Choose Dear Esther
Choose Dear Esther if it's Steam Deck Verified, so handheld play works out of the box. 3,075 Steam reviews back the pick.
Dear Esther vs Foxen Island
Dear Esther and Foxen Island both land in Indie, Adventure, 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, Adventure, Casual on Steam. Dear Esther (2012) is 9 years older than Foxen Island (2021). Foxen Island scores higher on Steam reviews (78.9% positive) than Dear Esther (77.6% 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 Foxen Island
Choose Foxen Island if you want an Early Access experience. On Steam, it's the newer release (2021) and ships with the modern feature baseline. Foxen Island launched in 2021.
Both Dear Esther and Foxen Island sit in Indie, Adventure, and Casual on Steam, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (77.6% vs 78.9% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.
Side-by-side comparison
 Dear Esther |  Foxen Island | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2012 | 2021 |
| Genres | Indie, Adventure, Casual | Indie, Adventure, Casual, Early Access |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS | Windows, macOS |
| Steam Deck | Deck Verified | Unrated |
| Price | Price unknown | 8.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 77.6% positive (3,075 reviews) | 78.9% positive (19 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | The Chinese Room, Robert Briscoe | gamingyourway |
Side by side
- Both share Indie, Adventure, Casual on Steam.
- Dear Esther (2012) is 9 years older than Foxen Island (2021).
- Foxen Island scores higher on Steam reviews (78.9% positive) than Dear Esther (77.6% positive).
- Dear Esther is Deck Verified on Steam Deck; Foxen Island has no Deck rating yet.
Dear Esther vs Foxen Island — FAQ
- Should I play Dear Esther or Foxen Island first?
- If you want chronology, Dear Esther (2012) came out before Foxen Island (2021). 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 Dear Esther and Foxen Island similar?
- They overlap on Indie, Adventure, 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.
- Does Dear Esther run on Steam Deck?
- Yes — Dear Esther is rated Deck Verified by Valve. Foxen Island doesn't have a Deck rating yet, so its Deck behaviour is currently unverified.