Valheim vs Enshrouded vs RuneScape: Dragonwilds: Let's settle this

Attention fellow base-building ghouls and survival masochists, I've got good news and bad news. Starting with the good: Some of the best survival crafting games are no longer in early access, and have hit their 1.0 milestones. The bad news? Three of them piled into the same one-month window.

I've seen a million posts all asking the same advice: "Should I get Valheim, RuneScape Dragonwilds, or Enshrouded first?" And as someone who can't stop sinking hundreds of hours into mining the same three types of rock, I'm qualified enough to help you decide. I've also recruited my colleague, Chris Livingston, who is always up to in-game riffraff resulting in funny animal encounters or injuries like some sort of bizarre, survival-crafting Jeff Corwin.

Comparing Valheim, Dragonwilds, and Enshrouded

We've got our own opinions on who's who among the recent survival crafting 1.0 launches, but maybe you just need something to compare features before getting into recommendations. It's by no means everything included across all three games, but here's a quick comparison of the differences and similarities between features and default settings in Valheim, RuneScape: Dragonwilds, and Enshrouded.

Valheim vs Enshrouded vs RuneScape: Dragonwilds

Most traditional do-this-or-else survival game

🥇 Dragonwilds
🥈Valheim🥉Enshrouded

Mining sucks, and our debate on a winner here turned into "which is the least terrible" instead of an argument over the best. Hunting ore in Valheim's swampy biome was the worst, and stingy Dragonwilds nodes were second worst.

Least terrible mining

🥇 Enshrouded
🥈Dragonwilds🥉Valheim

Mining sucks, and our debate on a winner here turned into "which is the least terrible" instead of an argument over the best. Hunting ore in Valheim's swampy biome was the worst, and stingy Dragonwilds nodes were second worst.

The one for building sickos

🥇 Enshrouded
🥈Valheim 🥉Dragonwilds

Enshrouded is the best set of Legos, hands down. It has blocks in all shapes and sizes, tons of furniture, terraforming, NPC villagers, and even tools for adding a sprinkle of decay to buildings.

Excellence in hunting you for sport (raids)

🥇 Dragonwilds
🥈Valheim

Valheim raids are a close second (a great way to get resources delivered to your front door) but there's something rad about a dragon boss showing up at your house and carpetbombing you with poison while you're trying to get cozy.

Best 'There and back again' (exploration)

🥇Valheim
🥈Enshrouded🥉Dragonwilds

The handcrafted worlds of Enshrouded and Dragonwilds are both awesome, but setting out on a voyage into the procedural world of Valheim is a mysterious thrill each and every time, which makes coming home again all the more satisfying.

Most deserving of a Michelin Star

🥇Enshrouded
🥈Dragonwilds🥉Valheim

Enshrouded wins us over with its cooking mechanics—holding your own meaty kebabs over an open flame is a nice touch—but this was a close one. The multi-step process in Dragonwilds is fun to micromanage, while Valheim's system feels the most rewarding.

Valheim vs Enshrouded vs Dragonwilds: Our picks

I've played Enshrouded since it launched in early access, and it claimed the top spot in my list of survival crafting favorites long before we even had a 1.0 release date. Valheim is a classic, and Dragonwilds has grown on me, but nothing beats Enshrouded's base building or acrobatic combat. I'll never get tired of surprising enemies from the sky with my glider.

I like Dragonwilds and Enshrouded is really special, but Valheim is easily my favorite—it's not just a great survival game but something I'm sure I'll keep returning to year after year. It's especially great if you think you don't like survival games, because here's the thing: you do.

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