Choose FTL: Faster Than Light
Choose FTL: Faster Than Light if you want a Simulation experience. On Steam, it carries the stronger Steam consensus at 95.5% positive across 46,262 reviews.
FTL: Faster Than Light vs Crying Suns
FTL: Faster Than Light and Crying Suns both land in Strategy, 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 share Strategy, Indie on Steam. FTL: Faster Than Light (2012) is 7 years older than Crying Suns (2019). FTL: Faster Than Light scores higher on Steam reviews (95.5% positive) than Crying Suns (85.1% 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 Crying Suns
Choose Crying Suns if it's the newer release (2019) and ships with the modern feature baseline. 1,904 Steam reviews back the pick.
Both FTL: Faster Than Light and Crying Suns sit in Strategy and Indie 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
 FTL: Faster Than Light |  Crying Suns | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2012 | 2019 |
| Genres | Strategy, Indie, Simulation | Strategy, Indie |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows, macOS |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Playable |
| Price | 9.99 USD | 24.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 95.5% positive (46,262 reviews) | 85.1% positive (1,904 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Subset Games | Alt Shift |
Side by side
- Both share Strategy, Indie on Steam.
- FTL: Faster Than Light (2012) is 7 years older than Crying Suns (2019).
- FTL: Faster Than Light scores higher on Steam reviews (95.5% positive) than Crying Suns (85.1% positive).
- FTL: Faster Than Light is currently ~60% cheaper on Steam than Crying Suns (9.99 USD vs. 24.99 USD).
- Both are Deck Playable.
FTL: Faster Than Light vs Crying Suns — FAQ
- Which is better, FTL: Faster Than Light or Crying Suns?
- On Steam reviews FTL: Faster Than Light scores higher (95.5% positive) than Crying Suns (85.1% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, FTL: Faster Than Light is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.
- Should I play FTL: Faster Than Light or Crying Suns first?
- If you want chronology, FTL: Faster Than Light (2012) came out before Crying Suns (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 FTL: Faster Than Light and Crying Suns similar?
- They overlap on Strategy, 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.