Must-Play Survival Games On iOS That Will Test Your Limits: 'Terraria', 'Minecraft' And More (2024)

Survival games have become a beloved genre among gamers over the years, offering thrilling experiences that challenge them to think on their feet and make strategic decisions. Thanks to their increasing power and accessibility, several high-quality survival games are now available on iOS devices.

The strategic and engaging nature of survival games makes them a treat to play, especially on iOS devices. You can continue your session anywhere and save your progress anytime in most games.

Just like roguelike games, there’s no shortage of survival games on iOS. But how does one decide which one is worth their time? Well, these games are mostly similar; they feature crafting, various states such as hunger, sanity, etc., and a large world to explore and collect resources from. A good survival game knows how to balance these things out.

It can be hard to spot the one game that’s worth your time. Hence, we have decided to gather the best survival games you can play on your iPhone, so you know what to pick when you are up for a challenge.

The best survival games available on iOS

1. Don’t Starve: Pocket Edition

Release year: 2015
Publisher: Klei Entertainment
Size: 1 GB

Don’t Starve is a very detailed survival game that will have you in its grasp for hours if you start exploring everything it has to offer. You play as a character trapped in a hostile alternate dimension where you must find food, build shelter, and survive various seasons from summer to winter, each coming with its own challenges.

It’s not an easy game to play, but if you brave through its unforgiving world, you will see a lot of wonderful and creepy things and who knows, you might even escape it.

2. Last Day on Earth: Survival

Release year: 2017
Publisher: Kefir
Size: 1 GB

Set in a post-apocalyptic world that is overrun by zombies, Last Day on Earth challenges players to survive as long as they can. They must scavenge for supplies, build a base and defend it against the undead.

You start this game by creating an original character, then explore a world divided by different danger levels and even have dogs that can help you scavenge.

3. ARK: Survival Evolved

Release year: 2018
Publisher: Studio Wildcard
Size: 1.99 GB

You are stranded on a map full of dinosaurs and some other unheard-of monsters. What do you do? Well, you start punching trees; after all, that’s how you can hope to survive this land filled with prehistoric animals, various hazards and hostile players.

ARK takes you from nothing to advanced weaponry such as automatic machine guns, but this path is not very easy; you have to survive. ARK is one of the hardest survival games out there, so only play it if you are up for a real challenge.

4. This War of Mine

Release year: 2014
Publisher: 11 Bit Studios
Size: 609.8 MB

This War of Mine is a game about a bunch of survivors hiding in an abandoned building during an ongoing war. These survivors usually have variable backgrounds, yet they must ensure they live by doing things for each other, not themselves.

Go on expeditions each night or even day during desperate times, scavenge supplies from abandoned locations, or steal from houses where someone lives. Make your choices, but if anything goes wrong, all your friends suffer too. If you get hurt, they will have to take care of you and if you die, they will get depressed and if you steal from some helpless people, they will not let you hear the end of it. It’s a complex game where you are forced to make hard decisions.

5. Terraria

Release year: 2013
Publisher: 505 Games
Size: 227 MB

A 2D side-scrolling survival game that puts you in an alien world and asks you to do whatever you want to. You build a house, dig the ground and collect resources, craft weapons, fight monsters and keep expanding your reach in this unique sandbox full of exciting secrets.

Several bosses show up eventually; prepare before you fight them and see if it all even has an ending. It’s one of the oldest and best survival games on iOS.

6. Day R Survival: Last Survivor

Release year: 2016
Publisher: Aleksey Shurokhov
Size: 257 MB

In this very realistic survival game set in the USSR, you get different seasons, a large map with 2700 towns and cities to explore and various dangerous creatures to go up against. There’s crafting, skills and even an online mode where you can chat with people and exchange items.

The best part about this game is that you get a pet who grows as you advance through the game. At this point, your survival becomes even more crucial, or your friend will be left behind in this hostile world all alone; so be careful!

7. Raft Survival – Ocean Nomad

Release year: 2020
Publisher: Survival Games Ltd
Size: 341.6 MB

As the name suggests, you are on a raft in the middle of an ocean. You must find ways to find resources, craft items and survive. Hungry sharks and other sea creatures are eagerly waiting for you to die; don’t give them satisfaction. Keep an eye on your thirst and hunger indicators and arrange food and water accordingly.

It is a unique survival game that looks quite good running on a mobile device. Give this one-of-a-kind survival game on iOS a go and see if you agree.

8. Crashlands

Release year: 2016
Publisher: Butterscotch Shenanigans, Inc.
Size: 137.3 MB

This game is very similar to Don’t Starve when it comes to gameplay mechanics but has a charm of its own. It is much more vibrant and light-hearted and, in many aspects, much easier than Don’t Starve. Build, craft, progress through its narrative, build an expansive base, tame various creatures and explore its huge world. There’s much to do in this game and cloud saves make sure you never lose your progress.

If you find Don’t Starve too hard, this is the game for you; just get it and see if you can survive.

9. Minecraft

Release year: 2011
Publisher: Xbox Game Studios
Size: 1.4 GB

This sandbox game might just be one of the most popular survival games in the world. You do not have any goals; you get all the freedom to do what you want. Explore, build structures, punch innocent animals and just dig.

Its survival mode pushes you to gather resources, build shelters and fend off danger. Ever since its launch back in 2011, this game has inspired several survival games. If you want to find out what all the fuss is about, get it and start punching trees, cows, or anything else you see.

This list features survival games that will appeal to different kinds of gamers. If you like games with much better visuals, try some of those console games ported to iPhones. But keep in mind you will need a controller to play those.

(Hero and Featured Image Credits: Xbox Game Studios and Klei Entertainment)