Choose The Dark Heart of Balor
Choose The Dark Heart of Balor if it's the newer release (2026) and ships with the modern feature baseline. The Dark Heart of Balor launched in 2026.
The Dark Heart of Balor vs Hack and Slime
The Dark Heart of Balor and Hack and Slime both land in Action, Indie, Adventure 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, Adventure on Steam. Hack and Slime (2022) is 4 years older than The Dark Heart of Balor (2026). Hack and Slime scores higher on Steam reviews (72.7% positive) than The Dark Heart of Balor (71.4% positive). 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 Hack and Slime
Choose Hack and Slime if you want an Early Access experience. On Steam, it's currently about 93% cheaper on the Steam Store. Hack and Slime launched in 2022.
Both The Dark Heart of Balor and Hack and Slime sit in Action, Indie, and Adventure on Steam, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (71.4% vs 72.7% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.
Side-by-side comparison
 The Dark Heart of Balor |  Hack and Slime | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2026 | 2022 |
| Genres | Action, Indie, Adventure, RPG | Action, Indie, Adventure, RPG, Early Access |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows, Linux |
| Steam Deck | Unrated | Unrated |
| Price | 14.99 USD | 0.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 71.4% positive (14 reviews) | 72.7% positive (33 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Game Artists, LLC | BULLWARESOFT, SpoonBox Studio |
Side by side
- Both share Action, Indie, Adventure on Steam.
- Hack and Slime (2022) is 4 years older than The Dark Heart of Balor (2026).
- Hack and Slime scores higher on Steam reviews (72.7% positive) than The Dark Heart of Balor (71.4% positive).
- Hack and Slime is currently ~93% cheaper on Steam than The Dark Heart of Balor (0.99 USD vs. 14.99 USD).
The Dark Heart of Balor vs Hack and Slime — FAQ
- Should I play The Dark Heart of Balor or Hack and Slime first?
- If you want chronology, Hack and Slime (2022) came out before The Dark Heart of Balor (2026). 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 The Dark Heart of Balor and Hack and Slime similar?
- They overlap on Action, Indie, Adventure 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.