Get murdered by cute critters in co-op survival game Under a Rock

If you've ever dreamed of being stranded on a desert island, where you can build yourself a cosy home and get to know the local wildlife, Nordic Trolls' new co-op survival game, Under a Rock, will let you do just that. Only, the wildlife in question is far larger (and more colourful) than you're used to. And while they may give Disney vibes, a lot of these critters probably want to kill you.

Survival might be the first thing on your mind when you arrive on the Island but once you get to grips with your surroundings, you can turn your attention to more important matters, like building and decorating your perfect home. I'm a sucker for building in survival games, so I'm interested to see what structures the game is capable of—the glimpses we get in the trailer seem very promising. 

Thankfully, you don't need to go it alone in Under a Rock as each world supports up to ten players, meaning you can delegate different activities so you can survive—and thrive—together. Of course, you'll need to figure out a means to fight off the less-than-friendly animals doing their best to turn you into their next meal, as well as find a food source for yourself or your group. That said, it seems you'll be able to tame, breed, and even ride certain animals and I'm excited to figure out which of the colourful critters will be my favourites. 

You can explore the forests and mountains to find the resources needed to craft tools and items. You can even dive to reach underwater caves, which may contain some of the island's secrets. And as the island is procedurally generated, you'll never know quite what to expect with each playthrough. But hey, at least you're living the dream—assuming you can survive long enough to appreciate it.

Under a Rock doesn't have a release date yet, though it's expected to arrive in 2024. You can check more info on the Steam page.

Sarah James
Senior Guides Writer

Sarah started as a freelance writer in 2018, writing for PCGamesN, TechRadar, GamingBible, Red Bull Gaming and more. In 2021, she was offered a full-time position on the PC Gamer team where she takes every possible opportunity to talk about World of Warcraft and Elden Ring. When not writing guides, most of her spare time is spent in Azeroth—though she's quite partial to JRPGs too. One of her fondest hopes is to one day play through the ending of Final Fantasy X without breaking down into a sobbing heap. She probably has more wolves in Valheim than you.

Read more
Sunset in the desert in Hello Sunshine
Hello Sunshine is a desert survival sandbox where you live in the literal shadow of the colossus
doctors treat plague-stricken peasants in the medieval-ish city-builder Nested Lands
Nested Lands is a 'brutal' survival city-builder about guiding villagers through a plague-infested world, and you can play its open alpha right now
The view from a cliff in the forest
PlayerUnknown's upcoming game Prologue: Go Wayback! is full of grand ambitions, but there's still a lot of room for this survival game to grow
Abiotic Factor
Abiotic Factor restored my faith in survival games
Armed combatants in the apocalypse
The best survival games on PC
A hand holding a compass in the woods
Players are already finding creative solutions to Prologue: Go Wayback's grueling difficulty: 'You could just chug gasoline'
Latest in Survival & Crafting
Three sheep with big guns in Palworld.
It was 'super popular to hate Palworld' after launch, says community manager: 'A lot of companies might crumble under the threats, under the pressure'
Palworld Ancient Civilization Parts - Grizzbolt with a minigun
'It was a very depressing day': Palworld community manager reveals studio's reaction to Nintendo lawsuit
Crying laughing emoji with disturbing realistic elements for REPO
REPO's first update will add a new map and a 'duck bucket' so we can finally give that pesky quacker a time out
Man facing camera
The Day Before studio reportedly sues Russian website for calling infamous disaster-game a 'scam'
Sunset in the desert in Hello Sunshine
Hello Sunshine is a desert survival sandbox where you live in the literal shadow of the colossus
Performers acting as zombies are seen on a train coach during the "Train to Apocalypse" event as part of the Pandora Box Artmire Festival 2024 held to attract commuters to ride the city's rapid transit system LRT (light rapid transit), in Jakarta on July 11, 2024. (Photo by BAY ISMOYO / AFP) (Photo by BAY ISMOYO/AFP via Getty Images)
Venerable browser-based MMO Urban Dead is closing this week after a 20-year run, not with a bang but with a whimper
Latest in News
Three sheep with big guns in Palworld.
It was 'super popular to hate Palworld' after launch, says community manager: 'A lot of companies might crumble under the threats, under the pressure'
Palworld Ancient Civilization Parts - Grizzbolt with a minigun
'It was a very depressing day': Palworld community manager reveals studio's reaction to Nintendo lawsuit
CS 1.6 remade in CS: Legacy.
A gorgeous ground-up remake of Counter-Strike 1.6 is on its way to Steam, and one of the game's original creators says 'it really gives me old vibes'
Portal P3 pinball table
There's a new Portal game and it costs $12,500
MrBeast posing in front of a stack of cashing, promoting Beast Games season 2
Beast Games opens casting for season 2: MrBeast lost a ton of money on season 1 but apparently not enough that he won't do it again
Image for
Rise of the Ronin's PC troubles continue as players report disappearing saves on Steam