Grounded shrinks players to insect size in a suburban backyard, turning familiar objects into environmental scale landmarks. The survival loop includes base building against ant raids and spider attacks. GPA scores it high on Craft and Co-op, with Horror above average — the spider encounters are genuinely threatening regardless of prior arachnophobia.
Game Characteristics
Crafting
80%
Co-op
75%
Graphics
70%
Action
60%
Sandbox
60%
High Difficulty
55%
Open World
50%
Horror
50%
Character Building
50%
Emotional Story
45%
Existential Themes
40%
Story Depth
40%
Dystopian Setting
40%
Strategy
40%
Dark
30%
Player profile fit
Recommended for: Beginner to Advanced players (A score of 50 or higher indicates a good fit.)
Palworld combines creature collection with survival base-building and open-world exploration. Pals work the base autonomously while players expand territory and catch new species. GPA scores it high on Sandbox, Craft, and Collection — a cluster that sits between Minecraft and Pokémon in the similarity rankings.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
85%
Co-op
75%
Graphics
75%
Action
30%
Sandbox
80%
High Difficulty
30%
Open World
85%
Horror
0%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Enshrouded sends the Flameborn through a voxel world covered in corrupting Shroud fog, blending survival base-building with RPG skill trees and direct action combat. Up to 16 players share a persistent server. Keen Games. PC Early Access 2024, full release 2025. GPA scores it high on Craft and Open World — the survival RPG that most successfully merges FromSoftware-adjacent combat with the Valheim base-building loop.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
85%
Co-op
78%
Graphics
72%
Action
72%
Sandbox
78%
High Difficulty
60%
Open World
80%
Horror
0%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
V Rising wakes a vampire after centuries of sleep and tasks them with rebuilding power through blood feeding, castle construction, and territory conquest in an isometric action RPG structure. The Castlevania DLC partnership with Konami added licensed content. Stunlock Studios. PS5 (June 2024), PC (May 2024). GPA scores it high on Action and Craft — the survival game that made vampire mythology structurally inseparable from the base-building loop.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
78%
Co-op
65%
Graphics
70%
Action
75%
Sandbox
70%
High Difficulty
60%
Open World
65%
Horror
0%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Sons of the Forest sends a rescue team to an island of cannibals, with Kelvin as a mute AI companion who follows orders and Virginia as a three-armed survivor who joins voluntarily. Endnight Games. PC only — no console version as of August 2026. GPA scores it high on Horror and Craft — the survival horror sequel where the companion AI relationship is the primary emotional differentiator.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
80%
Co-op
65%
Graphics
72%
Action
65%
Sandbox
75%
High Difficulty
60%
Open World
0%
Horror
70%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Core Keeper digs through procedurally generated underground biomes toward boss encounters, with farming, fishing, and equipment crafting filling time between fights. Eight-player co-op runs the full experience. GPA scores it high on Craft and Co-op — close to Terraria in the similarity rankings with a stronger emphasis on cooperative play.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
90%
Co-op
85%
Graphics
65%
Action
65%
Sandbox
80%
High Difficulty
60%
Open World
0%
Horror
0%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
7 Days to Die cycles zombie hordes every seventh night in a voxel survival sandbox where mining, building, trapping, and shooting all feed the same defense preparation loop. The Fun Pimps. Full 1.0 release July 2024 after ten years in early access. PS4, Xbox One, PC. GPA scores it high on Craft and Co-op — the survival game that added a tower defense objective to the Minecraft formula before the genre had a name.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
85%
Co-op
72%
Graphics
55%
Action
70%
Sandbox
80%
High Difficulty
68%
Open World
0%
Horror
55%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
State of Decay 2 manages a survivor community rather than a single character, with permanent death for any community member and a resource economy that runs across multiple settlements. Four-player co-op. Undead Labs, Xbox Game Studios. Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PC. GPA scores it high on Strategy and Co-op — the zombie survival game where losing a named survivor carries genuine consequence.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
60%
Co-op
72%
Graphics
58%
Action
65%
Sandbox
65%
High Difficulty
65%
Open World
0%
Horror
55%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Days Gone builds its open world around a motorcycle and a horde system simulating Freaker ecosystem behavior. GPA scores it high on Open World and Dark World.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
50%
Co-op
0%
Graphics
70%
Action
75%
Sandbox
45%
High Difficulty
65%
Open World
75%
Horror
55%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Pok mon cards come to life in a competitive card game built around the Pok mon Trading Card Game ruleset. The mobile-first design keeps matches short while the deck-building layer rewards long-term investment. GPA scores it high on Strategy and Turn-Based, sitting close to Slay the Spire in the similarity rankings.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
90%
Co-op
50%
Graphics
50%
Action
20%
Sandbox
100%
High Difficulty
10%
Open World
30%
Horror
0%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
The Forest drops a plane crash survivor into a peninsula populated by cannibal tribes, building a base-building survival loop around the day/night cycle where nights belong to the cannibals. Endnight Games. PS4, PC; 2024 PS5 patch. GPA scores it high on Horror and Craft — the survival horror game that established the template Sons of the Forest built upon.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
80%
Co-op
62%
Graphics
60%
Action
62%
Sandbox
75%
High Difficulty
60%
Open World
0%
Horror
72%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Monster Hunter Wilds expands the series into fully seamless open environments where biome conditions change the available monsters and hunting strategies in real time. GPA scores it high on Action and Co-op — the flagship entry in the series' most ambitious structural iteration.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
30%
Co-op
90%
Graphics
90%
Action
95%
Sandbox
0%
High Difficulty
80%
Open World
60%
Horror
0%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak adds a second continent, a new rank tier, and the Silkbind and Switch Skill systems that deepen the 14-weapon framework. GPA scores it close to World on Co-op and Action, with Craft above average for the expanded gear system.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
20%
Co-op
90%
Graphics
80%
Action
90%
Sandbox
0%
High Difficulty
75%
Open World
55%
Horror
0%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Stranded Deep drops a plane crash survivor onto a Pacific island with a realistic survival sim — manage thirst, hunger, sunburn, and shark attacks while gathering materials to escape. Beam Team Games. PS4, Xbox One, PC; 2-player co-op on consoles. GPA scores it high on Sandbox and Craft — the island survival game most committed to realistic threat simulation over streamlined accessibility.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
80%
Co-op
55%
Graphics
58%
Action
0%
Sandbox
78%
High Difficulty
65%
Open World
65%
Horror
45%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii puts Goro Majima at the center of a pirate adventure following memory loss. The naval combat and crew management add mechanics absent from the main series. GPA scores it high on Action and Emotional Story — a spin-off built around a secondary character's appeal rather than the main series' RPG structure.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
35%
Co-op
45%
Graphics
55%
Action
65%
Sandbox
30%
High Difficulty
30%
Open World
55%
Horror
0%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Dying Light 2 Stay Human builds parkour traversal into every combat scenario in a city where night transforms the zombie population into something worse. The faction choice system branches the city's development. Four-player co-op is supported throughout. GPA scores it high on Action and Open World — the open-world zombie game that commits most fully to movement as a survival mechanic.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
55%
Co-op
75%
Graphics
78%
Action
82%
Sandbox
0%
High Difficulty
60%
Open World
80%
Horror
65%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
ARC Raiders is a free-to-play, third-person extraction shooter developed by Embark Studios. Set in a desolate, post-apocalyptic future, players step into the shoes of Raiders—resilient fighters who must band together to scavenge for vital resources while resisting the relentless onslaught of ARC, a ruthless mechanized alien threat descending from orbit. The game fuses intense squad-based tactical combat with high-stakes extraction mechanics, where survival depends on outsmarting both environmental hazards and rival crews.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
0%
Co-op
85%
Graphics
95%
Action
90%
Sandbox
0%
High Difficulty
75%
Open World
0%
Horror
0%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
Coral Island centers reef restoration alongside the farm management and relationship systems of the life simulation genre. The diving mechanic ties ecological health to farm income. GPA scores it high on Slow Life and Co-op — the combination that places it close to Stardew Valley in the similarity rankings with an environmental focus that adds thematic distinctiveness.
Tag Similarity
Crafting
50%
Co-op
50%
Graphics
75%
Action
30%
Sandbox
50%
High Difficulty
0%
Open World
0%
Horror
0%
Chart tags: Crafting / Co-op / Graphics / Action / Sandbox / High Difficulty / Open World / Horror
About "Grounded"
▸Game Composition (GPA Analysis)
Grounded(グラウンデッド) leads with its サバイバルアクション identity, anchored by the core feel of "Grounded shrinks players to insect size in a suburban backyard, turning familiar objects into environmental scale land…." The headline profile reads Crafting 80% / Co-op 75% / Graphics 70%, making it a strong pick for fans of Crafting and Co-op. Accessible enough for newcomers while offering enough depth to satisfy veterans.
▸Characteristics & Analysis
Our editorial team scored "Grounded(グラウンデッド)" by using its feel of survival, 昆虫世界, and Obsidian as the primary lens, weighting Crafting and Co-op most heavily. Top similar titles include "No Man's Sky", "パルワールド(Palworld)", "エンスラウデッド(Enshrouded)".
Grounded Deep Dive | Shrunken-Backyard Survival and Consistent "Perspective Shift"
What kind of game is it — co-op survival at ant scale
Obsidian Entertainment's Grounded (full release September 27, 2022) shrinks you to ant size in a suburban backyard where spiders and hornets become apex threats. Dew from grass, gear crafted from insect parts, and base building fuse into co-op survival — GPA's "perspective shift" is not a one-off gimmick but runs through exploration, combat, and crafting alike.
Up to four players split scout vs. haul roles naturally — our co-op games 20 list places it in category ④ survival-craft. GPA tags highlight Crafting 80%, Co-op 75%, and Graphics 70% — less sprawling open-world (50%) than a tight base-and-gear loop tuned for small friend groups versus Valheim or Core Keeper. Solo works, but Co-op 75% pays off most when calling out spider hunts and boss fights — PS5, Switch, and cross-play (April 2024) make matching friends across platforms easier.
Grounded through GPA scores
Title tendency chart (Grounded)
Crafting ◀
80%
Co-op ◀
75%
Graphics
70%
Action
60%
Sandbox
60%
High Difficulty
55%
* Based on GPA sub-tag scores. Tags: shrunken survival, insect world, Obsidian, crafting, co-op.
Before you play — common questions
Q. Which platforms are supported?
PC (Steam and Microsoft Store), Xbox One / Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 / PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch. The 1.0 launch hit PC and Xbox in September 2022; PS5, PS4, and Switch followed on April 16, 2024. Cross-play across Xbox, Steam, PlayStation, and Switch rolled out with the console launch. Also on Xbox Game Pass (Ultimate / PC Game Pass). Check the platform badges at the top of this page for the live sheet data.
Q. Store ratings and awards?
Metacritic lists PC and Xbox as Generally Favorable (meta scores roughly 77–83). Steam shows Very Positive across 90k+ reviews. OpenCritic has ~89% critic Recommended. Awards: Xbox Game of the Year at the Golden Joystick Awards 2020; nominated for Innovation in Accessibility at The Game Awards 2020; nominated for Action Game of the Year at the D.I.C.E. Awards 2023.
Q. Can you switch between TPS and FPS?
Yes — toggle first-person (FPS) and third-person (TPS) anytime in settings. FPS suits melee and aiming; TPS helps base building and navigation. GPA's "perspective shift" covers both the shrunken-world scale and this camera choice. An Arachnophobia Safe Mode also softens spider visuals for accessibility.