Entry 01Why this page exists
Survival and crafting games never really end. There is always one more room to build, one more ridge to cross and one more night to survive, and the game is happy to keep you going until morning. That pull is part of what makes them wonderful, and it is why a site that recommends them should be honest about the downside and about how to keep play a pleasure rather than a habit that runs the evening.
Entry 02Free, confidential help
Paid random items such as loot boxes, card packs and prize wheels share features with gambling: you pay before you know what you will get, and that uncertainty is what makes them easy to keep buying. If the time or money going into games feels out of control, for you or someone you care about, these organisations help for free and in confidence:
GamCare
Free, confidential support for anyone whose play or spending feels out of control, and for the people around them. The National Gambling Helpline, 0808 8020 133, and live chat are open day and night.
Visit GamCare
Gambling Therapy
Free online support from trained advisers, with peer groups and self-help tools, available worldwide and in many languages.
Visit Gambling Therapy
Entry 03Blocking and treatment
If gaming or spending starts to drift towards gambling, or you worry that it might, these UK services can block access, offer treatment and support families:
GAMSTOP
Free UK self-exclusion. If play has drifted towards gambling websites, it blocks every UK-licensed gambling site and app for six months, one year or five years.
Visit GAMSTOPGordon Moody
A UK charity offering residential treatment, online recovery programmes and support for families when gambling has become harmful.
Visit Gordon MoodyNHS gambling support
NHS advice on warning signs and self-help, and how to refer yourself to a specialist NHS clinic in England.
Visit NHS gambling support
Entry 04Urgent help and young people
Free and confidential, for anything that is worrying you, not only games:
Childline
For anyone under 19, about anything at all: call 0800 1111 free, or talk to a counsellor online.
Visit ChildlineSamaritans
Someone to listen at any hour, without judging: call 116 123 free from any phone.
Visit SamaritansYoungMinds
Mental health support for young people, and a helpline for parents and carers worried about a child.
Visit YoungMinds
In an emergency, call 999. For urgent medical advice that is not an emergency, call NHS 111 or visit nhs.uk. You can also text SHOUT to 85258 for free, confidential support at any hour.
Entry 05A private self-check
This is a prompt to reflect, not a diagnosis. Your answers stay on this page and are never sent anywhere.
Entry 06Set screens off before you start
- Before the first log-in, decide how long tonight is and where it ends. Every review in our inventory names a safe spot.
- Pack tonight on the day / night dial: a start, screens off, a camp between games and nothing bought during play.
- Switch on the play-time limits on your console, computer or phone as well; they hold when willpower does not.
- Stop at a safe spot, never in the middle of a trip, so stopping never feels like losing progress.
- Keep some evenings completely game-free.
Entry 07Games without an ending
A story game ends when the credits roll. A sandbox survival game ends when you decide it does. Pick a small goal for the evening, such as finishing a room, reaching a landmark or surviving one in-game night, and stop when it is done rather than when you are tired. Games that save when you sleep in the game make that easy: sleep there, then sleep yourself.
Entry 08Playing with others
- Agree when the session ends before anyone joins, not when someone wants to leave.
- Make “one more day” mean one more day. Nobody should feel bad for logging off at the agreed time.
- In shared worlds, agree who can build or play while others are away, so nobody feels they have to log in to keep up.
- Playing with people you know makes stopping easier: strangers will never ask you to stay for one more night.
Entry 09Breaks, eyes, ears and body
- Every twenty minutes, look at something about six metres away for twenty seconds.
- Every half hour, drink some water; every 45 minutes or so, stand up and stretch.
- Keep headphones at around 60% volume or lower, and turn on the headphone safety alerts your phone or console offers.
- If your hands, wrists, neck or eyes hurt, stop, and see a GP if it keeps happening.
Entry 10Sleep
Switch screens off at least an hour before bed. Bright screens and absorbing games keep the brain alert long after the game is closed, and a night spent surviving in a game is a night not spent sleeping. Teenagers usually need eight to ten hours of sleep, adults seven to nine. Consoles and phones keep bedtime and downtime settings in their family controls.
Entry 11Frights, tension and permadeath
Deep water, darkness, sudden creatures and the risk of losing a long save can leave people tense well after the game is off. Play frightening games earlier in the evening and with the lights on, use the gentler modes many survival games offer, and choose a mode without permanent death if losing progress would upset you. If a game leaves anyone anxious or unable to sleep, it is fine to put it away.
Entry 12Flashing light and photosensitivity
A small number of people can have seizures triggered by flashing lights or patterns, sometimes for the first time and without any history of epilepsy. Read each game’s warning, play in a well-lit room, sit well back from the screen and stop at once if you feel dizzy or notice altered vision or twitching. If anyone in the family has epilepsy, talk to a doctor before playing.
Entry 13Motion sickness
Swimming, flying, driving and first-person cameras can bring on nausea, headaches and dizziness. Turn off head bob, camera shake and motion blur where the game allows, widen the field of view, keep a light on and stop at the first sign of feeling unwell. It usually passes quickly with rest.
Entry 14Spending, expansions and paid random items
- Agree a monthly amount before playing, never during a session.
- Finish the base game before buying expansions, and buy them one at a time.
- Work out what any coins, gems or credits cost in pounds before spending them.
- Avoid paid random items: not knowing what you will get is exactly what makes them hard to stop buying.
- UK industry principles say under-18s should not be able to buy paid random items without a parent or carer knowing; platform spending limits are how that works at home.
- Keep purchase approval switched on and remove saved cards from children’s accounts.
Entry 15Rewards, streaks and watch-to-earn extras
Login rewards, streaks, season passes, weekend events and items handed out for watching streams are designed to bring you back on the game’s timetable, not yours. Turn off game notifications, let a streak go without guilt and come back when you actually want to play. None of the games we review needs you to log in every day.
Entry 16Who can talk to you online
- Keep worlds private or friends only, and set text and voice chat to friends only, or off, in each game and on the platform.
- Never share passwords, your address, school, phone number or photos.
- Be careful with anyone who wants to move to another app, offers gifts, asks for pictures or asks you to keep a secret.
- If an adult’s contact with a child feels wrong, report it to CEOP. Internet Matters has step-by-step setup guides for consoles and apps.
Entry 17Age labels
Games sold in the UK carry PEGI age labels: 3, 7, 12, 16 and 18, with notices for in-game purchases and in-game purchases (includes random items). PEGI 12, 16 and 18 are legally enforced for games sold in UK shops, overseen by the Games Rating Authority. The PEGI label guide explains every symbol. A label rates the game, not the other players in it.
Entry 18Family controls
Every console, computer and phone can set daily play time, a bedtime, spending approval and who can chat: Steam Families, Microsoft Family Safety and Xbox Family Settings, PlayStation Family Management, Nintendo Switch Parental Controls, Apple Screen Time and Google Family Link. The safe zone section of our home page says where each one lives.
Entry 19Accessibility is not cheating
Gentler survival modes, subtitles, colour-blind modes, reduced motion, larger text and remapped controls are all part of playing comfortably. Using them is never cheating, and they often make the difference between a good evening and a stressful one.
Entry 20When gaming becomes a problem
The World Health Organization describes “gaming disorder” when gaming takes priority over other interests and daily life despite the harm it causes, usually for a year or more. Signs to watch for:
- regularly playing far longer than planned;
- losing sleep, or missing meals, school, work or friends;
- irritability, low mood or anxiety when not playing;
- spending more than intended, or hiding it;
- dropping other hobbies and people.
The NHS National Centre for Gaming Disorders treats people aged 13 and over in England and Wales, and a GP can point you to support anywhere in the UK.
Entry 21Helping someone else
Start by asking what they enjoy about the game and who they play with, and ask for a tour of what they have built. Agree small steps together, such as an agreed safe spot or friends-only worlds, rather than a sudden ban, and plan things away from screens that are genuinely fun: a walk, a meal or a real campfire all count.
Entry 22How this site is built
Aurenhalt has no accounts, notifications, streaks, countdown offers or rewards for coming back. Questions about this page are welcome through hello@aurenhalt.com.