Terraria vs Minecraft: 5 major differences between the games

Minecraft and Terraria may have some similarities, but they are two entirely different games at their core.

Minecraft is a sandbox building game, where players can explore a practically endless world. During this adventure, players can build unique creations, collect an assortment of different blocks and items and defeat the few bosses found in the game. There is no real set goal in Minecraft, and players are the ones who shape their own experience.

Terraria, on the other hand, is much more of an adventure game, where players have the goal of collecting and crafting items that make their character more powerful. There are far more bosses and enemies, which all require a semi-clear sense of progression to defeat them.

This article breaks down the major differences between Terraria and Minecraft, such as the graphics style, end goals of each game, and more.

Disclaimer: This list is subjective and reflects only the opinion of the article's writer

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What are the major differences between Terraria and Minecraft?

#5 - Armor & Weapons

There are hundreds of different weapons for players to collect and craft in Terraria. Many of these weapons are rather unique and have their own powerful effects, effective modifiers, enchantments and uses. There are even weapons and items that players can only obtain when they are playing on hard mode difficulty.

Minecraft, on the other hand, only has a handful of weapons such as swords, axes and bows. There are a couple of special ones, such as the trident, but Minecraft players are overall more limited in the selection of weapons.

#4 - NPCs

In Minecraft, players only have villagers to interact with. These villagers are useful, as they allow players to buy useful items or sell select items that they no longer want for emeralds. The Wandering Trader also allows players a chance to access some of the more exotic and hard-to-find items in the game.

However, NPCs in Terraria are far more diverse and allow players to interact with them in a plethora of ways. There are also NPCs such as the Goblin Tinker, which grants players the ability to do new things such as reforge items.

Many of the NPCs in Terraria are only unlocked by players when they have defeated a certain boss in the game, completed a specific task or explored a particular biome.

#3 - World Size

The world of Terraria has a finite amount of tiles that players can fully explore over time. Even on the largest map size, players will eventually be able to explore a map in its entirety in a reasonable amount of time.

Minecraft, on the other hand, has nearly endless worlds that are so expansive that they feel essentially limitless. It could take days or even weeks of continuous walking or flying to get to the "edge" of a Minecraft world.

Using commands and clever manipulation, it is even possible to expand a Minecraft world past its world borders.

#2 - End Game Focus

Terraria has a clear sense of progression, as players will need to expand their base, get more powerful items and continually defeat more difficult bosses.

The end goal of Minecraft, on the other hand, is much more open for interpretation. The game allows players to do whatever they want to do, whether that is simply building or exploring.

There is an end boss for players to defeat, but players can have a truly rich experience in Minecraft without defeating any boss.

Players can choose to do something similar in the worlds of Terraria, but the game is much more designed around combat, progression and defeating bosses.

#1 - 2D vs 3D

The most glaring difference between Minecraft and Terraria is their graphic styles. Minecraft is a 3D blocky world, while Terraria is a 2D side scroller.

Players are going to have two entirely different experiences playing each game because of it.

It is hard to say which art and graphics style is better, as that is almost primarily up to the eyes of the beholder.