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Contents hide The Universim (2019) What makes Universim a good alternative? Terraria (2011) What makes Terraria a good alternative? Satisfactory (2020) What makes Satisfactory a good alternative? No Man’s Sky (2016) What makes No Man’s Sky a good alternative? Niche, a genetics survival game (2016) What makes Niche a good alternative? Kerbal Space Program (2015) What makes Kerbal Space Program a good alternative? Equilinox (2018) What makes Equilinox a good alternative? Eco (2018) What makes Eco a good alternative?

Looking for games like Spore?Spore is an evolution and god sim, tossed together with a focus on evolution. While Spore offers a unique experience, there are some games out there that will scratch the same itch if you love Spore.

Spore is a God game, which means you are the one in charge of this fictional world. Spore has a few phases, starting at the beginning with a small organism that must evolve and become intelligent. From there, you can grow to conquer the world you’re on and then you can ascend to space to spread your influence.

Spore has more of an emphasis on customisation, letting you change how your creatures, vehicles, buildings, and spaceships look using a wide array of tools and parts. In no particular order, here are eight games to play that are like Spore.

The Universim (2019)

Where Spore is focused on a broader scale of evolution and civilisation creation, Universim takes a more narrow approach. In Universim, you focus on the development and management of a single planet and its evolving civilization. You guide your subjects through various stages of development, from the Stone Age to the Space Age. Universim combines planet management with similar god-game elements, which is where it is similar to Spore.

What makes Universim a good alternative?

As a god game, you want to feel like you are in control in the same ways as Spore. Universim does this in a different way, but it is close enough to Spore you will definitely get the same enjoyment out of it if it’s that aspect of the game you enjoy the most. Universim takes you through the entire civilisation cycle, so get the wheel spinning and see what sort of world you can weave.

Terraria (2011)

While not a direct comparison, Terraria features a sandbox world where you can gather resources, craft, and build structures. Terraria and Spore are only similar in a handful of ways, and mostly this comes down to the creativity of the individual and how the games handle exploration. Terraria isn’t a God game, but it does have a lot of ways to play in its sandbox world.

What makes Terraria a good alternative?

If you enjoy the sense of exploration and creativity offered by Spore, Terraria will tick a lot of boxes. Terraria isn’t a God game, which means you aren’t in total control of creatures or other aspects of the game. Your character can influence the world a lot by mining and building various things. There’s no aspect of evolution or civilisation building in Terraria, but it will give you a similar sense of wonder.

Satisfactory (2020)

Satisfactory is all about world and base building. You are on an alien planet and your job is to create the most efficient factory and base to essentially frack the planet until nothing is left. During this somewhat questionable endeavour, you will be facing off against the native creatures of the planet. While this isn’t the same sort of civilisation-guiding game that Spore is, it does have a vast alien world to explore and effectively colonise as you continue to find new resources and build bases and factories to keep production chugging along.

What makes Satisfactory a good alternative?

Satisfactory takes a much different approach to Spore, but it does put you in the driving seat when it comes to what exactly you want to do to this alien planet and biome you’re in. There’s a ton of freedom when it comes to base customisation, and so you can roleplay your own tiny civilisation in that sense. You start off small and your base and factories grow as you learn more about the world and how to make things run in the most efficient – or convoluted, if that’s you’re thing – way possible.

No Man’s Sky (2016)

If you like the sense of wonder and discovery offered by Spore, then several aspects of No Man’s Sky will pique your interest. One of the best features that can draw some similarities to Spore is the scanning and naming system of No Man’s Sky. Each place you visit, there will be local fauna and flora to scan, and more importantly, name. This gives the game a feeling of customisation and discovery that can be as serious or silly as you want it. Just found a new type of rock? Called the ‘Mr the Rock’. While it doesn’t have the same evolution mechanics, it does provide a similar sense of exploration and discovery. Since the entire universe of No Man’s Sky is procedurally generated, there are infinite possibilities.

What makes No Man’s Sky a good alternative?

As time marches on since the official launch of No Man’s Sky, several free updates and additions have been put into the game, greatly expanding what was already there. With base building and space exploration, No Man’s Sky offers a ton of possibilities with its endless universe. In No Man’s Sky, you could settle on a planet and try to build your own base and see how things progress. There is no evolutionary aspect of No Man’s Sky, but there’s a lot of customisation and so much to discover. Why not play in co-op and see what you and your small colony can come up with?

Niche, a genetics survival game (2016)

Niche is a turn-based strategy game combined with simulation and roguelike elements. In Niche, you get to grow and combine your own species of animals based on real genetics, letting you effectively create your own civilisation from this. When you have your new creation, it’s up to you to keep this species alive against anything that will do it harm, such as predators, climate change, and any potential spreading sickness it might get. Spore and Niche do have some similarities in this, but they play differently in several aspects.

What makes Niche a good alternative?

Niche bears a ton of similarities to Spore, enough to make it a decent alternative on that fact alone. Spore is unique in several ways, making it hard for other games to capture that experience. Niche does its best by letting you create your own species and gives you the feeling of being a creator. You influence the land and have to make decisions and act fast to ensure the survival of your species.

Kerbal Space Program (2015)

The Kerbal Space Program puts you in charge of exactly what it says. You must expand the Kerbal’s civilisation by progressing them through the Space Age, creating rockets and sending would-be explorers to almost certain death, or rather, to find glory among the stars. There is pretty much one rule with the Kerbal Space Program, and it’s if the physics and science behind your idea are sound, there’s no reason your Kerbals shouldn’t make it to space, no matter what the rocket you’ve built may look like. Compared to the space-faring phase of Spore, the Kerbal Space Program certainly scratches the same itch.

What makes Kerbal Space Program a good alternative?

Kerbal Space Program exudes chaotic and irreverent energy while simultaneously being a seriously impressive and coherently scientific game. Kerbal Space Program will challenge you immensely, to the point where an understanding of physics is almost necessary. The rockets you create and launch are restricted by a realistic physics model which will be the deciding factor for if your rocket flies or blows up. While Spore has its own space-faring phase, Kerbal Space Program goes all in on this one aspect, to excellent effect and you will probably get a ton of enjoyment out of this.

Equilinox (2018)

Equilinox is a relaxing nature sandbox game that lets you create and care for your own ecosystems. Your task is to turn a barren wasteland into a lush and hospitable planet for all the creations you make. These different species will either thrive or require more help to evolve. More plants and animals are found as you play through the game, giving you lots of customisation options and freedom.

What makes Equilinox a good alternative?

More than anything, Equilinox is a relaxing game to play. It’s not a graphically intensive game, but it will give you a similar vibe to Spore in certain aspects. You are in charge of growing and supporting an ecosystem, which is similar to what you need to do in Spore in order to reach the next phase of evolution. Equilinox shares a similar evolution system but with more of a focus on your surroundings and how they react to the inhabitants of your ecosystem.

Eco (2018)

Eco might be the best game to play if you like Spore. It has a similar focus, but Eco is all about creating a successful civilisation that is capable of stopping a devastating meteor that is on a crash course with your planet. The rub is that you have to make sure that you don’t destroy the ecosystem or ravage the environment in your quest to stop this meteor, providing a fun quandary as you continue to develop and grow your civilization.

What makes Eco a good alternative?

Eco is a community-made game that is basically sending the message that the environment is important to the planet. You are in charge of growing and building a civilisation through its stages in order to become smart enough to divert an oncoming disaster that will wipe everyone out. Spore’s focus on evolution isn’t in Eco, but the civilisation aspect and the continued growth of one is centre stage.

These are the games most like Spore. If you’re looking for something to dive into, one of these games above will provide you with plenty of fun and challenges. Of course, you could always just play Spore again and do things differently this time around. Want more game alternatives? Check out our list of games like Need for Speed or games like Candy Crush to expand your horizons.

About the Author

Jack Webb

Jack Webb is a guides writer for VideoGamer.

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