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Top Crafting Games For PC & Steam in 2025

June 30, 2025

Something about crafting survival games allows players to experience a thorough preparation of their own base, protecting them from the dangers of the world. It feels like a playground felt in childhood – perhaps that’s why it’s so popular.

In our selection of top crafting games for PC & Steam we would like to suggest some titles in different categories that you can find interesting. Here’s a table of contents to navigate the blog post quickly and jump straight to the most interesting title for you:

Best Crafting Games on PC and Steam

These games are considered some of the best in the genre and are available to play on PC PC/Steam. Have a look at some of the best crafting games that PC has to offer.

Ways of Alchemy

Genre: Alchemy RPG | Developer: RocketBrush Games

Ways of Alchemy screenshot depicting a crafting process. Game made by RocketBrush Games
Potions are not the only thing you can craft in Ways of Alchemy.

Come to think of it, alchemy is the ultimate crafting and farming setting. See for yourself: you have to grow ingredients, gather the materials, find additional tools like a cauldron and a mortar, brew potions and sell them. You can do it in Ways of Alchemy, an upcoming card game that goes much further than just crafting potions, though. It’s a great example of the best survival crafting games, with added layers of strategy and danger.

In addition to regular days of alchemy, you have to seek out new artifacts, hire mercenaries and adventurers to send them to dangerous expeditions for precious rewards, avoid Tax Inspection and the Inquisitor – tons of stuff to do! Some obstacles will inevitably appear in front of you: hunger, crimes, lack of money and customers. Luckily, they all can be avoided with proper management and thought put into it.

But at its core, Ways of Alchemy, of course, is a chill crafting game with survival elements that we can’t recommend enough! It’s also a gorgeous-looking game with fantastic art inspired by medieval times, focusing on the narrative aspect and providing you with various options to choose from during the playthrough.

Key Features:

  • Non-linear narrative experience: With about 13 endings to reach out and discover.
  • Heaps of ingredients and materials: 97 overall, 12 of which you can create and farm all by yourself
  • Striking art style: Pleasant to look at, feels authentic and immersive.
  • Survival elements are complex, but not too punishing: You can make a mistake once to learn, there’s a pause button and a grimoire containing info on different things you discover – it may be tough to survive, but totally fair.
  • Experiments everywhere: Don’t have a recipe? Adapt – who knows what you can discover by trying things out…

Satisfactory

Genre: Factory Builder | Developer: Coffee Stain Studios

Satisfactory screenshot showing a large construction of a powerhouse-looking building
Looks too complex, but if you spend an hour in the game, you'll understand it quite well! (Image source: Steam)

Still to this day, Satisfactory remains one of the best crafting games, especially if you’re into automation of your processes. It's a game about turning an untouched alien region into a sprawling conveyor belt that works like a charm. 

The fun comes from solving logistics issues and finding the perfect way. The automation we mentioned is so fun as soon as you learn to do it properly. Slowly but surely you start automating your entire workflow… Until you’re turning around and seeing gigantic factories instead of small places where you manually mined copper in the past. This is where you can stop and say, “I did a great job!”.

The beauty of Satisfactory is in its math-driven chaos. As you optimize production lines, discover alternate recipes (just like in Ways of Alchemy) and upgrade power grids, it becomes less of a crafting game and more of a gorgeous painting, an ode to your brains and automation skills. Think of it as a sandbox, except it was made for adult engineers who can’t stop finding a better solution to a logistics problem they encountered...

Key Features:

  • 4-player online co-op with shared factory building: You can do it on your own or with friends, depending on what’s more fun to you.
  • Zipline and jetpack traversal for vertical megabases: Feels pretty cool to navigate areas like that!
  • Eye-catching visuals: Gorgeous biomes with biome-specific resources and hazards

Terraria

Genre: 2D Sandbox Adventure | Developer: Re-Logic

Terraria screenshot showing a dark night and enemies
Terraria has a very nice pixelated look that works incredibly nice with the overall art style. (Image source: Steam)

An absolute classic that refuses to age, Terraria continues to be one of the best survival crafting games on Steam with updates, community mods and in-game tweaks.. On the surface, it's a 2D version of Minecraft. But look closer… And you’ll find complex gameplay progression systems, layered crafting trees and chaotic combat that reminds you of Castlevania.

What makes it timeless, though? Perhaps it’s a balance: freedom to build constructions in the sky or run dark, mysterious dungeons, grow gorgeous gardens or trigger a blood moon invasion – but no spoilers! Every material has uses and the crafting system always feels one step deeper than you could possibly expect.

It’s a great game that manages to be both pleasant and surprising, so be ready to spend thousands of hours in it!

Key Features:

  • 4-player local and 16-player online co-op: It’s simply very fun to do it all together.
  • Biome-specific crafting sets: With tons of stuff to discover
  • Extensive boss fights: Leading to fun combat and useful tools.

Multiplayer and Co-Op Crafting Games

Crafting and survival games work so well in multiplayer: now you have more than one pair of hands to construct, grow and expand your base with! Let’s discover some of the best multiplayer crafting games down here: 

Minecraft

Genre: Sandbox Survival | Developer: Mojang Studios

Minecraft screenshot depicing a siege of a cozy looking player's base.
Doesn't get more classic than this! (Image source: Microsoft)

Surprised? Neither are we. What else can we say? The GOAT still stands tall. In 2025, Minecraft is less a game and more a medium and a place to be a part of. A place to craft, survive, invent, construct and explore. You can program complex machinery with redstone, erect a 1:1 recreation of one of the world’s seven wonders or just speedrun your way to the end – and it will always be fun. It’s undoubtedly one of the best multiplayer crafting games, offering limitless creative potential to you.

Perhaps the secret of Minecraft is simplicity plus freedom. Crafting in Minecraft is both beginner-friendly and endlessly deep. And when it comes to freedom, go wherever you feel like it, both vertically and horizontally! 

The most recent updates introduced auto-crafting blocks, refined mob behavior and biome-centric materials. So it continues to expand and evolve in ways that keep the original players hooked while welcoming newcomers who have just seen a movie adaptation of it on a family break.

Key Features:

  • Modding ecosystem that reinvents gameplay entirely: Allows you to role-play or do things that were not intended by Mojang at all. Good things, hopefully!
  • Adventure mode: Fun mechanics and curious events.
  • As popular as Tetris: At this point, Minecraft is not only one of the best survival games, it’s a phenomenon.

Grounded

Genre: Survival Adventure | Developer: Obsidian Entertainment

Grounded screenshot showing a gameplay process and preparation for building construction
Grounded feels like a game you come up with when you're young. (Image source: Steam)

Grounded was developed by Obsidian Entertainment, veterans of old-school role-playing games. Talk about changing! But the concept they came up with is rather unique and makes you remember role-playing games you had back in your childhood. It also happens to be one of the best co op crafting games that are still popular and regularly played.

Your house’s backyards turn into a gameplay area and ants and other insects turn into dangerous enemies. Shrunk to insect-size, your survival relies on crafting armor out of, say, beetle remnants. You also have to forge your weapons from any debris you can find lying around, like a spider’s broken legs. What’s this? You’re afraid of spiders? Don’t worry – you can disable their visuals in game settings.

The game is not only about learning your environment, it is about building – base-building in nooks and crannies of a backyard can be fairly relaxing and cozy. Each creature has behaviors to exploit/avoid and the crafting loop is fueled by constant discovery.

Key Features:

  • Creature-specific gear: Makes it interesting to discover new stuff by hunting the bugs.
  • Dynamic day-night survival conditions: Better be ready for everything!
  • Ziplines, trampolines and bug-riding mechanics: To make sure moving around is fun and engaging.

Dune: Awakening

Genre: MMO Survival | Developer: Funcom

Dune Awakening screenshot showing a giant worm in sand environments
After all these years, you can finally experience this particular encounter personally. (Image source: Steam)

Dune universe fans are feasting in recent years. Dune: Awakening is a unique game from our list, since it’s a massive multiplayer title. It takes the harsh mystique of the planet named Arrakis and turns it into a sand-swept survival game. 

Spice-fueled tech trees, deadly sandworms and guild-based territory warfare all make up for a very challenging crafting/survival experience. The crafting and survival here is not very cozy. It actually requires you to think ahead and plan everything you possibly can.

In Awakening, you’ll build desert settlements, extract resources while dodging sandstorms and trade in this ever-changing spice economy. The MMO aspect means that your gear, alliances and even your water supply are constantly under threat of attack by other real-life players.

Ever wanted to feel what it’s like to be on Arrakis and fight for your life? If yes, then this is the best game for you and one of the best multiplayer crafting games with a sci-fi edge

Key Features:

  • Spice-based progression tree: Authentic Dune-like approach, it’s a Dune game after all.
  • Player-controlled economy and housing: Just like in EVE Online!
  • Permadeath zones with rare resource risk/reward: To make sure there’s something to lose after all.

Single Player & Solo Crafting Games

Single-player crafting can also be fun, thanks to story modes and other features. Let's discuss some of the games that excel at this type of experience.

Atomfall

Genre: Narrative Survival | Developer: Rebellion

Atomfall screenshot depicing a tool used for crafting
Can you guess what is this tool used for? (Image source: Steam)

Set in an alternate 1950s Britain after a nuclear disaster, Atomfall is one of the best single player crafting games that combines everything you may think of as you read about its Cold War setting: tension, paranoia and tea. 

You’ll search around ruined countryside towns, craft radiation gear and decide if you want to help, avoid or eliminate all the NPCs you encounter on your way. Traditionally for the paranoia-fueled genre of the setting, the government isn't quite what it seems — and neither are your neighbors.

It’s a great premise that blends so well with single-player crafting experiences. Crafting becomes gritty: various working tools, chemically-treated bandages and questionable potions you may want to avoid. It’s not cozy, but it’s grounded in retro-sci-fi charm, which is incredibly attractive. Exploration reveals both resources and conspiracy threads, forcing you to craft not only tools to survive, but also conspiracy ideas!

Key Features:

  • 1950s alt-history setting with real-world locations: A unique Fallout-in-London take on the genre.
  • Narrative branching based on alliances and discoveries: It’s not only about simple crafting; it has a peculiar story to follow.
  • Crafting includes social tools like bribes and disguises: Makes it both fun and grounded, despite the tongue-in-cheek vibes you may get from the game’s aesthetic.

Subnautica

Genre: Ocean Survival | Developer: Unknown Worlds

Subnautica screenshot depicting an underwater player base
Subnautica allows you to build bases underwater, which is a unique approach to base-building. (Image source: Steam)

Few games make you feel the way Subnautica does – for some players, it’s probably as horrifying as the Silent Hill series. Descending into alien waters, unsure what waits below, scares pretty much every human being — this natural fear remains creepy naturally. You’ll craft submarines, underwater bases, pressure suits, and tools to survive the ecosystem, but never fully master it.

Its masterful blend of exploration and isolation makes it a standout among the best single player crafting games. Crafting here serves storytelling: every scanner room, every prawn suit upgrade reveals more of the vast ocean’s secrets. 

The upcoming sequel, Subnautica 2, may offer a fresh and unique experience, but the original still offers some of the best survival pacing in gaming and some genuinely impressive ideas on how to tie in our human primordial instincts and fears with gameplay mechanics.

Key Features:

  • Seamless underwater base-building: Truly a unique take on the genre that hasn't been explored before.
  • Oxygen, pressure, and creature-driven survival systems: It’s all scarier than any monsters, zombies or other common enemies
  • Scanning to unlock new blueprints, creatures, and lore: It starts a bit rough but gets more and more interesting as you continue your research

Survival, Base Building & Sandbox Games

Technically, all games in our list are survival and have base-building, but some of them excelled even further, focusing on creating a truly unique place of your own.

Enshrouded

Genre: Fantasy Survival RPG | Developer: Keen Games

Enshourded screenshot showing a gorgeous view
The world of Enshrouded looks awe-inspiring. (Image source: Steam)

The best way to describe Enshrouded is Valheim meets Zelda. Got you hooked?

Set in a cursed world full of fog and despair, it fuses action RPG combat with deep and fun building mechanics, along with great co-op potential. You will have to build a castle in a haunted land and unlock skills and power-ups like fireballs or stealth movement.

Its gameplay is vertical, with traversal skills and climbable terrain adding a great touch to the world’s exploration. The fog, named Shroud in the game, is very deadly, hiding corrupted enemies and rare loot — venture in too deep, and you risk everything. All these unique features place Enshrouded among best games with crafting.

Key Features:

  • 16-player co-op with class progression: Perfect for big playing sessions with friends
  • Fully destructible terrain and voxel-based building: A unique take on the world’s interactivity allows you to do whatever you want.
  • Dynamic world events tied to crafting milestones: It rarely gets boring if you manage to grasp how the game functions.

The Alters

Genre: Narrative Survival | Developer: 11 bit studios

The Alters screenshot depicting a player base with several NPCs
Yes, you can play beerpong with your own versions - a dream game! (Image source: Steam)

The Alters is a surprise hit by the creators of This War of Mine, another project that is one of the top games with best crafting systems. In it, survival isn’t just about staying alive — it’s about managing the… fractured versions of yourself! You’re stranded on a dying planet and your only companions are “Alters,” clones of you with alternate life paths and personalities. Some are pretty helpful. Others are not quite.

Crafting is maintained around managing and upgrading your base, building stations for research, production, food and power — all that while managing the psychological toll of leadership. 

The twist is that the emotional and moral consequences echo louder than resource counts as you continue to spawn more and more versions of yourself. Basically, it’s a game of human logistics which has a dark, humorous twist to it and adds the additional layer of tension.

Key Features:

  • Clone classes with unique abilities: Who could’ve thought they have a Botanist or a Technician in them!
  • Morale systems affecting base performance: Finding the perfect balance is essential.
  • Narrative branches that drastically change mid-game outcomes: No spoilers, but there are some surprises; it’s not a simple survival game!

FAQ:

1. What are the top survival crafting games on Steam in 2025?

Some of the best survival crafting games on Steam in 2025 include Sons of the Forest, Palworld, Enshrouded, Valheim and The Long Dark. These titles offer a mix of exploration, base building, crafting depth and challenging survival elements.

2. Which survival games offer the most in-depth base building and crafting mechanics?

Rust, ARK: Survival Evolved and 7 Days to Die stand out for their intricate base-building systems, while The Forest shine with realistic crafting that ties closely into survival gameplay.

3. What are the best co-op survival crafting games to play with friends?

Top co-op survival crafting games in 2025 include Valheim, Enshrouded, Don't Starve Together, Raft and Grounded. These games offer robust multiplayer experiences with shared progression, exploration, and creative building.

4. Are there any great free survival crafting games on Steam?

Yes, Unturned remains a popular free survival crafting game on Steam. While not as graphically advanced, it features base building, exploration, and multiplayer survival in a blocky but surprisingly deep environment.

Why Crafting Games Are Still So Popular?

Hopefully, you enjoyed this list and found a couple of titles you can play and have fun with. Crafting games can be immensely fun, even if you’re on your own playing it – it only adds to the atmosphere and makes you feel as if you’re creating your very special place.

Survival games remain popular because they offer an engaging mix of challenge, players’ agency and immersion. Starting with something like an inherited shack and working toward a better future creates a satisfying loop of progression and reward. 

We managed to gain a lot of experience from developing Ways of Alchemy, which at its core is a survival game dedicated to a medieval experience of an alchemist that crafts potions, seeks out artifacts and grows an estate to a prosperous one. If you’re looking for a collaborator to create a crafting game, we’d love to help you out! 

We have experience in many game development services, from UI and sound design to 2D animation and 3D sculpting. Feel free to reach us at hello@rocketbrush.com to discuss out potential collaboration.

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