5 games · updated March 2026

Best simulation games

Systems modelled deeply enough to be worth learning.

A simulation earns the label when its systems behave consistently enough that you can form a theory, test it, and be right. That is the pleasure on offer: not spectacle, but comprehension. The best of these reward the player who reads the numbers.

The online entries here add an economy driven by real people, which is where simulation gets genuinely unpredictable, no designer models a market as well as a market does.

What to expect

Player-driven economies with real supply and demand.
Long-horizon goals measured in weeks rather than sessions.
Spreadsheets. Some of these are proudly spreadsheet games.

The ranking

All 5 simulation games

Ordered by our editors' score across the whole library, so positions here match the main ranking.

EVE Online
8.9/10
Space sandbox MMOPCFree to play2003
A single-shard space sandbox where players build the industry, run the markets and fight the wars. Famous for the wrong reasons and right about most of them.
MMORPGSimulationStrategy
Stardew Valley
8.4/10
Farming simPCMobileConsoleBuy to play2016
Run a farm, mine, fish, and get to know a town of written characters. Co-op turns a solo classic into a shared project.
SimulationAdventureMultiplayer
Forge of Empires
7.4/10
Browser city builderBrowserMobileFree to play2012
Build a city through the ages, fight tactical grid battles, and trade with a guild. Browser-based, and paced for check-ins.
Browser GamesStrategySimulation
Universal Paperclips
7.2/10
IncrementalBrowserMobileFree2017
An incremental game with an argument, and an ending.
The Sandbox
6.6/10
Voxel sandboxBrowserPCFree to play2021
Voxel creation tools with a land layer bolted on top.