12 Best Games Like RimWorld But For Mac
If you're searching for compelling colony management games that combine strategic depth with emergent storytelling, you've come to the right place. Games like Rimworld exist, and there's a lot to find here!
This genre offers players the unique satisfaction of building thriving settlements from scratch, managing complex systems of survival, and watching dynamic narratives unfold through the interactions of colonists, resources, and unexpected events.
These interlocking systems create endless drama, a formula that has been adapted by other management games with a cult-building twist.
The appeal of these simulation and strategy games lies in their ability to blend creativity with challenge. Whether you're interested in base building, intricate production chains, character-driven narratives, or survival against harsh environmental conditions, there's a wealth of alternatives that deliver similarly engaging experiences. These games reward careful planning, adaptation to unforeseen circumstances, and the delicate balance between expansion and sustainability.
From medieval settlement builders to futuristic space station simulators, this carefully curated list showcases titles that capture the essence of deep colony simulation. Each game offers its own unique twist on the formula, whether through enhanced automation systems, more complex social dynamics, or innovative survival mechanics that will keep you engaged for hundreds of hours.
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12 Games Like RimWorld But For Mac
1. Oxygen Not Included
Oxygen Not Included shares RimWorld's focus on intricate colony management but applies it to a space survival setting where you manage duplicants (colonists) in an asteroid base. The game features similarly deep systems for managing colonist needs, skills, stress levels, and work assignments.
The survival mechanics are incredibly detailed, requiring you to manage oxygen production, temperature control, food cultivation, and waste management through interconnected systems. Like RimWorld, every decision has cascading consequences, and poor planning can lead to colony collapse.
Fans of RimWorld's emergent gameplay and problem-solving will love how Oxygen Not Included constantly presents new challenges. The automation systems are more complex, and the physics simulation creates unique scenarios where your duplicants' personalities and traits directly impact colony success.
2. Ratopia
Ratopia is often described as "RimWorld with rats" and delivers an incredibly similar colony simulation experience in a charming 2D side-scrolling format. Your ratizens have individual traits, needs, moods, and relationships that develop organically through gameplay.
The colony management mechanics mirror RimWorld's systems with job assignments, production chains, research trees, and detailed policy management including taxation and laws. Each rat's personality affects their behavior and social interactions, creating character-driven narratives.
Fans of RimWorld's emergent storytelling and depth will appreciate how rats can become depressed, turn to crime, form factions, and react to raids, natural disasters, and survival challenges. The cute art style contrasts with serious simulation depth, offering RimWorld's complexity in a more accessible 2D presentation.
3. Space Haven
Space Haven translates RimWorld's colony simulation formula to a spaceship management setting. Your crew members have needs, skills, health conditions, and relationships that must be managed while building and maintaining your vessel.
The game features detailed base building where you construct ship sections room by room, manage life support systems, and assign crew to various tasks. Combat, exploration, and random events create emergent narratives similar to RimWorld's storytelling systems.
Fans of RimWorld's colonist management and emergent gameplay will appreciate how crew members develop personalities, form relationships, and react to stress. The survival challenges shift from planetary threats to space hazards, but the core colony simulation remains familiar.
4. Settlement Survival
Settlement Survival brings RimWorld's colony management to an ancient civilization setting. You'll manage villagers with needs, assign work tasks, construct buildings, and develop your settlement through technology research progression.
The game features survival challenges including natural disasters, bandit raids, and seasonal weather changes that require careful planning. Production chains, resource management, and balancing villager happiness mirror RimWorld's core gameplay loop.
What makes Settlement Survival appealing to RimWorld fans is its focus on organic growth and adaptation. The pacing is similar, with gradual expansion punctuated by crisis events, and the satisfaction of watching your settlement evolve from a few shelters to a thriving town.
5. Stardeus
Stardeus combines RimWorld's colony management with space station building. Your colonists (and drones) have individual needs, skills, and AI behaviors that create emergent situations as you rebuild a derelict space station.
The base construction and automation systems are reminiscent of RimWorld's zoning and work assignment mechanics. You'll manage life support, food production, research, and defend against threats while uncovering the station's mysteries.
Fans of RimWorld's emergent narratives and complex systems will appreciate how Stardeus handles colonist AI, equipment degradation, and cascading failures. The game rewards creative problem-solving and long-term planning in ways that feel familiar to seasoned colony managers.
6. Timberborn
Timberborn offers post-apocalyptic beaver colony management with unique water mechanics. Like RimWorld, you manage colonists with needs, construct buildings, research technologies, and respond to environmental challenges.
The survival focus centers on managing droughts and wet seasons, requiring you to build dams, irrigation systems, and water storage. The production chains and resource management feel familiar to RimWorld players, with vertical construction adding new strategic depth.
Fans of RimWorld's engineering challenges will appreciate how Timberborn's water mechanics create complex problem-solving scenarios. The cute aesthetic contrasts with serious survival stakes, creating a unique but mechanically similar experience.
7. Dawn of Man
Dawn of Man takes colony management to prehistory, guiding your settlement from the Stone Age through technological advancement. You'll manage tribe members, hunt wildlife, gather resources, and defend against predators and rival tribes.
The survival progression mirrors RimWorld's research system, unlocking new buildings, tools, and capabilities over time. Resource management, seasonal changes, and population growth create similar strategic challenges.
While more focused on technological evolution, Dawn of Man captures the satisfaction of building from nothing. The threats and management challenges scale with progress, providing comparable difficulty curves to RimWorld's storytelling events.
8. Frostpunk
Frostpunk delivers survival city building in a frozen apocalypse. While more focused on societal decisions than individual colonists, the resource management, production chains, and crisis response share RimWorld's strategic depth.
The survival mechanics emphasize heat management, food production, and keeping citizens alive through deadly cold. Like RimWorld's storytelling events, Frostpunk presents difficult moral choices that impact your settlement's future.
What makes Frostpunk compelling is its focus on consequences and adaptation. The scenario-based structure provides different challenges, and the tension of managing limited resources against escalating threats feels familiar to RimWorld veterans.
9. Factorio
Factorio shares RimWorld's emphasis on complex systems and automation. While focused on factory building rather than colonist management, the satisfaction of designing efficient production chains and defending your base translates well.
The resource management and base expansion require similar strategic thinking. You'll research technologies, combat environmental challenges, and defend against alien attacks while optimizing increasingly complex systems.
Fans of RimWorld's engineering aspects and long-term planning will appreciate Factorio's depth. The emergent problem-solving and satisfaction of building elaborate automated systems creates comparable gameplay engagement.
10. Crusader Kings III
Crusader Kings 3 focuses on dynastic management and character-driven narratives in medieval times. While different from colony building, the emphasis on individual character traits, relationships, and emergent stories parallels RimWorld's strength.
The strategic depth comes from managing realm politics, marriages, succession, and expansion. Like RimWorld's colonists, every character has personality traits, skills, and relationships that create unique narratives.
What connects these games is emergent storytelling and consequence-driven gameplay. Crusader Kings 3's dynasty management creates memorable stories through character interactions, similar to how RimWorld's colonist dynamics generate narrative moments.
11. Surviving Mars
Surviving Mars brings colony management to Mars colonization. You'll manage colonists with needs and specializations, construct domes and infrastructure, research technologies, and respond to disasters.
The base building mechanics require managing life support, resource production, and colonist happiness. Like RimWorld, you'll balance expansion with sustainability while preparing for random events and environmental challenges.
Fans of RimWorld's colony simulation and survival challenges will appreciate the sci-fi setting and unique Mars-specific mechanics. The strategic depth and colonist management feel familiar while offering different atmospheric challenges.
12. Stardew Valley
p>Stardew Valley is a farming simulation RPG that shares RimWorld's satisfaction of building from nothing, though with a much more relaxed and personal focus. You'll manage crops, animals, crafting, and relationships in a charming pixel art world.
While very different in tone, the resource management, planning, and progression systems offer comparable satisfaction. The game rewards long-term planning, optimization, and adapting to seasonal changes.
Fans of RimWorld who want creative building and management without survival pressure will appreciate Stardew Valley's peaceful gameplay loop. The depth of systems and satisfying progression create a relaxing alternative.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which country banned RimWorld?
RimWorld was refused classification in Australia, effectively banning its sale in the country. The Australian Classification Board cited concerns about drug use mechanics, specifically the ability to harvest and administer drugs in the game. However, the developer later made modifications, and a revised version was eventually approved for sale in Australia with an R18+ rating.
Is Clanfolk just RimWorld?
No, Clanfolk is not just RimWorld, though it shares significant similarities. While both games feature colony simulation, individual character management, and survival mechanics, Clanfolk focuses specifically on managing a medieval Scottish clan with emphasis on family relationships, seasonal survival, and a more intimate scale. Clanfolk has its own unique mechanics including detailed clothing and temperature systems, multi-story building, and family lineage dynamics that distinguish it from RimWorld's broader sci-fi colony simulation.
Can I play RimWorld forever?
Yes, RimWorld can be played indefinitely. The game has no time limit or forced ending. You can continue managing your colony for as long as you want. While there is an optional endgame goal of building a spaceship to leave the planet, you're not required to pursue it. Many players run colonies for years of in-game time, constantly adapting to new challenges and expanding their settlements. The game's mod support also ensures endless replayability with new content and scenarios.
What makes a good RimWorld alternative?
A good RimWorld alternative typically features deep colony or settlement management mechanics, individual character systems with personalities and needs, emergent storytelling through gameplay events, complex resource management and production chains, survival challenges that require adaptation, and meaningful player choice with lasting consequences. The best alternatives capture RimWorld's ability to generate unique narratives through the interaction of systems and characters.
Are these games as moddable as RimWorld?
Most games on this list support modding to varying degrees, but few match RimWorld's extensive modding ecosystem. Dwarf Fortress and Factorio have particularly strong modding communities. Games like Oxygen Not Included, Banished, and Kenshi also support mods, though with different levels of accessibility and community size. Steam Workshop integration has made modding more accessible for many of these titles, but RimWorld remains one of the most mod-friendly games in the genre.
About the Author
Miguel (austernotus) is a game developer and pixel artist who believes the best recommendations come from understanding a game's core systems. With a background that spans from high-level MMO PVP (2100+ in WoW) to professional SEO, his analysis goes beyond the surface to find the games you'll actually love.