Choose Striving for Light
Choose Striving for Light if you want an Adventure and Casual experience. On Steam, it's Steam Deck Verified, so handheld play works out of the box. Striving for Light launched in 2025.
Striving for Light vs Ethereal Rift
Striving for Light and Ethereal Rift both land in Action, Indie, RPG 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, RPG on Steam. Ethereal Rift (2023) is 2 years older than Striving for Light (2025). Ethereal Rift is free; Striving for Light is paid (12.59 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 Ethereal Rift
Choose Ethereal Rift if you want a Free To Play experience. On Steam, it's free to play, so the barrier to trying it is zero. Ethereal Rift launched in 2023.
Both Striving for Light and Ethereal Rift sit in Action, Indie, and RPG on Steam and both list Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen, and Shared/Split Screen Co-op, 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
 Striving for Light |  Ethereal Rift | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025 | 2023 |
| Genres | Action, Indie, Adventure, RPG, Casual | Action, Indie, RPG, Free To Play |
| Platforms | Windows, Linux | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Verified | Deck Playable |
| Price | 12.59 USD | Free to play |
| Steam reviews | 80% positive (100 reviews) | 6 reviews |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op | Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op |
| Developers | Igniting Spark Games | Jack Vanderkolk |
Side by side
- Both share Action, Indie, RPG on Steam.
- Ethereal Rift (2023) is 2 years older than Striving for Light (2025).
- Ethereal Rift is free; Striving for Light is paid (12.59 USD).
- Both support cooperative play.
- Steam Deck: Striving for Light is Deck Verified, Ethereal Rift is Deck Playable.
Striving for Light vs Ethereal Rift — FAQ
- Should I play Striving for Light or Ethereal Rift first?
- If you want chronology, Ethereal Rift (2023) came out before Striving for Light (2025). 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 Striving for Light and Ethereal Rift similar?
- They overlap on Action, Indie, RPG 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.
- Do both Striving for Light and Ethereal Rift have co-op?
- Yes — both list a co-op category on Steam. Specifics differ: Striving for Light ships Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op; Ethereal Rift ships Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op.
- Is Ethereal Rift free?
- Yes — Ethereal Rift is a free-to-play Steam title. Striving for Light is paid (12.59 USD).