Since Terraria’s official release on May 16, 2011, Terraria’s 2D sandbox world has maintained its expansive gameplay and has kept its place as some people’s favorite sandbox game. When Terarria was released, immediate connections were made to Minecraft’s similar gameplay. Both games allowed the user to let their creativity and imagination run free, allowing people to choose their own adventures with a limitless cap.

Once your Terraria character is fully customized to your taste and the world has been created, you are thrown into a 2D world with nothing but a set of tools. The obvious choice is to explore the world you are given, exploit its resources to progress, and to play how you want to play. It may seem daunting at first, but you aren’t alone in the world. You may interact with the guide NPC for directions and basic instructions on how to start.

Equip with tools, you can harvest the world’s fully destructible blocks to collect resources to help you progress. Whether you dare to venture deep into the ground or build your house for you and your NPC friends, the game always makes it seem like you are progressing forward. The world is built upon having the surface grass being the starting point and allowing the player to get stronger by leaving the comfort of staying on the surface. 

Similar to Minecraft, Terraria uses a day/night cycle. During the day, a peaceful soundtrack is played in the background while the sun gleams brightly in the sky. You are able to roam around, chop trees down, and watch birds fly. But during the night, monsters like zombies and flying detached eyeballs come and attack you. They can easily overwhelm your simple tools and weapons, pushing you to strive to become stronger.

Although the game may seem simple at first glance, monsters like demons and skeletons await for you to explore more. Terraria trumps Minecraft in exotic gameplay and secrets. It is much more rewarding when stumbling upon the plethora of chests and loots above and underground. 

Boss battles are required checkpoints to beat the game. Even when you believe you are finished, you are given even more gameplay with even harder monsters and bosses with more rewarding loot.

The soundtrack adds much to the atmosphere of the gameplay. It reflects the situation of the scenes nicely. When underground, the soundtrack changes to a funkier, mysterious beat. When battling bosses, a hectic, dreadful eerie soundtrack is played. 

Overall, Terraria’s simple pixel 2D platform has maintained its freshness with the promise of an expansive sandbox adventure along with an atmosphere-matching retro soundtrack.