Choose Knights of Honor
Choose Knights of Honor if it's currently about 33% cheaper on the Steam Store. 1,056 Steam reviews back the pick.
Knights of Honor vs Hearts of Iron IV
Knights of Honor and Hearts of Iron IV both land in Strategy 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 Strategy games on Steam. Knights of Honor (2009) is 7 years older than Hearts of Iron IV (2016). Both sit near 92% positive on Steam (Knights of Honor: 1,056 reviews, Hearts of Iron IV: 120,833). 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 Hearts of Iron IV
Choose Hearts of Iron IV if you want a Simulation game with Co-op. On Steam, it's the newer release (2016) and ships with the modern feature baseline. 120,833 Steam reviews back the pick.
Both Knights of Honor and Hearts of Iron IV sit in Strategy on Steam and both list Multi-player, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (92% vs 91.1% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.
Side-by-side comparison
 Knights of Honor |  Hearts of Iron IV | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2009 | 2016 |
| Genres | Strategy | Strategy, Simulation |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Playable |
| Price | 9.99 USD | 14.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 92% positive (1,056 reviews) | 91.1% positive (120,833 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player | Multi-player, Cross-Platform Multiplayer, Co-op |
| Developers | Black Sea Studios Ltd | Paradox Development Studio |
Side by side
- Both are Strategy games on Steam.
- Knights of Honor (2009) is 7 years older than Hearts of Iron IV (2016).
- Both sit near 92% positive on Steam (Knights of Honor: 1,056 reviews, Hearts of Iron IV: 120,833).
- Knights of Honor is currently ~33% cheaper on Steam than Hearts of Iron IV (9.99 USD vs. 14.99 USD).
- Hearts of Iron IV has co-op; Knights of Honor does not.
- Both are Deck Playable.
Knights of Honor vs Hearts of Iron IV — FAQ
- Which is better, Knights of Honor or Hearts of Iron IV?
- On Steam reviews the two are nearly tied: Knights of Honor sits at 92% positive (1,056 reviews), Hearts of Iron IV at 91.1% (120,833). The choice usually comes down to genre fit and the platform features each one supports — see the comparison table above.
- Should I play Knights of Honor or Hearts of Iron IV first?
- If you want chronology, Knights of Honor (2009) came out before Hearts of Iron IV (2016). 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 Knights of Honor and Hearts of Iron IV similar?
- They overlap on Strategy 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.