Choose Half-Life 2: Deathmatch
Choose Half-Life 2: Deathmatch if you want the Includes Source SDK, Custom Volume Controls, and Stereo Sound side of the pairing. 4,604 Steam reviews back the pick.
Half-Life 2: Deathmatch vs eBall
Half-Life 2: Deathmatch and eBall both land in Action 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 Action games on Steam. Half-Life 2: Deathmatch (2004) is 15 years older than eBall (2019). Half-Life 2: Deathmatch scores higher on Steam reviews (90.1% positive) than eBall (73.9% 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 eBall
Choose eBall if you want an Indie, Massively Multiplayer, and Casual game with Online PvP and PvP. On Steam, it's the newer release (2019) and ships with the modern feature baseline. eBall launched in 2019.
Both Half-Life 2: Deathmatch and eBall sit in Action on Steam and both list Multi-player, 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
 Half-Life 2: Deathmatch |  eBall | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2004 | 2019 |
| Genres | Action | Action, Indie, Massively Multiplayer, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows, Linux | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Unrated |
| Price | Price unknown | 4.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 90.1% positive (4,604 reviews) | 73.9% positive (46 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player | Multi-player |
| Developers | Valve | Toxic Studio |
Side by side
- Both are Action games on Steam.
- Half-Life 2: Deathmatch (2004) is 15 years older than eBall (2019).
- Half-Life 2: Deathmatch scores higher on Steam reviews (90.1% positive) than eBall (73.9% positive).
- Half-Life 2: Deathmatch is Deck Playable on Steam Deck; eBall has no Deck rating yet.
Half-Life 2: Deathmatch vs eBall — FAQ
- Should I play Half-Life 2: Deathmatch or eBall first?
- If you want chronology, Half-Life 2: Deathmatch (2004) came out before eBall (2019). 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 Half-Life 2: Deathmatch and eBall similar?
- They overlap on Action 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 Half-Life 2: Deathmatch run on Steam Deck?
- Yes — Half-Life 2: Deathmatch is rated Deck Playable by Valve. eBall doesn't have a Deck rating yet, so its Deck behaviour is currently unverified.