Your child has explored every corner of their Minecraft world. Here’s what to try next – on screen and off.
In partnership with Family Gaming Database, we’ve put together this list of great games for kids who love Minecraft. Whether you’re looking for a new video game to try, a board game to play around the kitchen table, or something that takes your child’s Minecraft-inspired creativity somewhere entirely new, there’s something here for every age.
What Minecraft players tend to love most is the combination of creative freedom, exploration, and problem-solving. The games below share one or more of those qualities – and all are ones you can introduce with confidence. If your child loves Minecraft’s building mode, it’s also worth noting that a box of LEGO bricks and a building challenge is probably the most natural offline companion of all – but that felt too obvious to list!
Every game here has been vetted and reviewed by Family Gaming Database, follow the links to find out more.
Ages 5-8
Video games
LEGO Worlds (Switch, PS4, Xbox, PC)
The most direct creative companion to Minecraft for young children. LEGO Worlds lets players build freely in a blocky, toy-box world using LEGO bricks – the same open-ended construction logic as Minecraft, but with the visual familiarity of LEGO and a gentler learning curve. Excellent for children who love Minecraft’s building mode but find Survival mode overwhelming.
Townscaper (Switch, PC, iOS, Android)
A pure creative toy rather than a game in the traditional sense – there are no objectives, no failure states, and no timer. Players simply place colourful buildings on a grid and watch a charming seaside town grow organically around them. The algorithm that generates the buildings is surprisingly sophisticated: place blocks in different configurations and you get towers, arches, courtyards, and staircases. It’s meditative, beautiful, and completely open-ended – the same creative-play spirit as Minecraft’s building mode, distilled to its simplest form. Ideal for younger children who want to make something lovely without any pressure.
Board games
Rhino Hero (ages 5+)
A dexterity game about building an increasingly precarious tower out of folded card walls and floor tiles, with a wooden superhero rhino climbing higher each turn. Players must place walls and floors carefully without toppling the structure – the same spatial awareness and careful construction logic that makes a good Minecraft builder. Takes about ten minutes, fits in a pocket, and produces genuine tension at the table. One of the best family games for this age group.
Kingdomino (ages 7+)
A tile-laying kingdom-building game that takes around fifteen minutes to play. Players draft domino-style tiles to build their own kingdom, matching terrain and scoring points for connected areas. Simple enough for a seven-year-old, satisfying enough for the adults at the table. The same spatial thinking that makes a good Minecraft builder makes a good Kingdomino player.
Ages 8-11
Video games
Terraria (Switch, PS4, Xbox, PC, iOS, Android)
The most natural step up from Minecraft for this age group. Terraria is a 2D sandbox game with the same digging, building, and crafting logic as Minecraft, but with a stronger emphasis on exploration and combat. The world is procedurally generated and enormous, and the crafting tree goes considerably deeper than Minecraft’s. Children who’ve outgrown the straightforward creative mode and want something with more challenge will find Terraria absorbing for months.
Stardew Valley (Switch, PS4, Xbox, PC, iOS, Android)
A farming and community-building game set in a charming pixel-art world. Players grow crops, build their farm, befriend the villagers, and gradually restore the local community. Shares Minecraft’s sense of open-ended progression – there’s always something to work towards – but at a calmer pace, and with a stronger emphasis on relationships and storytelling. Particularly popular with children who enjoy the domestic and agricultural sides of Minecraft.
Portal 2 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360)
One for the millennial parents as well as their kids! A puzzle-platformer that develops spatial reasoning and creative problem-solving in a way that few games match. Players use a portal gun to move through increasingly complex chambers, thinking laterally about how to get from A to B. Not a building game, but the problem-solving instinct it develops is the same one that drives great Minecraft engineering. Best from around age 9, and excellent to play with a parent in co-op mode.
Board games
Catan Junior (ages 6+)
Catan is built around the same resource-gathering and building loop that underlies Minecraft – collect wood, brick, ore, and grain; build roads, settlements, and cities. Catan Junior simplifies the mechanics for younger children, while the full game is perfect for children aged 10 and up. One of the most widely played family board games in the world for good reason.
Azul (ages 8+)
A tile-drafting and pattern-building game in which players collect coloured tiles and arrange them on their personal board in the most satisfying configuration possible. The game is visually beautiful – the tiles feel like physical objects worth handling – and the spatial planning it demands is directly related to the aesthetic instinct that drives good Minecraft building. Quick to learn, with enough strategic depth to reward returning to. Widely considered one of the finest family games of the past decade, and one that genuinely appeals to children and adults equally.
Ages 10+
Video games
Factorio (PC)
An extraordinarily deep engineering and automation game in which players build and manage increasingly complex factories on an alien planet. Not for the faint-hearted – Factorio’s complexity far exceeds Minecraft’s – but for the child who has built every redstone contraption there is and wants a real challenge, it’s one of the most intellectually rewarding games ever made. Widely used in STEM education for its engineering and systems-thinking demands.
No Man’s Sky (Switch 2, PS5, Xbox, PC)
An exploration game on a near-infinite scale – procedurally generated planets, alien life, base-building, and interstellar travel. Shares Minecraft’s sense of an enormous world to discover and shape, but with breathtaking visual scope. The base-building mechanics are satisfying, and the game has been continuously developed since launch into one of the most generous ongoing games available. Best for older children who want to be genuinely awed by what a game world can look like.
Board games
Wingspan (ages 10+)
An elegant, beautifully illustrated card-drafting and engine-building game about attracting birds to wildlife preserves. Players build a chain of card effects that grows more powerful over time – the same satisfying sense of constructing a system that rewards Minecraft’s redstone enthusiasts. Widely considered one of the finest family board games of the past decade.
Pandemic (ages 10+)
A cooperative strategy game in which players work together to stop global disease outbreaks. The problem-solving and strategic planning it demands are directly related to the resource management and base defence instincts that Minecraft develops. One of the best cooperative games for families, and an excellent introduction to the idea that board games can be genuinely complex and deeply satisfying.
Finding more games your child will love
This list is a starting point. Family Gaming Database has a full searchable database of video games and board games with detailed age guidance, content information, and tailored suggestions based on what your child already enjoys. If your child loves Minecraft, their Game Finder tool is the quickest way to find what to try next.
Two ways to take back control
For curated YouTube watching: Streamu lets parents whitelist specific YouTube channels for their children – so a Minecraft-loving child can watch Stampy, DanTDM, and HermitCraft without the algorithm deciding what comes next.
Join a growing community of conscious parents taking back control.
Join the Streamu waitlist at streamu.app
For curated game discovery: Family Gaming Database is the trusted resource for parents navigating video games and board games – with detailed content guidance, age ratings, and expert suggestions for every kind of player.
Explore the Family Gaming Database at familygamingdatabase.com
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