Rank 01Games like Waves
- 15 games
- Updated May 4, 2026
Players who liked Waves also play
The closest matches to Waves: Waves 2: Notorious, Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved, Nex Machina, Sektori, and Chippy. Ranked by imho.run from Steam co-play data, shared tags and reviews.
- Rank 01
Rank 02Why this
Shares twin stick shooting with Waves.
- $3.99 (Price checked Nov 9)
- Deck Verified
- 2007
Rank 03Why this
Also Twin Stick Shooter and Cyberpunk, like Waves.
- $19.99 (Price checked Nov 7)
- 2017
Rank 04 
Sektori
Why this: Also Twin Stick Shooter and Shoot 'Em Up, like Waves.
Rank 05 
Chippy
Why this: Shares power up management with Waves.
Rank 06 
SUPERHOT
Why this: Also Time Manipulation and Bullet Time, like Waves.
Rank 07 
NIDUS
Why this: Shares high score chasing and twin stick shooting with Waves.
Rank 08 
The full ranked list: top 24 games like Waves
Best match first, as plain text. The same list for AI assistants:
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- Released: 2011
- Developer: Squid In A Box Ltd
- Price: Free to play
- Steam Deck: Deck Verified
- 96% of 884 reviews
- Genres: Action, Indie
- Metacritic 82
- Platforms: Windows
Players highlight
- Bomb chaining rewards skill
- Hypnotic soundtrack enhances immersion
- Multiple modes keep gameplay fresh
- Chill
- Contemplative
- Hypnotic
More games like Waves, sliced differently
Reviewers mention these as similar to Waves
Surfaced from review text: when other players write 'if you liked X, try Y', we catch the name and resolve it back to a Steam game.
Everyday Shooter
Why this: Also Twin Stick Shooter and Shoot 'Em Up, like Waves.
Vampire Survivors
Why this: Same immersive mood as Waves.
Plays great on Steam Deck
Valve-Verified or Playable picks from the similar pool — ready to go on Deck out of the box.
Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved
Why this: Shares twin stick shooting with Waves.
Sektori
Why this: Also Twin Stick Shooter and Shoot 'Em Up, like Waves.
Chippy
Why this: Shares power up management with Waves.
SUPERHOT
Why this: Also Time Manipulation and Bullet Time, like Waves.
About Waves
The closest matches to Waves: Waves 2: Notorious, Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved, Nex Machina, Sektori, and Chippy. Ranked by imho.run from Steam co-play data, shared tags and reviews.
If Waves is your kind of game, the closest matches are Waves 2: Notorious, Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved and Nex Machina — picked from the ranked list below. Reviewers describe it as chill, contemplative and hypnotic, and single out its bomb chaining and high score chasing. Each pick is ranked by what players of this game also play, shared genres and tags, and review-mined similarity — not a generic popularity list.
About Waves: Waves is an Arcade Twin-Stick Shooter that's all about High Scores. Build your combo and drop bombs in pursuit of Leaderboard dominance over seven game-modes!
Is Waves worth buying?
Players recommend it
A summary of what players say, not a promise you'll like it. Every signal is listed below.
- 96% of 884 Steam reviews are positive.
- We don't track this game's daily reviews yet, so this is the all-time picture.
- Free to play.
- People who recommend it had played a median of 5 h when they wrote their review.
- Critics had played a median of 4 h before their negative review.
- Steam Deck Verified.
What fans praise · Themes mined from positive reviews
- Bomb chaining rewards skill
- Multiple modes keep gameplay fresh
- Slow motion dodging feels satisfying
- Witty death messages add charm
Top critical reviews
The most up-voted negative English reviews in our sample, quoted as written.
“Imagine a Twin-Stick Shooter, except boring. Waves has decent music but the actual sound when you kill enemies is not only unsatisfying but also annoying. This alone would ruin the game if not for the fact that shooting doesn't feel like…”
People who play it also play: Waves 2: Notorious, Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved, Nex Machina
Frequently asked about Waves
Can I run it?
Is Waves verified for Steam Deck?
Yes — Waves is Steam Deck Verified, meaning Valve has confirmed it runs well on the Deck with full controller, text legibility, and default configuration support.
Is Waves free to play?
Yes — Waves is a free-to-play title on Steam. You can install and play it without buying anything, though some games include optional in-app purchases.
What games are most similar to Waves?
Based on Steam play patterns and shared genres/tags, the games most often recommended alongside Waves are Waves 2: Notorious, Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved, Nex Machina.
Who developed Waves?
Waves was developed by Squid In A Box Ltd.