What is the best game similar to Darwin Project?

The closest game to Darwin Project is Metro Exodus, scoring 67/100 on our similarity scale. They share 6 gameplay attributes, including survival mechanics, multiplayer gameplay and melee combat. It's the most faithful alternative currently available.

What are the top games like Darwin Project?

The three closest games to Darwin Project are: 1. Metro Exodus (67/100, 6 shared attributes) 2. Far Cry New Dawn (67/100, 6 shared attributes) 3. Rise of the Tomb Raider (62/100, 6 shared attributes). All share Darwin Project's most important gameplay attributes, ranked out of 50 candidates across 7 dimensions.

Is Far Cry New Dawn similar to Darwin Project?

Yes — Far Cry New Dawn scores 67/100 similarity to Darwin Project. They share 6 attributes, including survival mechanics and multiplayer gameplay. There are some notable differences in pacing or mechanics.

What Survival games are similar to Darwin Project?

The best Survival games similar to Darwin Project are Metro Exodus, Far Cry New Dawn, Rise of the Tomb Raider and The Darkness II. All share the Survival genre alongside other key Darwin Project attributes like survival mechanics, multiplayer gameplay and melee combat.

How is similarity to Darwin Project calculated?

We compare Darwin Project against every game in our catalog using 7 gameplay attributes: genre, atmosphere, world structure, play modes, combat style, and more. Each category is weighted differently — genre matters more than visual style, for instance. The result is a 0-100 score reflecting how closely a game replicates the Darwin Project experience, not just whether it shares the same genre label.

50 Games like Darwin Project that you should try

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Ranking compiled by Lluis Enric Mayans, Founder & Head of ContentUpdated May 19, 2026How this is calculatedOrdered by an attribute-similarity model, not editorial opinion.

If Darwin Project left you wanting more, this list of 50 similar games is for you. Each one shares part of its essence — survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat — and is ranked by a similarity score computed across 7 attributes. Metro Exodus comes closest (67/100).

iRank43/ 100

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GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

Top games similar to Darwin Project

50 similar games foundUpdated May 2026

Handpicked by our similarity algorithm, these are the titles with the highest gameplay match to Darwin Project. Each one has been evaluated across 7 real attributes — from combat style and progression mechanics to world structure and visual perspective — so every recommendation is based on how the game actually plays, not just its genre label.

#1Metro ExodusClosest overall match

iRank87

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldPost-ApocalypticExploration

Steam👍 90%· 132KIGDB83· 12OC83· 173

Year 2019Dev 4A Games · Deep SilverOn Xbox · PS4 · Linux

✓ Same family of open-world action games: survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat

≠ Where it differs: brings shooter, first-person shooting and adventure storytelling, while skipping visual third person

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: visuals.

Genre100World100Progression100Game mode66Setting64Combat50

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Steam GOG Epic

#2Far Cry New DawnClosest on setting

iRank74

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldPost-ApocalypticExploration

Steam👍 75%· 34KIGDB72· 11OC73· 146

Year 2019Dev Ubisoft Montreal · Ubisoft EntertainmentOn Xbox · PS4 · PC

✓ Both are open-world action games — sharing survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat

≠ Its own twist: shooter, first-person shooting and adventure storytelling, while skipping visual third person

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: visuals and game mode.

Genre100Setting100World100Progression100Combat69Game mode41

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Steam Epic Xbox

#3Rise of the Tomb Raider

iRank90

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldExplorationThird Person

Steam👍 94%· 152KIGDB87· 25OC86· 108

Year 2015Dev Crystal Dynamics · Microsoft StudiosOn PS4 · Linux · PC

✓ Both are open-world action games — sharing survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat

≠ Its own twist: adventure storytelling, shooter and puzzle design, while skipping post-apocalyptic world

Bigger and better paced than the 2013 reboot: tombs are more numerous and more elaborate, and the crafting and hunting loops give the hub areas a reason to exist. Traversal is excellent. The story is forgettable and the survival framing sits awkwardly beside a protagonist who kills dozens of people without comment.

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: game mode and progression.

Genre100World100Visuals64Combat42Progression41Game mode39

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Steam Epic

#4The Darkness IIClosest on combat

iRank87

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldExplorationSolo

Steam👍 92%· 21KIGDB77· 11

Year 2012Dev Digital Extremes · 2K GamesOn PlayStation 3 · PC

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat

≠ Its own twist: shooter, first-person shooting and horror tension, while skipping post-apocalyptic world

Quad-wielding combat: two guns plus two demon arms that grab, throw and tear, which makes fights faster and more physical than the first game. The comic-book art style holds up well. It is short — a single sitting for many players — and the darkness-and-light mechanic reduces most encounters to shooting out the same lamps.

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: setting and visuals.

It predates Darwin Project by 8 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Combat100World100Progression100Game mode50Setting0

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldPost-ApocalypticExploration

Steam👍 72%· 42KIGDB53· 12OC49· 65

Year 2019Dev Systemic ReactionOn PS4 · PC · PS5

✓ Both are open-world action games — sharing survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat

≠ Its own twist: shooter, first-person shooting and adventure storytelling, while skipping visual third person

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: visuals and progression.

Genre100Combat100World60Setting56Game mode51Progression34

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldExplorationCo-op

Steam👍 81%· 185KRAWG👍 68%· 2.2KMC80OC82· 184

Year 2018Dev Ubisoft · Ubisoft EntertainmentPlaytime ~19hOn PC · PS · Xbox

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat

≠ Stands apart with adventure storytelling, strong narrative focus and ranged combat, while skipping post-apocalyptic world

Far Cry 5 is an open-world adventure first-person shooter developed by Ubisoft Montreal. It is the fifth main installment in the series. Welcome to Hope County, Montana, where a violent religious doomsday cult appeared.

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: visuals and combat.

Genre100World100Progression100Game mode61Combat38Visuals0

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldExplorationSolo

Steam👍 76%· 18KIGDB58· 6

Year 2008Dev Ubisoft Montreal · Ubisoft EntertainmentOn PlayStation 3 · PC

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat

≠ Stands apart with shooter, first-person shooting and adventure storytelling, while skipping post-apocalyptic world

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: visuals.

It predates Darwin Project by 12 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Progression100Game mode77Combat52World51Visuals0

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Steam Epic

#8The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes

iRank82

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldThird PersonSolo

Steam👍 89%· 11KIGDB76· 9OC73· 123

Year 2021Dev Supermassive Games · Bandai Namco EntertainmentOn Xbox · PS4 · PC

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat

≠ Where it differs: brings adventure storytelling, horror tension and strong narrative focus, while skipping post-apocalyptic world

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: setting.

Genre100World100Visuals65Combat59Game mode52Setting0

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Steam Xbox PS

#9Carmageddon II: Carpocalypse NowClosest on game mode

iRank88

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldPost-ApocalypticExplorationThird Person

Steam👍 88%· 954

Year 1998Dev Stainless Games Ltd. · Interplay EntertainmentOn PC · Mac

✓ Both are open-world action games — sharing open world exploration, melee combat and post-apocalyptic world

≠ Where it differs: brings racing gameplay, dark, oppressive atmosphere and single-player focus, while skipping survival mechanics

It predates Darwin Project by 22 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Combat100Setting100World100Progression100Game mode78

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Steam GOG

#10Down To One

iRank40

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldExplorationSolo

Steam👍 40%· 2.1K

Year 2016Dev Gadget GamesPlaytime ~4hOn PC

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat

≠ Where it differs: brings first-person shooting, shooter and battle royale tension, while skipping post-apocalyptic world

Down to One is a competitive survival shooter in a large, interactive, open-world environment. Start out with nothing, and use anything you can find in the environment to survive, and eliminate other competitors over the course of a brutal round.

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: visuals and game mode.

Genre100World100Progression100Combat69Game mode49Visuals0

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Steam

#11Sunset OverdriveClosest on visuals

iRank86

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldPost-ApocalypticExplorationThird Person

Steam👍 90%· 14KIGDB82· 16OC83· 89

Year 2014Dev Insomniac Games · Microsoft StudiosOn PC · Xbox

✓ Both are open-world action games — sharing open world exploration, melee combat and post-apocalyptic world

≠ Stands apart with shooter, third-person shooting and adventure storytelling, while skipping survival mechanics

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: progression.

Genre100Combat100Visuals100World86Setting77Game mode51

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Steam Xbox

#12Grand Theft Auto IV

iRank90

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldExplorationThird Person

Steam👍 83%· 195KRAWG👍 96%· 103MC95

Year 2010Dev Rockstar Toronto · Rockstar GamesOn PC · PS · Xbox

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with open world exploration, melee combat and multiplayer gameplay

≠ Where it differs: brings adventure storytelling, third-person shooting and shooter, while skipping survival mechanics

The most grounded entry: heavier driving, a euphoria physics system that makes collisions and stumbles feel physical, and a city built for density rather than scale. Combat is serviceable. It is also the slowest — long drives between missions, friends who phone constantly asking for activities, and a tone considerably more sombre than the games around it.

It predates Darwin Project by 10 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Progression100Visuals100World80Game mode76Combat70

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Steam

#13Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

iRank93

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldExplorationThird Person

Steam👍 93%· 30KRAWG👍 93%· 3.1KMC94IGDB94· 4

Year 2002Dev Rockstar North · Rockstar GamesPlaytime ~2hOn PC · PS · Xbox

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with open world exploration, melee combat and multiplayer gameplay

≠ Stands apart with third-person shooting, adventure storytelling and shooter, while skipping survival mechanics

Tighter and more focused than the open worlds that followed it, with a compact city you learn by heart rather than by map marker. Driving carries most of the game. The shooting has aged badly — no proper cover, stiff aiming — and missions restart from the beginning, which turns a late failure into a long redo.

It predates Darwin Project by 18 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Progression100Visuals100Combat73Game mode66World66

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Steam PS

#14Jet Island

iRank96

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldExplorationSolo

Steam👍 96%· 1.7K

Dev Master IndiePlaytime ~2hOn PC

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with open world exploration, melee combat and multiplayer gameplay

≠ Where it differs: brings adventure storytelling, deep simulation and sports simulation, while skipping survival mechanics

Jet Island is a giant land mass, floating in space. Nearly 16 km across, stone structures and ruins are scattered across this ancient land. Scientists are baffled as to why a long forgotten alien race created this place. However, for those who have made the journey to this world, one thing is clear.

Genre100Combat100World100Progression100Game mode52

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Steam

#15SOS

iRank26

GenreActionSubgenreOpen World Action

MultiplayerMeleeOpen WorldExplorationThird Person

Steam👍 28%· 6.7KRAWG👍 23%· 26

Dev Outpost GamesPlaytime ~1hOn PC

✓ Fits the open-world action games cluster, with survival mechanics, open world exploration and melee combat

≠ Stands apart with battle royale tension, adventure storytelling and shooter, while skipping post-apocalyptic world

Congratulations, contestant! You’ve been chosen to participate in SOS. An interactive game show in which you and 15 other contestants will be dropped onto La Cuna Island with one simple goal – Get the hell off La Cuna Island.

Where it drifts furthest from Darwin Project: game mode.

Genre100World100Progression100Visuals100Combat62Game mode31

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Steam

Complete list of Darwin Project alternatives

The full catalog of games sharing gameplay DNA with Darwin Project, ordered from highest to lowest similarity score. Use the filters above to narrow down by genre, setting or game mode and find the alternative that best fits your playstyle.

Disney Infinity 2.0: Gold Edition

Adventure · Sandbox

Grand Theft Auto 2

Shooter · FPS

Crash Time 3

Racing · Simulation

Just Cause 3

Adventure · Shooter

Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered

Adventure

Sherlock Holmes: The Devil's Daughter

Adventure · Puzzle

LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Game

Adventure · Puzzle

Just Cause 2

Third-person shooter · Adventure

Grand Theft Auto

Adventure · Racing

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

Adventure · Racing

Saints Row: The Third

Shooter · Third-person shooter

Descenders

Sports · Racing

LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars

Adventure · Platformer

Hitman 3

Adventure · Shooter

Red Faction Guerrilla Steam Edition

Third-person shooter · Shooter

RAGE

FPS · Shooter

Need for Speed™

Racing · Simulation

Need for Speed: Rivals

Racing · Adventure

Bang-On Balls: Chronicles

Adventure · Sandbox

Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days

Shooter · Third-person shooter

POSTAL 2

Adventure · Sandbox

Crysis Warhead

Shooter · FPS

Gears 5

Adventure · Shooter

SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom - Rehydrated

Adventure · Platformer

Battlefield 1

Shooter · FPS

LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham

Adventure · Puzzle

LEGO® DC Super-Villains

Adventure

Assassin's Creed: Freedom Cry

Adventure

Toy Story 3: The Video Game

Adventure · Platformer

Mafia II (Classic)

Third-person shooter · Adventure

Strange Brigade

Adventure · Puzzle

Call of Juarez: Bound In Blood

Shooter · Adventure

Red Faction: Armageddon

Shooter · Third-person shooter

Crysis

Shooter · FPS

Mafia III

Adventure · Shooter

Explore games similar to Darwin Project by category

Rankings in the same genre

Best Open-World Action Games Best Action Games

Frequently asked questions

What is the best game similar to Darwin Project?: The closest game to Darwin Project is Metro Exodus, scoring 67/100 on our similarity scale. They share 6 gameplay attributes, including survival mechanics, multiplayer gameplay and melee combat. It's the most faithful alternative currently available.
What are the top games like Darwin Project?: The three closest games to Darwin Project are: 1. Metro Exodus (67/100, 6 shared attributes) 2. Far Cry New Dawn (67/100, 6 shared attributes) 3. Rise of the Tomb Raider (62/100, 6 shared attributes). All share Darwin Project's most important gameplay attributes, ranked out of 50 candidates across 7 dimensions.
Is Far Cry New Dawn similar to Darwin Project?: Yes — Far Cry New Dawn scores 67/100 similarity to Darwin Project. They share 6 attributes, including survival mechanics and multiplayer gameplay. There are some notable differences in pacing or mechanics.
What Survival games are similar to Darwin Project?: The best Survival games similar to Darwin Project are Metro Exodus, Far Cry New Dawn, Rise of the Tomb Raider and The Darkness II. All share the Survival genre alongside other key Darwin Project attributes like survival mechanics, multiplayer gameplay and melee combat.
How is similarity to Darwin Project calculated?: We compare Darwin Project against every game in our catalog using 7 gameplay attributes: genre, atmosphere, world structure, play modes, combat style, and more. Each category is weighted differently — genre matters more than visual style, for instance. The result is a 0-100 score reflecting how closely a game replicates the Darwin Project experience, not just whether it shares the same genre label.