Choose The Night Shift
Choose The Night Shift if you want the Steam Timeline, Camera Comfort, and Custom Volume Controls side of the pairing. The Night Shift launched in 2025.
The Night Shift vs The Strange Lights
The Night Shift and The Strange Lights both land in 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 are Indie games on Steam. The Night Shift (2025) is 1 year older than The Strange Lights (2026). The Strange Lights scores higher on Steam reviews (85.2% positive) than The Night Shift (77.8% 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 Strange Lights
Choose The Strange Lights if you want an Adventure and Simulation experience. On Steam, it's currently about 38% cheaper on the Steam Store. The Strange Lights launched in 2026.
Both The Night Shift and The Strange Lights sit in 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
 The Night Shift |  The Strange Lights | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025 | 2026 |
| Genres | Indie | Indie, Adventure, Simulation |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Unsupported | Unrated |
| Price | 5.59 USD | 3.49 USD |
| Steam reviews | 77.8% positive (18 reviews) | 85.2% positive (61 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Red Spiral Studios | JustTomcuk |
Side by side
- Both are Indie games on Steam.
- The Night Shift (2025) is 1 year older than The Strange Lights (2026).
- The Strange Lights scores higher on Steam reviews (85.2% positive) than The Night Shift (77.8% positive).
- The Strange Lights is currently ~38% cheaper on Steam than The Night Shift (3.49 USD vs. 5.59 USD).
- The Night Shift is Deck Unsupported on Steam Deck; The Strange Lights has no Deck rating yet.
The Night Shift vs The Strange Lights — FAQ
- Should I play The Night Shift or The Strange Lights first?
- If you want chronology, The Night Shift (2025) came out before The Strange Lights (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 The Night Shift and The Strange Lights similar?
- They overlap on 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.