Choose Backrooms Society
Choose Backrooms Society if you want an Early Access game with Multi-player, Steam Leaderboards, and Online Co-op. On Steam, it's currently about 65% cheaper on the Steam Store. Backrooms Society launched in 2023.
Backrooms Society vs The Thing That Happened
Backrooms Society and The Thing That Happened both land in Action, Indie, Adventure 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, Adventure on Steam. Backrooms Society (2023) is 3 years older than The Thing That Happened (2026). Backrooms Society scores higher on Steam reviews (80.7% positive) than The Thing That Happened (65.7% 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 The Thing That Happened
Choose The Thing That Happened if you want a Casual experience. On Steam, it's the newer release (2026) and ships with the modern feature baseline. The Thing That Happened launched in 2026.
Both Backrooms Society and The Thing That Happened sit in Action, Indie, and Adventure 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
 Backrooms Society |  The Thing That Happened | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2023 | 2026 |
| Genres | Action, Indie, Adventure, Early Access | Action, Indie, Adventure, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Unsupported |
| Price | 6.99 USD | 19.89 USD |
| Steam reviews | 80.7% positive (342 reviews) | 65.7% positive (70 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op | Single-player only |
| Developers | Mikael Bihl | Mario Murkl, Zoltán Árva |
Side by side
- Both share Action, Indie, Adventure on Steam.
- Backrooms Society (2023) is 3 years older than The Thing That Happened (2026).
- Backrooms Society scores higher on Steam reviews (80.7% positive) than The Thing That Happened (65.7% positive).
- Backrooms Society is currently ~65% cheaper on Steam than The Thing That Happened (6.99 USD vs. 19.89 USD).
- Backrooms Society has co-op; The Thing That Happened does not.
- Steam Deck: Backrooms Society is Deck Playable, The Thing That Happened is Deck Unsupported.
Backrooms Society vs The Thing That Happened — FAQ
- Should I play Backrooms Society or The Thing That Happened first?
- If you want chronology, Backrooms Society (2023) came out before The Thing That Happened (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 Backrooms Society and The Thing That Happened similar?
- They overlap on Action, Indie, Adventure 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 The Thing That Happened have multiplayer like Backrooms Society?
- No. Backrooms Society supports multiplayer on Steam (Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op), while The Thing That Happened is listed as single-player only.