Which is better, The Elder Scrolls® Online or Black Desert?

On Steam reviews The Elder Scrolls® Online scores higher (81.6% positive) than Black Desert (72.5% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, The Elder Scrolls® Online is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.

Are The Elder Scrolls® Online and Black Desert similar?

They overlap on Action, Adventure, Massively Multiplayer 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 The Elder Scrolls® Online and Black Desert have co-op?

Yes — both list a co-op category on Steam. Specifics differ: The Elder Scrolls® Online ships Online Co-op, Co-op; Black Desert ships Online Co-op, Co-op.

The Elder Scrolls® Online vs Black Desert

The Elder Scrolls® Online and Black Desert both land in Action, Adventure, Massively Multiplayer 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 Action, Adventure, Massively Multiplayer on Steam. Both released in 2017. The Elder Scrolls® Online scores higher on Steam reviews (81.6% positive) than Black Desert (72.5% positive). 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 The Elder Scrolls® Online

Choose The Elder Scrolls® Online if you want the HDR available, Camera Comfort, and Custom Volume Controls side of the pairing. On Steam, it carries the stronger Steam consensus at 81.6% positive across 73,647 reviews.

Choose Black Desert

Choose Black Desert if you want a Strategy experience. On Steam, it's currently about 50% cheaper on the Steam Store. 35,523 Steam reviews back the pick.

Both The Elder Scrolls® Online and Black Desert sit in Action, Adventure, and Massively Multiplayer on Steam and both list Multi-player, MMO, and Online PvP, 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.

The Elder Scrolls® Online vs Black Desert — Steam metadata comparison
	The Elder Scrolls® Online	Black Desert
Released	2017	2017
Genres	Action, Adventure, Massively Multiplayer, RPG	Action, Strategy, Adventure, Massively Multiplayer, RPG
Platforms	Windows, macOS	Windows
Steam Deck	Deck Playable	Deck Unsupported
Price	19.99 USD	9.99 USD
Steam reviews	81.6% positive (73,647 reviews)	72.5% positive (35,523 reviews)
Multiplayer	Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op	Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op
Developers	ZeniMax Online Studios	Pearl Abyss

Side by side

Both share Action, Adventure, Massively Multiplayer on Steam.
Both released in 2017.
The Elder Scrolls® Online scores higher on Steam reviews (81.6% positive) than Black Desert (72.5% positive).
Black Desert is currently ~50% cheaper on Steam than The Elder Scrolls® Online (9.99 USD vs. 19.99 USD).
Both support cooperative play.
Steam Deck: The Elder Scrolls® Online is Deck Playable, Black Desert is Deck Unsupported.