IMHO.

American Truck Simulator vs Railroader

American Truck Simulator and Railroader both land in 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 are Simulation games on Steam. American Truck Simulator (2016) is 7 years older than Railroader (2023). Both sit near 97% positive on Steam (American Truck Simulator: 91,834 reviews, Railroader: 2,747). 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 American Truck Simulator

Choose American Truck Simulator if you want an Indie game with Camera Comfort, Custom Volume Controls, and Stereo Sound. On Steam, it's currently about 33% cheaper on the Steam Store. 91,834 Steam reviews back the pick.

Choose Railroader

Choose Railroader if you want a Strategy and Early Access experience. On Steam, it's the newer release (2023) and ships with the modern feature baseline. 2,747 Steam reviews back the pick.

Both American Truck Simulator and Railroader sit in Simulation on Steam and both list Multi-player, Online Co-op, and Co-op, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (97.3% vs 97.3% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.

Side-by-side comparison

American Truck Simulator vs Railroader — Steam metadata comparison
American Truck Simulator — Steam game coverAmerican Truck SimulatorRailroader — Steam game coverRailroader
Released20162023
GenresIndie, SimulationStrategy, Simulation, Early Access
PlatformsWindows, macOS, LinuxWindows
Steam DeckDeck VerifiedDeck Playable
Price19.99 USD29.99 USD
Steam reviews97.3% positive (91,834 reviews)97.3% positive (2,747 reviews)
MultiplayerMulti-player, Online Co-op, Co-opMulti-player, Online Co-op, Co-op
DevelopersSCS SoftwareGiraffe Lab LLC

Side by side

American Truck Simulator vs Railroader — FAQ

Which is better, American Truck Simulator or Railroader?
On Steam reviews the two are nearly tied: American Truck Simulator sits at 97.3% positive (91,834 reviews), Railroader at 97.3% (2,747). The choice usually comes down to genre fit and the platform features each one supports — see the comparison table above.
Should I play American Truck Simulator or Railroader first?
If you want chronology, American Truck Simulator (2016) came out before Railroader (2023). 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 American Truck Simulator and Railroader similar?
They overlap on 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.
Do both American Truck Simulator and Railroader have co-op?
Yes — both list a co-op category on Steam. Specifics differ: American Truck Simulator ships Online Co-op, Co-op; Railroader ships Online Co-op, Co-op.
American Truck Simulator vs Railroader — Verdict (2026) · imho.run