Survival games with the most unique biomes

Key points

• Unique biomes in survival games offer different challenges and rewards, increasing replayability.
• State of Decay 2, Outward and Valheim offer realistic and diverse biomes that impact gameplay.
• Games like ARK: Survival Evolved and No Man's Sky feature vast procedurally generated worlds with countless unique biomes.

Biomes in survival games play a crucial role in the overall gameplay, with different biomes offering their own sets of challenges, rewards, and difficulties. From dense forests full of resources to enemies to frozen lands where even NPCs struggle to survive, biomes in survival games are more than just visually pleasing places.

With each new biome comes a new set of challenges. It's these new obstacles that make survival games so much fun to play over and over again. Whether it's a sandbox-style survival game with randomly generated biomes or a more linear experience with a pre-determined map, unique biomes can leave a lasting impression on the gaming community.

9 State of decay 2

A realistic survival horror game

State of decay 2 combines survival and horror with a dose of realism to create a unique zombie-based experience. Set in the United States, State of decay 2 has four main offices: Cascade Hills, Meagher Valley, Drucker County, AND Providence Ridge. The game developers tried to make them as realistic as possible.

Unlike similar games, State of decay 2 tries to stay in the realm of realism by incorporating rural farmland, dense forests, rivers, deserts, urban areas, and suburban neighborhoods. While this may not seem particularly unique, these biomes create a grittier, more grounded experience.

8 Outwards

A fascinating open-world fantasy and survival game

Outward is an open world survival RPGwhose unique and surprising biomes place an emphasis on exploration. Not only are the biomes visually pleasing, but they play a key role in the game's survival mechanics.

Outwards has four main biomes: the coastal Chersonese region, the lush Enmerkar Fores, the swampy Hallowed Marsh, and the vast Abrassar Desert. Game mechanics tied to these biomes help create Outwards more difficult and fun. The Abrassar Desert, for example, has scorching heat during the day and sub-zero temperatures at night, meaning players must prepare for two very different experiences.

7 Valheim

A ruthless survival game inspired by Norse mythology

Valheim has various unique biomes that are directly related to a player's skills and ability. For example, the Meadows biome is the safest and most forgiving biome and is the first biome players will encounter.

Valheim has seven unique biomes: Meadows, Black Forest, Ocean, Swamp, Mountain, Plains, and Fog. Each biome becomes more difficult, but resources become more abundant, pushing players to continue exploring this vast world. AS Valheim is based on Viking mythology and history, the biomes, while fairly standard, are unique and full of Viking-based structures and items.

6 Conan in exile

A survival experience in the world of Conan the Barbarian

Set in the lands of exile, Conan in exile Players can experience seven fully realized biomes: Savannah, Plateau, Jungle, Desert, Tundra, Snow, and Volcano. Each biome offers a unique experience with different enemies, creatures, and weather challenges.

While the biomes themselves are nothing revolutionary, additions like creatures, cities, and vast cave systems make the biomes truly unique in the survival genre. Players must prepare and plan their travels in certain biomes such as the volcano or snow biomes, which have extreme temperatures that can quickly consume players' resources and equipment.

5 ARK: Evolved Survival

A prehistoric survival experience

ARK: Evolved Survival is the most popular dinosaur based gamearound today and one of the most popular survival games of all time. ARK: Evolved Survival has 12 unique maps, each with different types and sizes of biomes. All of these maps boast caves and ruins, exclusive creatures, and unique artifacts.

The game features a total of 12 maps for players to explore, offering a selection of biomes. Players can wander through grasslands and forests, vast deserts, snowy tundra, underwater caverns, and even alien landscapes.

4 Ancestors: The Odyssey of Humanity

A survival game that continually evolves

In Ancestors: The Odyssey of Humanityplayers play as a family of apes across multiple generations, learning new skills and abilities, essentially playing through the evolution of humankind. As the game takes place over millions of years, biomes undergo significant changes, creating a one-of-a-kind experience.

The biomes vary between dense jungles, vast savannahs, and lush islands, but what sets them apart is how they adapt over the course of the game. Each time players take control of the new generation, key differences in the biomes may emerge, such as new and improved vegetation, rock formations, rivers, and streams.

3 Subnautica

An underwater survival experience

Subnautica is an underwater worldSurvival game that takes players on a deep dive into an unknown alien world. At first, aside from the alien life, the biomes seem pretty standard. But once players progress through the story and delve deeper into the ocean, the biomes become unique and exciting.

Subnautica has ten unique biomes that players can explore, whether swimming or in a submarine. Each of the biomes is visually stunning and unique, especially with the alien creatures and vegetation.

2 Minecraft

One of the most popular games of all time

Minecraft is one of the most popular games of all timeand almost all players have played it at least once. Minecraft is king when it comes to number, variation, and unique biomes, with 64 biomes in the Java Edition and 90 in the Bedrock Edition.

Minecraft it has three distinct worlds. The Overworld has more than 50 biomes, the Nether has 5 biomes, and the End has 5 biomes. The simple variation of these biomes is enough to make Minecraft one of the best games of all time.

1 No man's sky

Almost endless possibilities

No Man's Sky is perhaps the greatest game of all time. It offers nearly infinite procedurally generated worlds for players to visit, each with truly unique biomes. With over 255 galaxies to explore, it's easy to say No man's sky has the most unique biomes not just in survival games, but in games as a whole.

With 18 quintillion planets, it's impossible to comprehend the sheer number of potential biomes players can encounter. To this day, developers regularly update biome variations for even more interesting and dark generations.