Survival games have been one of the most popular game genres in recent years. Some focus on a specific setting such as a zombie apocalypse, or a deserted island that the player must survive and thrive, in. Others combine multiplayer aspects with survival, as either a co-op game or as a PvP experience.

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Almost every survival game has some form of hunger and thirst mechanic. Some are simple in nature, just requiring the player to eat and drink now and then. Others are a critical part of the survival gameplay loop and result in the death of the player if they fail to eat or drink regularly.

7 The Front

Giving Useful Buffs

The Front is a competitive PvP survival game, with some excellent base-building mechanics. The gameplay takes place on a large open-world map. Best played as part of a small team, the PvP in this game can be brutal and costly.

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However, from a survival viewpoint, The Front includes all the general gameplay loops people expect from a survival game. This includes the need to keep fed and hydrated. Running out of food or drink will result in death. The cooking system in The Front is quite detailed, with advanced recipes becoming unlocked at later levels.

Many of the late-game foods offer substantial buffs. Typically, the player will need to gather roots, berries, and vegetables, hunt game, and catch fish to cook the best food. There is also the option of setting up farm plots to grow food. The Front makes this list because staving off hunger and eating the right food is intrinsic to performing well in PvP.

6 7 Days To Die

You Must Eat To Survive

Food and also drink are very important in this zombie survival game. Poor hydration will eventually lead to death, and it can be very hard to find enough to drink in the early game. Food has two functions in 7 Days To Die. Firstly, food is used to restore maximum health and aid in maintaining full stamina. Secondly, in the late game, food gives beneficial buffs.

Basic foods can be looted from points of interest, such as cans of stew and tuna. However, this basic food will barely keep the player alive, and in some cases, may actually give them dysentery, which will need to be cured. More advanced foods are cooked, and the player will need to unlock the required cooking skills to gain access to the best recipes. 7 Days To Die gets a place on this list because, without clean and sanitary food in this game, the player dies.

5 Sons Of The Forest

Eat Food Or Die

Hunger and thirst are a constant problem when playing Sons of the Forest. Where some survival games make food and drink a tertiary consideration, it is very easy to die of starvation or thirst in this game. However, it can be very hard to gather enough food and drink in the early game. Especially as the player’s inventory drops on death, and it is common to be killed frequently at the start of the game.

Later in the game, the player has the option to hunt and fish, grow crops, and also trap small game animals, making the food situation easier. Food can be dried as well, to preserve it. Sons of the Forest is on this list because, just like in real life, hunger will lead to death.

4 Project Zomboid

Complex Cooking And Nutrition System

The food in Project Zomboid is quite complex. The nutrition system applies states to the player based on the nutrition of the food eaten. There are 4 contributing factors to the nutrition of food in Project Zomboid. These are carbohydrates, proteins, fats. and calories.

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The combination of these factors defines the overall nutritional value of the food the player is eating. If the player eats too much food that is fattening, it will impact their speed, endurance, and even their experience gain.

There are certain skills that impact how the player can judge the effectiveness of food, such as Nutritionist, enabling the player to see the nutritional value of all food. Project Zomboid gets a place on this list for being a game that allows the player to get fat and then punishes them for it.

3 The Long Dark

Just Don’t Starve

The Long Dark is renowned for its tough survival gameplay. Food in this game is vital for long-term survival. Unfortunately, the players can’t just eat anything they come across that might be considered food. Many of the raw ingredients must be cooked before they can be consumed.

Furthermore, many foodstuffs go bad over time in The Long Dark. For example, eating meat that has gone bad has a chance of giving the player food poisoning. Overall, The Long Dark does an excellent job of making hunger and thirst an important part of the survival game loop.

2 Valheim

Timed Stomach Filling

Players won’t starve if they don’t eat in this co-op survival game. However, food is a must-have consumable to proceed beyond the early game stage. As the player progresses from biome to biome, they will unlock more advanced recipes, and also more options for farming and growing food.

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In Valheim, food gives buffs that are very important for combat. These buffs are linear in nature. When the player first eats food, giving a buff, they get the full buff. As time goes by, the effectiveness of the food and the value of the buff decreases until more food is eaten once the player is hungry enough to do so. This makes growing food and cooking an intrinsic part of the gameplay in Valheim. Most players will breed food animals and grow crops in their base in Valheim.

1 Scum

Very Detailed Simulated Metabolism

Scum takes the top place on this list because it has a very complex hunger/thirst mechanic and very detailed nutrition requirements to keep a player healthy. The player has a fully simulated metabolism that requires the right balance of carbohydrates, protein, minerals, vitamins, and fats to ensure optimal health.

If the player’s metabolism is not balanced in Scum, this leads to a deficiency of some sort. This deficiency can have an impact on the body of the player, affecting many factors such as their walk and run speed, overall health, and energy. Few other games simulate a complex metabolism to the same level that Scum does.

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