The toughest survival games we will play in 2026.

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At one point, survival games were the hot new thing on the market. Today it is already a genre with solid foundations, one that seeks innovation in a variety of topics and environments. This can be seen in the offer of upcoming survival games for 2026, where we have several sequels, a handful of new ideas, and some that are only now reaching their 1.0 edition. The offer is somewhat weaker compared to other genres, but it is opened by the currently most requested game on Steam.

Subnautica 2

The continuation of one of the most successful survival games takes us to a new undersea, but with the well-known rule – there is always a bigger fish. We won’t have to explore the dark depths of the undersea this time on our own, because for the first time there will be the possibility of playing in a company of up to four players. In 2026, we should only get an initial dive, while Subnautica 2 will continue to be developed for the foreseeable future. That part was never in question, but after the founders of the Unknown Worlds studio left the game’s development, there is a big question mark about what kind of game will eventually surface.

Windrose

No matter what year it is, pirates are always in trend. The developers of the Windrose game also believe in this and promise us survival with a pirate plot. The game begins with the crew of our ship betraying us and leaving us stranded on a deserted island. With steel will and expert survival skills, we must then regain the lost status, either independently or with the help of other players. Some will say that we already have a pirate MMO in Sea of ​​Thieves, but this should be something different. Who knows, maybe they’ll show Ubisoft what a pirate-themed MMO game should look like.

Valheim 1.0

It’s already been five years since Valheim suddenly won over PC gamers and then quickly lost popularity. The game received updates almost every year, and in 2026 the last content update will follow. The Deep North expansion will mark the 1.0 version of the game (and its arrival on PlayStation 5), and then we’ll give the game another chance to win us over. And we will probably again curse all the trolls, mosquitoes and other miracles that want to drown us in this Nordic world where as a fearless Viking we have to prove ourselves to Odin and defeat a series of boss opponents.

Railborn

This game has a very clear description – survival in which our base is mobile – we build our train: wagon by wagon. It’s a wonder nobody thought of it until now. Or maybe it was and we missed it? In any case, Railborn will be able to be played by 1-4 players, and our task will be to travel through different biomes and discover the secret of a planet covered in rails. Typically for survival games, it will be played from the first person, it will be launched first in early access – you probably already know the procedure.

Outbound

Outbound is one of those attempts to combine cozy and survival types of gameplay, and a bit of a hippie simulator 2026. The goal here will be to build a modular and mobile base on one van / camper that will include a garden for growing herbs, a rainwater collection system, etc. The game will promote a self-sustaining approach, sending players on a classic resource-gathering journey through nature. Outbound will be played in first-person while you’re on your feet, and the camera will switch when you start driving your home to the next location.

Solarpunk

Speaking of bright and colorful survival titles, Solarpunk is a combination of Farming Simulator and Satisfactory. Survival is in the background here, but the typical features of such games through gathering resources and automating jobs are very much present. In short, we will raise chickens and water vegetables here on the flying islands. Each player will be able to build his own flying ship, which he will use to travel around other islands and find new resources to perfect the technology he sets up in his garden. Although the game has “punk” in the name, it will be decent to the virtual nature and will direct the player towards the use of renewable resources – sunlight, wind and water.

Outward 2

Technically speaking, Outward 2 is an action RPG, some might say another one of those soulslike inspired games. However, it cannot escape the fact that it has gameplay based on survival mechanics. This is how you should eat before a battle, you should take care of thirst and fatigue – after all, you are an ordinary adventurer here, not one chosen by the prophecy. The big world of Aurai awaits us in the game, but don’t expect any kind of riding or fast travel there. This will be a hiking game, and the good news is that you won’t have to hike alone this time either – there’s also local split-screen multiplayer for two.

Terminator: Survivors?

The world of the Terminator movie series is an ideal base for a survival game, and we’ve been talking about one of these in development for two years now. Terminator: Survivors will take place four years after Skynet’s machines tried to exterminate humanity. At that time, before even John Connor’s resistance movement was founded, we will try to find answers to why the apocalypse happened in the first place. Expect resource gathering (fuel canisters!) under constant threat from overpowered robotic opponents, ambush planning and plenty of sneaking around to avoid raising the alarm. At least that was the plan until now, but the game rejected the design of a cooperative title and focused on a single-player adventure. This caused the release to be delayed, so probably even the developers themselves are not sure if Terminator will return this year.