Survival games that perform fighting mechanics against zombies and strange creatures are some of the most difficult out there, with DayZ being a perfect example. Still, many other games of the genre are not so popular, which doesn’t mean they won’t bring you tons of entertainment. That said, today we'll discover some cool Games Like DayZ you can play solo or in Co Op. Let’s get straight into it!

The Best Games like DayZ

Do you want to visit the most dangerous locations in the world of video games? Are you willing to join a group of strangers and other survivors to become the last man on the surface of Earth? Find food, collect your medical supplies and prepare your weapons. Let’s start with these adventures in these hostile lands!

State of Decay 2

• Release Date: May 22, 2018
• Developer: Undead Labs
• Publisher: Xbox Game Studios
• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Xbox One
• Metascore: 69

State of Decay 2 is a zombie survival game played from a third-person perspective with a great emphasis on scavenging for items. It is set in a zombie-infested world where you must build a community with up to three other players, manage resources and stay alive while you and your friends face a zombie horde. 

To survive in this open-world survival game, you need to build a shelter, then improve and reinforce it with several rooms and functions, such as sleeping quarters, medical bays, etc. It is also very important to balance the use of resources, such as ammo and construction materials, which you can get by trading with NPCs and scavenging. 

Each character in State of Decay 2 has their own fixed “traits,” which give them advantages or flaws. They also have an “attitude” parameter affected by the events of the post-apocalyptic world. 

Zombie hordes spawn constantly and infinitely and are attracted to noise. You can avoid them or face these frightening creatures directly. There are also special types of zombies, such as “Ferals,” which are animal-like creatures. 

State of Decay 2 Xbox Live CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

Key Features: 

• Multiple characters to manage, each with different abilities and traits. 
• Character-specific missions will provide you with unique materials to update your base.
• Endless challenges so you can play until your finger bleeds. 

Days Gone

• Release Date: April 16, 2019
• Developer: Bend Studio
• Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment
• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4
• Metascore: 76

Among zombie survival games, you can’t miss Days Gone. This is an action-adventure survival video game set in a post-apocalyptic world where a pandemic turned most of humanity into zombies. In this context, you take the role of Deacon St. John, an outlaw biker trying to survive the horde of zombies that roam the Oregon wilderness.

Days Gone is played from a third-person perspective. Here, you can explore the open-world map freely. In your wanderings, you’ll meet a lot of enemies. Your mission is to stay alive and find your wife who allegedly is alive in some part of this post-apocalyptic future. 

To face this zombie awakening, you can use a wide range of weapons, such as firearms, melee weapons, and craft weapons. But, if you prefer, you can use stealth to avoid killing zombies and/or Freakers. 

To move throughout this dangerous place, you can use a motorcycle, the main transportation mechanic in the game. But the bike constantly needs fuel and repair by using collected scraps. 

You can also complete quests and gain “camp credits”, which improves your trust with settlements. Leveling up the trust lets you purchase new weapons and motorcycle parts to enhance its durability, speed, and more. Another important mechanic is to gather resources and materials for the crafting system. 

There are also numerous side objectives, which you can complete to gain experience points. You’ll need them to unlock new abilities to develop your survival abilities. 

Days Gone is a challenging game that will require you to do everything you can to survive and build your path in search of your adorable companion. 

Days Gone Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

Key Features: 

• An open-world map featuring different locations and unique landscapes.
• Smart zombie hordes will become a huge challenge to you. 
• Motorcycle customization to improve speed, durability, and much more.

Project Zomboid

• Release Date: November 8, 2013
• Developer: The Indie Stone
• Publisher: The Indie Stone
• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Java, OS X, Linux
• Metascore: N/A

Project Zomboid is an open-world survival horror game played from an isometric perspective that takes place in a post-apocalyptic scenario infested with zombies. As with other games of the same genre, in Project Zombiod, the main goal is to survive as long as possible. 

For years, Project Zomboid has been available on Steam Early Access and continues in development until today. This is because the developers had their source code stolen.

Regarding gameplay, you must survive in a zombie-ridden area around Louisville, Kentucky, a zone in quarantine for the zombie apocalypse. This integrates several locations, such as the towns of West Point, and Muldraugh. 

Regarding the main character, it’s customizable, so you are free to choose their appearance, job, and traits. Then, you can select one of the four towns as a starter point. 

You also have to manage your needs, such as hunger, fatigue, and stress. To stay alive, you need to scavenge supplies and resources while avoiding zombies. But you can level up your skills to a better performance by reading magazines or completing activities.

Project Zomboid features an open-world sandbox mode, which allows you to personalize the game features, such as the number of zombies on the map, and the virus transmissibility. As the game progress, resources become scarce and the population decreases. 

Project Zomboid is a game for those who want to live their adventures in the zombie apocalypse. You can't go wrong with Project Zomboid if you’re one of the Dayz fans. Stay alive until the last dying light!

Project Zomboid Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

Key Features: 

• A fictional place is known as Knox County, a region full of bloodthirsty creatures. 
• Interesting elements such as exploration and searching are fundamental to survival. 
• Challenge scenarios that differ from the regular gameplay.

Dead Island

• Release Date: September 6, 2011
• Developer: Techland
• Publisher: Deep Silver
• Platforms: Microsoft Windows,  Linux, OS X, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
• Metascore: 80

Dead Island is a survival game with heavy RPG elements that puts you in a zombie-infested world where survival is based mostly on melee combat. Dead Island focuses on four survivors and their attempts to escape from the tropical island of Banoi.

The game takes place in a sprawling open-world divided into several areas. Your main mission is to explore all these areas of the island from a first-person perspective, trying to find resources that help you escape and preserve your life. 

As you progress through the game, you earn experience points by killing enemies and completing tasks. With enough XP, you level up and gain health. You can also invest points into a skill tree and improve your skills.

In combat, you can perform either melee or firearms attacks. Melee weapons cover a big part of the game. Regarding firearms, they are only available since the second half of the game. You can find weapons in predetermined zones of the island and on some enemies. Weapons can be upgraded three times to enhance their stats and be modded through a blueprint to provide special features.     

Gamers who want to experience a zombie outbreak will love this story featuring four humans doing their best to survive and escape from the Dead Island. 

Dead Island - Definitive Collection EU Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

Key Features: 

• First-person melee combat featuring dozens of weapons.
• RPG features for character development.
• A 4-player Co-Op mode.

The Long Dark

• Release Date: August 1, 2017
• Developer: Hinterland Studio
• Publisher: Hinterland Studio
• Platforms: Microsoft Windows,  Linux, macOS, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch
• Metascore: 77

The Long Dark is a survival single-player game played from a first-person perspective that puts you in the shoes of the pilot Will Mackenzie, who has crash-landed his plane and must survive in a harsh environment. 

The game takes place in the frigid Canadian wilderness just after a geomagnetic storm. Just like other great games of the survival genre, The Long Dark integrates survival features, such as hunger, thirst, caloric intake, body temperature, fatigue, wildlife, and much more. 

There are two main modes: Survival mode, and Story mode. The first is set in an open world where you can choose in which zone of the map you spawn. The goal is simple: just to survive as long as possible by scavenging resources, hunting, and using the environment to stay alive. The survival mode also features a day-night cycle, which determines all the aspects of survival.

The latter mode is an episodic scenario that involves survival features but no permanent death. This mode is also called “Wintermute.” It introduces Will Mackenzie to his path to surviving in the cold. 

The Long Dark Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys.

Key Features: 

• A system where you must manage hunger, thirst, stress, and body temperature.
• A huge world you can explore freely to scavenge supplies and resources.
• Permadeath is the main feature in which every decision counts.

Fallout 76

• Release Date: November 14, 2018
• Developer: Bethesda Game Studios
• Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
• Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
• Metascore: 52

Fallout 76 is an action role-playing game and the sixth main installment of the Fallout franchise. F76 is the first game of Bethesda to present multiplayer adventures.

The game introduces a creative world map – Appalachia – that is four times bigger than the map in Fallout 4. It is a recreation of “West Virginia” and introduces places similar to the real locations of the zone.

Fallout 76 includes an improved version of the SPECIAL progression system, where you must level up the seven categories available: strength, endurance, perception, charisma, intelligence, agility, and luck. As you get skill points, you’ll be able to scale attributes.

Fallout 76 Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

Key Features: 

• A huge map inspired by the real map of “West Virginia.” 
• A S.P.E.C.I.A.L progression system with several attributes, such as strength and endurance.
• A free exploration that can uncover parts of the storyline.  

7 Days to Die

• Release Date: November 22, 2014
• 7 Day to Die Developer: The Fun Pimps
• Publisher: Telltale Publishing
• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, PS 4, Xbox One
• Metascore: 45

7 Days to Die is a survival horror video game that takes place in the aftermath of a nuclear Third World War. Most of the world has been destroyed, except for some areas where the game is set. In this context, you must survive by scavenging resources to fend off thousands of zombies.

Limited resources include food, water, weapons, ammo, and a shelter which help you avoid zombies and survive as long as possible. Objects degrade through use, so you’ll be forced to constantly make or find new ones. That being said, the game integrates crafting mechanics, so you’d better collect materials from nature and the remnants of the civilization.  

The zombie hordes are affected by a day/night cycle. During the day, hordes move considerably slower, but at night they become feral. Besides, as the game progresses, more aggressive threats begin to appear. At this point, you can avoid the unnecessary clash through distraction and stealth. 

Navezgane, the fictional county where the game takes place, is randomly-generated, so it’s possible to spawn in any part of the map. Just like Minecraft, 7 Days to Die is a voxel-based game, letting you easily build and destroy some parts of the scenario. 

7 Days to Die Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

Key Features: 

• A huge world with rich and unique environments that offer freedom sense. 
• A crafting system that allows you to craft and repair clothes, armor, tools, vehicles, and more.
• Five major disciplines to increase with a multitude of perks under each attribute.  

SCUM

• Release Date: August 29, 2018
• Developer: Gamepires
• Publisher: Gamepires
• Platforms: Microsoft Windows
• Metascore: N/A

Scum is a multiplayer online survival game set in an open world that follows 64 players trying to survive and get off the island where they’re trapped. To do this, players must remove an implant from their bodies.

Through your participation in several action-driven events, you get fame points, which you can use to be cloned back if you die, or trade them in some safe zones scattered around the world. 

The characters have four main attributes: strength, dexterity, constitution, and intelligence. These stats simulate the natural organic processes of the human body, such as the capability of running. You can track them via the “BCU Monitor,” where you can check the vitamins, calories, health, and other stats to keep your body in good condition. You can delve deeper into these aspects and improve your stamina, speed, etcetera. 

SCUM has a wide variety of survival mechanics, highlighting its unique metabolism system where consuming nutrients, vitamins, and minerals is a fundamental part of the gameplay, just like in real life. 

Scum Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys.

Key Features: 

• Dozens of complex systems allow you to go deep into the management of your character. 
• A massive map you can traverse and explore that includes dense forests, beaches, towns, and airfields.
• PvP Network events to be whisked to enclosed areas of the island.

Hunt: Showdown

• Release Date: August 27, 2019
• Developer: Crytek
• Publisher: Crytek|Koch Media
• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PS4, Xbox One
• Metascore: 81

Hunt: Showdown is a first-person shooter survival video game that puts you in the shoes of a bounty hunter who must kill one or two mythical monsters to get a bounty, which is fundamental to survive in the world. To find out the location of this mythical monster, you can work alone or with up to two other players and find clues together. 

The action in Hunt Showdown takes place in a medium-size open world full of other dangerous threats and monsters, such as Hives, Grunts, and Armoreds. You and your small squad can use various weapons to defeat the enemies, such as shotguns and crossbows. But keep in mind that ammo is scarce, so you must rely on making your shots count. 

After killing the boss and getting the bounty, you need to survive until you can reach one of the extraction points. The location of these points is randomly generated on the map. Besides, getting the bounty to reveal your position to all other players as well as the approximate location of nearby players.

Hunt: Showdown also features a battle royale mode called “Quickplay.” It lasts 15 minutes, in which you must find an energy wellspring on the map and defend it from hostile attacks. Hunt: Showdown is a game that Dayz players and new players will love. Immerse yourself solo or with your team in this experience to survive in this persistent world and become the best hunter.

Hunt Showdown Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

Key Features: 

• Three magnificent maps in which you should hunt a mythical monster.
• A multiplayer mode that can be played solo against other players or in teams. 
• A huge number of clues are scattered on the map, which is necessary to find the creature. 

The Forest

• Release Date: April 30, 2018
• Developer: Endnight Games
• Publisher: Endnight Games
• Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4
• Metascore: 83

The Forest is a survival video game that takes place on a remote forested island where you, as Eric LeBlanc, must fight off against monsters while looking for your son Timmy after a plane crash.

The game is set in an open world and features non-linear gameplay from a first-person perspective. Besides, in The Forest, you don’t have missions or quests to complete. You’re free to make whatever you want, making your own survival decisions. 

However, to increase your chances of staying alive, you must create a shelter, some tools, and weapons to face the island's monsters. These include the tribe of cannibalistic mutants, who live in villages on the surface and deep caves beneath the peninsula. As you progress through the game, you’ll encounter increasingly bizarre mutations, including powerful mutants and deformed creatures.

There’s also a survival guide that allows you to place blueprints for different structures that can help you stay alive. Once you place the blueprint, you must gather the materials to build the structures, such as rocks, sticks, and logs. The guide also has a “to-do list” with general goals you should complete.

All the materials are placed in your inventory, which has a realistic design that shows where each item is stored. It also includes a crafting system based on your knowledge and experimentation with different tools and items. 

The Forest Steam CD Key is available on RoyalCDKeys. 

Key Features: 

• A large and complex terrestrial biome you can explore freely.
• The possibility of building a base, a shelter, and other useful structures. 
• A clan of mutant genetic enemies is the island's main challenge.