Choose Paint By Numbers
Choose Paint By Numbers if you want a Free To Play experience. On Steam, it's free to play, so the barrier to trying it is zero. Paint By Numbers launched in 2021.
Paint By Numbers vs Starshapes
Paint By Numbers and Starshapes both land in Indie, Casual 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 Indie, Casual on Steam. Paint By Numbers (2021) is 5 years older than Starshapes (2026). Paint By Numbers is free; Starshapes is paid (Price unknown). 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 Starshapes
Choose Starshapes if you want the DualShock Controller Support, Color Alternatives, and Camera Comfort side of the pairing. On Steam, it's the newer release (2026) and ships with the modern feature baseline. Starshapes launched in 2026.
Both Paint By Numbers and Starshapes sit in Indie and Casual on Steam and both list Custom Volume Controls, Playable without Timed Input, and Mouse Only Option, 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
 Paint By Numbers |  Starshapes | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2021 | 2026 |
| Genres | Indie, Free To Play, Casual | Indie, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows, Linux |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Unrated |
| Price | Free to play | Price unknown |
| Steam reviews | 81.8% positive (66 reviews) | — |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Oleg Sereda | Peter Bjørn |
Side by side
- Both share Indie, Casual on Steam.
- Paint By Numbers (2021) is 5 years older than Starshapes (2026).
- Paint By Numbers is free; Starshapes is paid (Price unknown).
- Paint By Numbers is Deck Playable on Steam Deck; Starshapes has no Deck rating yet.
Paint By Numbers vs Starshapes — FAQ
- Should I play Paint By Numbers or Starshapes first?
- If you want chronology, Paint By Numbers (2021) came out before Starshapes (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 Paint By Numbers and Starshapes similar?
- They overlap on Indie, Casual 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.
- Is Paint By Numbers free?
- Yes — Paint By Numbers is a free-to-play Steam title. Starshapes is paid (Price unknown).
- Does Paint By Numbers run on Steam Deck?
- Yes — Paint By Numbers is rated Deck Playable by Valve. Starshapes doesn't have a Deck rating yet, so its Deck behaviour is currently unverified.