Choose Tower of the Approval
Choose Tower of the Approval if you want a Casual experience. On Steam, it's currently about 20% cheaper on the Steam Store. Tower of the Approval launched in 2020.
Tower of the Approval vs Astral Ascent
Tower of the Approval and Astral Ascent both land in Action, Indie on Steam, which is why they keep getting compared. The comparison below is built from each game's Steam metadata — release year, genres, categories, Steam Deck status, price, and review score — refreshed daily by imho.run's scraper. Headline differences: Both share Action, Indie on Steam. Tower of the Approval (2020) is 3 years older than Astral Ascent (2023). Tower of the Approval is currently ~20% cheaper on Steam than Astral Ascent (19.99 USD vs. 24.99 USD). No login or purchase needed — scroll for the full table, the verdict FAQ, and links to ranked similar games for both titles.
Which should you pick?
Choose Astral Ascent
Choose Astral Ascent if you want an Adventure game with Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen, and Shared/Split Screen Co-op. On Steam, it's the newer release (2023) and ships with the modern feature baseline. 1,699 Steam reviews back the pick.
Both Tower of the Approval and Astral Ascent sit in Action and Indie on Steam, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Use the side-by-side table for the feature view, or follow the "Games like" links below to see ranked alternatives for either title.
Side-by-side comparison
 Tower of the Approval |  Astral Ascent | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2020 | 2023 |
| Genres | Action, Indie, Casual | Action, Indie, Adventure |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Steam Deck | Unrated | Deck Verified |
| Price | 19.99 USD | 24.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 1 reviews | 95.5% positive (1,699 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op |
| Developers | AECRNIA | Hibernian Workshop |
Side by side
- Both share Action, Indie on Steam.
- Tower of the Approval (2020) is 3 years older than Astral Ascent (2023).
- Tower of the Approval is currently ~20% cheaper on Steam than Astral Ascent (19.99 USD vs. 24.99 USD).
- Astral Ascent has co-op; Tower of the Approval does not.
- Astral Ascent is Deck Verified on Steam Deck; Tower of the Approval has no Deck rating yet.
Tower of the Approval vs Astral Ascent — FAQ
- Should I play Tower of the Approval or Astral Ascent first?
- If you want chronology, Tower of the Approval (2020) came out before Astral Ascent (2023). If neither is a sequel to the other, order doesn't really matter — start with whichever fits your current mood, since both share enough on Steam to make either a reasonable opener.
- Are Tower of the Approval and Astral Ascent similar?
- They overlap on Action, Indie on Steam, so the catalogue groups them together — but "similar" depends on the specific mechanics. Use the genre + category rows above to decide whether the overlap matches what drew you to the one you've already played.
- Does Tower of the Approval have multiplayer like Astral Ascent?
- No. Astral Ascent supports multiplayer on Steam (Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op), while Tower of the Approval is listed as single-player only.