompany you on this grand journey.
But to battle gods one needs to be prepared, and to be prepared players will need a base of operation. Create a village for yourself and your friends, equipped with a farm for supplies of food and a blacksmith to strengthen armor and tools. Like Grounded progression ramps up from there, going through different eras in technology to oppose greater enemies.
Astroneer
Space has never been more comfy. To put it simply, in comparison to other space exploration games Astroneer caters more to an audience that wants to relax and enjoy a game without too much stress. As one of the best games players are meant to relax in, Astroneer does not skimp out on quality and proves to be an impressively immersive experience.
The best part is that experience can be shared with another 3 players, making space a grand journey for 4 people. As both Grounded and Astroneer are sandbox-type games, players can build bases using the exotic materials scattered across the environment.
The Forest
The Forest is a classic co-op survival adventure game spanning back to 2014, in the early stages of online gaming. Though compared to back then, the game has a ton of features now. An example would be how The Forest back in 2014 didn't even have a story. It wasn't until recently that a full story was implemented. And thankfully all that can now be experienced with up to 8 people.
In The Forest, players are tasked with braving the cannibal-filled woods in search of their kidnaped son after a mysterious incident stuck down your plane. You can build a base with traps and fortified wood to defend yourself at night, as similarly to Grounded night tends to be the most dangerous. Other than that, players must delve into deep caves for the sake of finding clues that would progress the plot.
Project Zomboid
Zombie-themed games have existed since the dawn of gaming, but not many of these games tend to focus on the survival aspect of a zombie apocalypse. Project Zomboid is all about that survival experience. Like in Grounded, players must salvage for food, clean clothing, water, electricity, and weapons to survive.
Considered one of the best zombie survival horror games, Project Zomboid provides an experience like no other. A single scratch or bite in this world could mean death, and there's nothing you can do about it. That moment you see a friend get bit, you begin to wonder if being near them is really the safest option.
Minecraft
Minecraft has been dubbed the best-selling game of all time since it was released over a decade ago. While the PlayStation, Xbox, and Switch version of the game seem to only allow up to 10 players in a world, the PC version can allow for almost 100 players if configured correctly.
Conquer dungeons, create automatic farms, build homes, and slay the bosses the world has to offer. Similarly to Grounded, Minecraft is seemingly endless in content, with a common motto among players being that the limit is a person's imagination. But just the thought of gathering a group of friends and creating a personal world full of things only you understand is enough to entice most people.
Raft
Raft is one of the few games in the genre that is completely unique both in concept and gameplay, both aspects making it a complete parallel to Grounded. It's simple yet tantalizing, firstly players spawn on a 2x2 raft made of ramshackle materials. Their first goal is to gather materials and expand. From there they don't even need instructions, gather from the ocean as you float, wander onto islands and find out what happened to the world.
This game allows for up to eight people, quite large considering the starting conditions. Only recently did the game fully release, baring a fleshed-out story with NPCs and actual voice acting. The gameplay cycle is addicting and immersive added to the stunning visuals and beautiful background music. Collect, build, survive, that's all this game is about. And it's all for the low price of $20.