Choose Hollow Knight
Choose Hollow Knight if you want an Action and Adventure experience. On Steam, it's Steam Deck Verified, so handheld play works out of the box. 176,306 Steam reviews back the pick.
Hollow Knight vs SHELL
Hollow Knight and SHELL both land in Indie 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 Indie games on Steam. Hollow Knight (2017) is 1 year older than SHELL (2018). SHELL is currently ~93% cheaper on Steam than Hollow Knight (0.99 USD vs. 14.99 USD). 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 SHELL
Choose SHELL if it's currently about 93% cheaper on the Steam Store. SHELL launched in 2018.
Both Hollow Knight and SHELL sit in Indie on Steam, 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
 Hollow Knight |  SHELL | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2017 | 2018 |
| Genres | Action, Indie, Adventure | Indie |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Verified | Unrated |
| Price | 14.99 USD | 0.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 97.1% positive (176,306 reviews) | 5 reviews |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Team Cherry | Kings of the Heroes |
Side by side
- Both are Indie games on Steam.
- Hollow Knight (2017) is 1 year older than SHELL (2018).
- SHELL is currently ~93% cheaper on Steam than Hollow Knight (0.99 USD vs. 14.99 USD).
- Hollow Knight is Deck Verified on Steam Deck; SHELL has no Deck rating yet.
Hollow Knight vs SHELL — FAQ
- Should I play Hollow Knight or SHELL first?
- If you want chronology, Hollow Knight (2017) came out before SHELL (2018). 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 Hollow Knight and SHELL similar?
- They overlap on Indie 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 Hollow Knight run on Steam Deck?
- Yes — Hollow Knight is rated Deck Verified by Valve. SHELL doesn't have a Deck rating yet, so its Deck behaviour is currently unverified.