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Survival

Your goal is to stay alive as long as you can: you manage scarce resources such as food, health or ammunition while facing a hostile environment and overwhelming threats.

Also known as: survival game

This is a basic entry: it has the definition and the classification. Full entries add history, games and a demo.

History

  1. 1992
    Origin

    UnReal World (Sami Maaranen, 1992), a roguelike set in Iron Age Finland whose only goal is to survive, is one of the earliest examples of the modern genre.

    Survival game (Wikipedia)
  2. 2009

    Minecraft, built around gathering and crafting, popularises the genre.

    Survival game (Wikipedia)
  3. 2012

    DayZ, a mod for Arma 2, sets off a wave of survival games.

    Survival game (Wikipedia)

Subgenres

  • Open-world survival craftYou start with nothing in an open world and have to gather resources, craft tools and build a shelter to stay alive against hunger, weather and creatures.
  • Survival horrorYou explore threatening places with scarce ammunition, few healing items and a limited inventory; running or hiding is often wiser than fighting, and the tension comes from that scarcity.