Sandbox

A video game that gives players a great degree of freedom to interact creatively, usually without a predetermined goal, or with goals players set for themselves, like building a house. Some sandbox games have few or no end goals and are sometimes called non-games or software toys, and many are paired with an open world that lets players move freely. Minecraft is the best-known example: after an early access alpha on 17 May 2009 it was formally released on 18 November 2011, and players explore a procedurally generated world made of blocks, gather raw materials, craft tools and build. Terraria (2011) is a 2D sandbox with no set goals in which beating bosses opens up more items, resources and equipment. Garry's Mod (2006), built on Valve's Source engine, has a base mode with no set objectives that lets players freely manipulate objects, while other modes such as Trouble in Terrorist Town and Prop Hunt are made by other developers as mods. The word is also used loosely for open-world games that give a lot of freedom even when they have structured missions.