May 16th, 2020 is a date that holds relevance to Terraria fans not only for signifying the 9th birthday of the acclaimed 2D sandbox game but also because it will see the launch of the new Terraria 1.4 update. By this point everyone knows what to expect from the latest Re-Logic expansion – developers promised us tons of new content, reworked visuals and the inclusion of the Journey’s End mode that was originally supposed to launch last year.
With the proximate release date of Terraria 1.4, we’ll leave it for you to personally discover everything the new update has to offer. Instead, we invite fans of this sandbox and other interested parties to get acquainted with more games like Terraria. The open-ended 2D world created by Re-Logic is without a doubt breathtaking and teeming with possibilities, but as you will see, it’s not your only option if you seek to experience this level of freedom in a video game.
Minecraft
Some of the titles in this list are more known than others and it does not come as a surprise that Minecraft belongs to the former rather than the latter. This cultural phenomenon is the first and most obvious alternative to all games like Terraria. While Minecraft was officially released in 2011 the game is actually older than Terraria with the public alpha launching in 2009. It’s no secret that the studio Re-Logic was greatly influenced by this game when developing its own project.
In some sense Terraria could be considered a 2D variant of Minecraft even though there are key differences. Just like in Terraria, players of Minecraft explore and try to survive in a massive, procedurally generated world, with the major distinction being that Minecraft is three dimensional. The game can be played both from the first-person and third-person perspective, crafting, resource gathering play a huge role. Combat with mobs is present in Minecraft but when it comes to games like Terraria, the upcoming Minecraft Dungeons rogue-like spin-off is more reminiscent of Terraria’s combat system than the main game.
Cube World
While at first glance Cube World might seem like a mere copy of Minecraft, with the entire landscape being constructed entirely out of cubes. However, the game capitalizes on exploration, combat, and action RPG elements a lot more than Minecraft, in turn giving it a unique identity despite the very familiar looking visuals. Here you will explore another procedurally generated 3D world filled with dungeons, hidden magical artifacts, a fantasy land inhabited by mobs, and quest giving NPCs.
Similarly to most other games like Terraria, Cube World does not have a predetermined storyline. Everything remains open-ended to give the player maximum freedom of living out their own fantasy adventures. While the characters of the game look blocky, they are much more reminiscent of something that could be described as early Legend of Zelda or Mana game series character sprites converted to 3D, rather than the boxy Minecraft avatars. Playing the game it’s now hard to notice the influence of JRPGs both on the Cube World’s aesthetic presentation and gameplay.
Don’t Starve
Among all the games like Terraria presented on this list, Don’t Starve is probably the closest to the horror game genre. Both the game and it’s the main objective are accurately expressed and summarised by the title itself – Don’t Starve. Those who played this game can confirm that it has an exceptional capacity to put the player on edge because survival here is challenging. You might not even make it through the first day due to hunger, lack of shelter, and resources, not to mention all the horrors looming in the forest-like environment.
Similarly to other games like Terraria, Don’t Starve takes place in a procedurally generated world and has a heavy focus on survival, however, the gameplay here is presented from the top-to-bottom perspective instead of the side-scroller setting which makes Re-Logic’s game so recognizable. Don’t Starve has its own, nonetheless unique art style that’s mirrored in the hand-drawn characters and environment objects present in the game, all of which add up to the uncomfortable, eerie atmosphere of the game in their own way.
Stardew Valley
Stardew Valley is known for combining elements of farm simulation and RPG games. Like Terraria, this title is set on a 2D open-world brought to life through charming, pixelated 16-bit era graphics with the main difference from Terraria being that the player sees the game from a bird-view perspective, very much like in the previous example Don’t Starve. The game is much more peaceful but it nevertheless has something for those who want to witness the action. All you would need to do is visit the complex dungeons systems that are inhabited by monsters you can face off against.
The game starts with your custom character inheriting his or her grandfather’s neglected farm. Naturally, your goal is to make it thrive. Despite the main premise of Stardew Valley, you are free to roam around the open-world and find many non-farming activities and mini-games. Like Terraria, Stardew Valley constantly sees free updates from the developer and publisher ConcernedApe. Another reason behind the constant flux of this setting is the fact that entire years can go by in this game due to shifting seasons, each of which lasts 28 real-life days.
Forager
Last on our list is Forager – this is one of those games you sit down to play for just around thirty minutes only to find yourself still mashing buttons at 2 AM. It’s that engaging and addictive, despite relying on the same formula as most other games like Terraria: mining, exploration, crafting, leveling up, developing skills, and raiding dungeons. Like in multiple previous examples, the art style is once again very simplistic and pixelated but that is exactly what makes these titles so charming at the same time.
Right from the get-go you’ll find yourself on a small island defined by square shorelines. The game wastes no time in showing you the basics and soon enough you find yourself gathering resources from the environment and building a settlement. It doesn’t take long before the cramped map grows in size, allowing you to explore new segments of this open-world, each of which brings about new NPCs to interact with and a variety of enemies to fight.
More games like Terraria await on Eneba!
The wait for the Terraria 1.4 update is almost over but if you still can’t stand those few remaining moments or simply want to give something new a go, Eneba game store has something to offer you! We have compiled a collection of 40 Best Platformer games / 2D side-scrollers just for gamers like yourself. Not only will you find Terraria and all the games mentioned on this list, but also a multitude of other great 2D platformers from recent years, all of which go with an exceptionally great price! Visit and see for yourself!
