Choose Cities: Skylines
Choose Cities: Skylines if it matches what drew you to this matchup. 99,307 Steam reviews back the pick.
Cities: Skylines vs Command: Shifting Sands
Cities: Skylines and Command: Shifting Sands both land in Strategy, Simulation 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, Simulation on Steam. Cities: Skylines (2015) is 2 years older than Command: Shifting Sands (2017). Cities: Skylines is Deck Playable on Steam Deck; Command: Shifting Sands has no Deck rating yet. 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 Command: Shifting Sands
Choose Command: Shifting Sands if it matches what drew you to this matchup. Command: Shifting Sands launched in 2017.
Both Cities: Skylines and Command: Shifting Sands sit in Strategy and Simulation 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
 Cities: Skylines |  Command: Shifting Sands | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2015 | 2017 |
| Genres | Strategy, Simulation | Strategy, Simulation |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Unrated |
| Price | 8.99 USD | Price unknown |
| Steam reviews | 92.8% positive (99,307 reviews) | 1 reviews |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Colossal Order | WarfareSims |
Side by side
- Both share Strategy, Simulation on Steam.
- Cities: Skylines (2015) is 2 years older than Command: Shifting Sands (2017).
- Cities: Skylines is Deck Playable on Steam Deck; Command: Shifting Sands has no Deck rating yet.
Cities: Skylines vs Command: Shifting Sands — FAQ
- Should I play Cities: Skylines or Command: Shifting Sands first?
- If you want chronology, Cities: Skylines (2015) came out before Command: Shifting Sands (2017). 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 Cities: Skylines and Command: Shifting Sands similar?
- They overlap on Strategy, Simulation 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 Cities: Skylines run on Steam Deck?
- Yes — Cities: Skylines is rated Deck Playable by Valve. Command: Shifting Sands doesn't have a Deck rating yet, so its Deck behaviour is currently unverified.