Choose Blackguards
Choose Blackguards if you want an Action and Adventure experience. On Steam, it's currently about 50% cheaper on the Steam Store. 1,271 Steam reviews back the pick.
Blackguards vs Deep Fringe
Blackguards and Deep Fringe both land in Strategy, Indie, RPG 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, RPG on Steam. Blackguards (2014) is 12 years older than Deep Fringe (2026). Blackguards is currently ~50% cheaper on Steam than Deep Fringe (9.99 USD vs. 19.99 USD). 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 Deep Fringe
Choose Deep Fringe if you want an Early Access experience. On Steam, it's the newer release (2026) and ships with the modern feature baseline. Deep Fringe launched in 2026.
Both Blackguards and Deep Fringe sit in Strategy, Indie, and RPG 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
 Blackguards |  Deep Fringe | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2014 | 2026 |
| Genres | Action, Strategy, Indie, Adventure, RPG | Strategy, Indie, RPG, Early Access |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Playable |
| Price | 9.99 USD | 19.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 59.2% positive (1,271 reviews) | 9 reviews |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Daedalic Entertainment | Bosoneon Studio |
Side by side
- Both share Strategy, Indie, RPG on Steam.
- Blackguards (2014) is 12 years older than Deep Fringe (2026).
- Blackguards is currently ~50% cheaper on Steam than Deep Fringe (9.99 USD vs. 19.99 USD).
- Both are Deck Playable.
Blackguards vs Deep Fringe — FAQ
- Should I play Blackguards or Deep Fringe first?
- If you want chronology, Blackguards (2014) came out before Deep Fringe (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 Blackguards and Deep Fringe similar?
- They overlap on Strategy, Indie, RPG 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.