Choose Oil Sheik
Choose Oil Sheik if you want an Indie and Free To Play game with Steam Leaderboards, Stereo Sound, and Touch Only Option. On Steam, it's free to play, so the barrier to trying it is zero. Oil Sheik launched in 2025.
Oil Sheik vs Protect the Pit
Oil Sheik and Protect the Pit both land in Strategy, Simulation, Casual 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, Casual on Steam. Oil Sheik (2025) is 1 year older than Protect the Pit (2026). Oil Sheik is free; Protect the Pit is paid (Price unknown). 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 Protect the Pit
Choose Protect the Pit if you want the Color Alternatives, Camera Comfort, and Save Anytime side of the pairing. Protect the Pit launched in 2026.
Both Oil Sheik and Protect the Pit sit in Strategy, Simulation, and Casual on Steam and both list DualShock Controller Support, DualSense Controller Support, and Custom Volume Controls, 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
 Oil Sheik |  Protect the Pit | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025 | 2026 |
| Genres | Strategy, Indie, Simulation, Free To Play, Casual | Strategy, Simulation, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows, Linux | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Unsupported | Unrated |
| Price | Free to play | Price unknown |
| Steam reviews | 78.9% positive (19 reviews) | — |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Reliq | atomco |
Side by side
- Both share Strategy, Simulation, Casual on Steam.
- Oil Sheik (2025) is 1 year older than Protect the Pit (2026).
- Oil Sheik is free; Protect the Pit is paid (Price unknown).
- Oil Sheik is Deck Unsupported on Steam Deck; Protect the Pit has no Deck rating yet.
Oil Sheik vs Protect the Pit — FAQ
- Should I play Oil Sheik or Protect the Pit first?
- If you want chronology, Oil Sheik (2025) came out before Protect the Pit (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 Oil Sheik and Protect the Pit similar?
- They overlap on Strategy, Simulation, Casual 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.
- Is Oil Sheik free?
- Yes — Oil Sheik is a free-to-play Steam title. Protect the Pit is paid (Price unknown).