My Time at Sandrock similar games & best alternatives

My Time at Sandrock

PlayStation 4, PC (Microsoft Windows), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S • 2023

Should you play it?

Travel to the desert community of Sandrock and take on the role of a fledgling Builder. Use your trusty toolset to gather resources, construct machines, and turn your run-down workshop into a well-oiled production facility to save the town from the jaws of economic ruin!

What works
  • Engaging story and characters
  • Deep crafting and building systems
  • Strong replayability and long playtime
  • Improved graphics and voice acting
  • Active developer support and updates
Things to keep in mind
  • Some bugs and glitches in early access
  • Limited home decoration options
  • Slow pacing and time pressure complaints
  • Minor ui and menu navigation issues
  • Some character art style inconsistencies

What to play next

Similar games, hidden gems, and fresh directions from this game.

Top picks

Games that feel the closest overall

  • Cattails: Wildwood Story

  • A House of Many Doors

  • MareQuest: An Interactive Tail

  • Starstruck Vagabond

  • Winds of Change

  • Keplerth

  • 侠客风云传(Tale of Wuxia)

  • Community College Hero: Trial by Fire

  • Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector

Hidden Gems

Less popular games with surprisingly high similarity

  • A House of Many Doors

  • MareQuest: An Interactive Tail

  • Starstruck Vagabond

If you liked…

Recommendations by what you enjoyed most

Similarity map

Explore nearby similar games and see why they’re close.

How to use the graph
Similarity map

Each dot is a game. They are arranged from the same motivation profile as in the “Why this game works” section below. Closer dots usually mean more similar reasons to play (exploration, competition, relaxation, etc.)—not that one game is “better” than another.

  • Purple star: this page’s game — everything on the map is relative to it.
  • Coloured chips: click to highlight games that mainly differ on that motivation; click again to reset.
  • Dotted line: link between this page’s game and the one selected for comparison.
  • Hover a dot for a screenshot preview, score, and top score gaps; click to compare in the panel on the right.
  • Scroll or double-click the chart to zoom out and see more games.

Why don’t the axes read like a score? This view uses t-SNE: it only keeps who is close to whom. The scales are not “good to bad” or hours played—they separate groups on the map. Read distance between dots, not the axis numbers (hidden on purpose).

My Time at Sandrock: Broadly representative of its motivational profile, with a few distinct shifts. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Cooperation, Fellowship, Intimacy, Leadership. Here, the score leans higher than usual among comparable games on Intimacy, Status. It leans lower than usual among comparable games on Violence.

Why this game works

A motivational profile of the game, with the closest similar game for each player motivation.

  • Autonomy

    Game with the same Autonomy vibe

    4

    "Players have freedom to explore, make choices affecting story and character morality, and engage in various activities at their own pace."

    Capsule for Red Dead Redemption 2 Red Dead Redemption 2

    "Players have freedom to direct their own actions, choose pace, explore, and make decisions in story and relationships."

  • Competence

    Game with the same Competence vibe

    3

    "Players engage in skillful tasks like crafting, combat, and role-specific jobs with meaningful feedback and consequences."

    Capsule for ANEURISM IV ANEURISM IV

    "Engages players in skillful crafting, combat, resource management, and problem solving with feedback and progression."

  • Competition

    Game with the same Competition vibe

    -2

    "Focus is primarily on personal progression and survival rather than direct competition; some leaderboards exist but not central."

    Capsule for Deadly Days Deadly Days

    "Focus is mostly on personal progress and story; some leaderboard elements exist but competition is not central."

  • Continuation

    Game with the same Continuation vibe

    5

    "Players report hundreds of hours, multiple characters, difficulty levels, and replayability that encourage long-term engagement and habitual play."

    Capsule for Astrea: Six-Sided Oracles Astrea: Six-Sided Oracles

    "Players report hundreds of hours, replayability, and habitual engagement with the game world and characters."

  • Cooperation

    Game with the same Cooperation vibe

    1

    "Mostly single-player experience with some multiplayer added; limited cooperation but some social elements."

    Capsule for Everdream Valley Everdream Valley

    "Mostly single player with some multiplayer planned; social interactions and relationships are key but limited cooperation."

  • Creativity

    Game with the same Creativity vibe

    3

    "Players can customize characters, experiment with builds, and craft items; some housing and cooking systems."

    Capsule for Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon

    "Players can customize characters, build and decorate homes, and craft items with some limitations noted."

  • Domination

    Game with the same Domination vibe

    -4

    "Interactions emphasize mutual respect and friendship; no evidence of exerting control or superiority over others."

    Capsule for Witchy Life Story Witchy Life Story

    "Interactions emphasize mutual respect and friendship; no evidence of exerting control or superiority over others."

  • Escapism

    Game with the same Escapism vibe

    5

    "Strongly used as an escape from real-life stress and problems, providing immersive fantasy and emotional relief."

    Capsule for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition

    "Strongly used for escaping real-life stress, building relationships, and immersive fantasy experience."

  • Expectation

    Game with the same Expectation vibe

    -4

    "Players engage voluntarily out of intrinsic interest and enjoyment; no pressure or obligation reported."

    Capsule for Prismata Prismata

    "Players engage voluntarily out of intrinsic interest and enjoyment; no pressure or obligation reported."

  • Experimenting

    Game with the same Experimenting vibe

    3

    "Players explore mechanics, try different strategies, and experiment with crafting and combat."

    Capsule for HumanitZ HumanitZ

    "Players explore mechanics, test crafting and combat, and try different relationship paths and strategies."

  • Exploration

    Game with the same Exploration vibe

    4

    "Game encourages discovering new areas, secrets, and quest locations in a large open world."

    Capsule for Wild Indigo Ranch Wild Indigo Ranch

    "Game encourages discovering new areas, secrets, and storylines in a vibrant open world."

  • Expression

    Game with the same Expression vibe

    3

    "Character customization and home decoration allow for self-expression, though options are currently limited."

    Capsule for Denizen Denizen

    "Character customization and home decoration allow self-expression, though some limitations exist."

  • Fantasy

    Game with the same Fantasy vibe

    4

    "Imaginative fiction with anthropomorphic characters and a fictional post-apocalyptic world."

    Capsule for KARAKARA KARAKARA

    "Imaginative post-apocalyptic western setting with fictional story, characters, and events."

  • Fellowship

    Game with the same Fellowship vibe

    4

    "Strong sense of community through character relationships, friendships, and romantic connections."

    Capsule for Fallen Hero: Retribution Fallen Hero: Retribution

    "Strong sense of community and belonging through character relationships and social interactions."

  • Growth

    Game with the same Growth vibe

    4

    "Players develop skills, learn combat mechanics, and progress through story and character arcs."

    Capsule for Persona® 5 Strikers Persona® 5 Strikers

    "Players develop skills in crafting, combat, socializing, and progress through story and character arcs."

  • Health

    Game with the same Health vibe

    -4

    "Primarily sedentary gameplay with no physical activity or rehab elements."

    Capsule for Watch_Dogs™ Watch_Dogs™

    "Primarily sedentary gameplay with no physical activity or rehab elements."

  • Idle

    Game with the same Idle vibe

    -3

    "Game requires continuous attention and engagement; players report immersive sessions rather than background or idle play."

    Capsule for Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon® Breakpoint Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon® Breakpoint

    "Requires focused attention and engagement; players report immersive long sessions."

  • Intimacy

    Game with the same Intimacy vibe

    4

    "Game fosters emotional connections and close relationships with characters through romance and friendship options."

    Capsule for Arcade Spirits Arcade Spirits

    "Romantic relationships and deep social bonds are important gameplay elements."

  • Leadership

    Game with the same Leadership vibe

    1

    "Some leadership elements in town building and multiplayer, but mostly collaborative or solo play."

    Capsule for Solace Crafting Solace Crafting

    "Some leadership elements in managing workshop and town rebuilding, but mostly personal progression."

  • Progression

    Game with the same Progression vibe

    5

    "Strong emphasis on accumulating items, upgrades, and research to advance."

    Capsule for Subterrain: Mines of Titan Subterrain: Mines of Titan

    "Strong emphasis on accumulating items, upgrades, and completing tasks to advance."

  • Relaxation

    Game with the same Relaxation vibe

    4

    "Generally relaxing and soothing experience with lighthearted and emotional moments."

    Capsule for NEKOPARA Vol. 3 NEKOPARA Vol. 3

    "Generally relaxing and cozy experience with moments of emotional engagement and flow."

  • Sensation

    Game with the same Sensation vibe

    3

    "Enjoyable art style, music, and voice acting provide sensory and emotional engagement."

    Capsule for Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales

    "Enjoyable visuals, sound, and emotional fun with a charming art style and voice acting."

  • Status

    Game with the same Status vibe

    1

    "Some social recognition via leaderboards and reputation, but mostly focused on personal achievement."

    Capsule for KuloNiku: Bowl Up! KuloNiku: Bowl Up!

    "Some recognition through leaderboards and social standing, but mostly personal achievement."

  • Story

    Game with the same Story vibe

    5

    "Strong narrative immersion with engaging characters and plot twists."

    Capsule for J.U.L.I.A.: Among the Stars J.U.L.I.A.: Among the Stars

    "Rich narrative immersion with engaging characters, plot twists, and lore."

  • Strategy

    Game with the same Strategy vibe

    3

    "Requires planning and problem solving in crafting, building, and combat strategies."

    Capsule for Wurm Unlimited Wurm Unlimited

    "Requires planning and problem solving in crafting, resource management, and combat."

  • Thrill

    Game with the same Thrill vibe

    2

    "Some suspense from combat difficulty and story consequences, but generally controlled gameplay."

    Capsule for City of Chains City of Chains

    "Some suspense and excitement from story twists and combat challenges, but generally controlled."

  • Value

    Game with the same Value vibe

    4

    "Players perceive strong value for time and money with extensive content and replayability."

    Capsule for Beastieball Beastieball

    "Players perceive strong value for time and money with extensive content and replayability."

  • Violence

    Game with the same Violence vibe

    -2

    "Combat exists but is simple and not a primary focus; crafting and building are more prominent."

    Capsule for Therian Saga Therian Saga

    "Combat exists but is not the main focus; constructive activities like building and crafting dominate."

  • Survival

    Game with the same Survival vibe

    2

    "Combat includes threat avoidance and resource management, but not extreme survival conditions."

    Capsule for Magical Girl Celesphonia Magical Girl Celesphonia

    "Some resource management and threat avoidance in combat and exploration, but not extreme."

Last update: 01/06/2026