Choose Uplink
Choose Uplink if you want a Strategy experience. On Steam, it's currently about 40% cheaper on the Steam Store. 1,371 Steam reviews back the pick.
Uplink vs Quadrilateral Cowboy
Uplink and Quadrilateral Cowboy both land in 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 are Indie games on Steam. Uplink (2006) is 10 years older than Quadrilateral Cowboy (2016). Quadrilateral Cowboy scores higher on Steam reviews (91.8% positive) than Uplink (90.7% 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 Quadrilateral Cowboy
Choose Quadrilateral Cowboy if you want an Action and Adventure experience. On Steam, it's the newer release (2016) and ships with the modern feature baseline. Quadrilateral Cowboy launched in 2016.
Both Uplink and Quadrilateral Cowboy sit in Indie on Steam, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (90.7% vs 91.8% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.
Side-by-side comparison
 Uplink |  Quadrilateral Cowboy | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2006 | 2016 |
| Genres | Strategy, Indie | Action, Indie, Adventure |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Playable |
| Price | 11.99 USD | 19.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 90.7% positive (1,371 reviews) | 91.8% positive (745 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Introversion Software | Blendo Games |
Side by side
- Both are Indie games on Steam.
- Uplink (2006) is 10 years older than Quadrilateral Cowboy (2016).
- Quadrilateral Cowboy scores higher on Steam reviews (91.8% positive) than Uplink (90.7% positive).
- Uplink is currently ~40% cheaper on Steam than Quadrilateral Cowboy (11.99 USD vs. 19.99 USD).
- Both are Deck Playable.
Uplink vs Quadrilateral Cowboy — FAQ
- Which is better, Uplink or Quadrilateral Cowboy?
- On Steam reviews the two are nearly tied: Uplink sits at 90.7% positive (1,371 reviews), Quadrilateral Cowboy at 91.8% (745). The choice usually comes down to genre fit and the platform features each one supports — see the comparison table above.
- Should I play Uplink or Quadrilateral Cowboy first?
- If you want chronology, Uplink (2006) came out before Quadrilateral Cowboy (2016). 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 Uplink and Quadrilateral Cowboy similar?
- They overlap on 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.