Psh, Valheim's what started the resurgence of indie survival crafting games. Not giving it it's due is naive.
Like one of the few contenders still with some players is Enshrouded. Enshrouded's steamchart 24 hour peak was 18k, with a 30 day avg of ~16k.
Valheim had a 24 hour peak of 30k, and a 30 day avg of ~23k.
Valheim came out in 2021. Enshrouded in 2024.
A game 3 years older, is still dominating the space. Even just based on those numbers, it's pretty clear which one is the gold standard in the space -- taking your opinion out of it, and my opinion out of it, the data that devs should be looking at is clear if they want the game to appeal to more players.