10 Best Sandbox Games on Xbox Game Pass (June 2026)

It’s pretty amazing how expansive the open-world city of Tokyo and beyond is in Forza Horizon 6, and how freely you can drive around and pick up side quests. That’s the joy of sandbox games like Minecraft, which thrive on your creativity. 

The sky’s the limit, quite practically when you’re designing cars, boats, and even planes to explore the open-world in Trailmakers. Or when you take off into space and colonize new alien planets in No Man’s Sky. 

Regardless of what makes you tick, the best sandbox games on Xbox Game Pass all have something special to offer.

What is a Sandbox Game?

Sandbox games give you an open-world to explore freely. They allow you to complete your own objectives without putting any time limit or score pressure on you. More games are following the sandbox structure, giving players the freedom to go wherever they want, interact with whoever they please, and overall, play however they choose.

Best Sandbox Games on Xbox Game Pass

10. ARK: Survival Evolved

Ready to raise and take care of dinosaurs? ARK: Survival Evolved is like a pet game, but for dinosaurs. Their types and needs vary. And their abilities and usefulness to your growing community, just the same. You might recruit flying dinosaurs or ones that will help you gather resources and inventory. 

Oh yes, you can definitely breed dinosaur babies, blending different species to create entirely new breeds. And soon enough, you’ll have built a thriving, natural ecosystem out in the wild. As much as you’re taking care of dinosaurs, you’re also taking care of yourself, catering to your food,  water, and survival needs.

9. No Man’s Sky

No Man’s Sky is a galaxy, waiting to be explored and conquered, across every depth of space. You’re given a spaceship to travel from planet to planet, unlocking new biomes over time. It’s a procedurally generated universe, so no two planets are ever the same, and every discovery is always a first step into a new world.

What you choose to do with every new world is up to you. That’s the freedom No Man’s Sky gives you, where you shape your own journey, whether you choose to become an economist, explorer, emperor, or more varied roles.

8. Grounded 2

Grounded 2 is a co-op adventure that shrinks you and your friends to the size of ants. Suddenly, creatures you could crush under your feet become your biggest threats in a world that’s familiar yet strangely new. It’s one of the most beautiful worlds, to be sure, expanding from your backyard to a public playground.

The survival adventure is bigger in the sequel, with more ground to cover. However, the same mechanics that make the first game great stick around, including crafting and base-building.

7. Astroneer

The solar system in Astroneer has seven planets, and all of them are free to explore and traverse between. Their environments differ, featuring treacherous terrain and digging deeper into mysterious cores. While you can pick whatever path you like, whether that’s building a base first, crafting vehicles, or exploring, every planet offers its unique challenges that create some structure to your gaming sessions.

6. Minecraft

Minecraft feels like clay to me, that I can mold and shape however I want. The blocky universe conforms to your will, whether you’d like to build from the ground up or destroy it all. Plus, it’s a living, breathing world with lots of secrets to discover and quirky creatures, big and small.

5. Palworld

Another addition to the best sandbox games on Xbox Game Pass is Palworld. Even in its preview version, the gameplay features are extensive. Pals make up your growing community, who share jobs within your walls and beyond. 

The cute creatures you adopt from the wild become your fighters, farmers, and builders. You can breed them to create rare species and even engineer stronger Pals. Outside your walls, poachers threaten your community, though you can flip the coin and poach nearby communities, too.

4. DayZ

In a zombie apocalypse, I definitely want the freedom to decide how I’d like to survive. Across massive open-world maps, I get to choose which survivors to trust. But I can also branch off on my own. DayZ is flexible enough to let me make mistakes and learn from them. What it does is give me all the tools I need and create tense scenarios against the infected that require quick thinking.

3. Terraria

The Earth has so much we’re yet to see, deep underground and in the seas and oceans. In Terraria, you discover a whole new world underground, digging into caves and building your own cities. There are over 5,000 items to collect, including weapons, statues, ores, and more.

Over 25 NPCs also add fun activities like trade, giving you crafting recipes, and nursing you back to health. Yup, there are over 400 enemies to keep an eye out for, including fully fledged bosses.

2. Trailmakers

Trailmakers has two parts: building automobiles and exploring the open-world. It’s a pretty massive world, with land, sea, air, and space regions, each with fun racing challenges. You don’t have any specific designs to adhere to when building your automobiles. In fact, you can even create multi-functional rides and further attach parts that boost speed and combat ability.

1. Forza Horizon 6

Car collectors have over 550 real-world cars waiting for them in Forza Horizon 6. Don’t worry if you have no clue about mechanical parts and fine-tuning. You learn as you go, with the devs adding variants for specific challenges like drifting. 

Still, the new entry takes you to Japan, featuring the suburbs, downtown city streets, and the docks. You even explore the countryside, competing in touge battles, curating your own racing events, buying new garages, and reveling in Japan’s car culture.