Choose Dear Esther
Choose Dear Esther if it matches what drew you to this matchup. 3,075 Steam reviews back the pick.
Dear Esther vs What Never Was
Dear Esther and What Never Was 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 7 years older than What Never Was (2019). What Never Was scores higher on Steam reviews (94.5% 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 What Never Was
Choose What Never Was if you want a Free To Play experience. On Steam, it carries the stronger Steam consensus at 94.5% positive across 3,844 reviews.
Both Dear Esther and What Never Was sit in Indie, Adventure, and Casual on Steam, 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
 Dear Esther |  What Never Was | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2012 | 2019 |
| Genres | Indie, Adventure, Casual | Indie, Adventure, Free To Play, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Steam Deck | Deck Verified | Deck Verified |
| Price | Price unknown | Free to play |
| Steam reviews | 77.6% positive (3,075 reviews) | 94.5% positive (3,844 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | The Chinese Room, Robert Briscoe | Acke Hallgren |
Side by side
- Both share Indie, Adventure, Casual on Steam.
- Dear Esther (2012) is 7 years older than What Never Was (2019).
- What Never Was scores higher on Steam reviews (94.5% positive) than Dear Esther (77.6% positive).
- What Never Was is free; Dear Esther is paid (Price unknown).
- Both are Deck Verified.
Dear Esther vs What Never Was — FAQ
- Which is better, Dear Esther or What Never Was?
- On Steam reviews What Never Was scores higher (94.5% positive) than Dear Esther (77.6% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, What Never Was is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.
- Should I play Dear Esther or What Never Was first?
- If you want chronology, Dear Esther (2012) came out before What Never Was (2019). 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 What Never Was 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.
- Is What Never Was free?
- Yes — What Never Was is a free-to-play Steam title. Dear Esther is paid (Price unknown).
- Do Dear Esther and What Never Was both run on Steam Deck?
- Yes — both are Steam Deck Verified, meaning Valve confirms they run with full controller support, legible text, and default settings out of the box.