Choose The Darkside Detective
Choose The Darkside Detective if it matches what drew you to this matchup. 1,987 Steam reviews back the pick.
The Darkside Detective vs The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark
The Darkside Detective and The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark both land in Indie, Adventure, 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 Indie, Adventure, Casual on Steam. The Darkside Detective (2017) is 4 years older than The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark (2021). The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark scores higher on Steam reviews (95.4% positive) than The Darkside Detective (94.2% 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 Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark
Choose The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark if it's the newer release (2021) and ships with the modern feature baseline. The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark launched in 2021.
Both The Darkside Detective and The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark sit in Indie, Adventure, and Casual on Steam and both list Camera Comfort, Custom Volume Controls, and Playable without Timed Input, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (94.2% vs 95.4% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.
Side-by-side comparison
 The Darkside Detective |  The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2017 | 2021 |
| Genres | Indie, Adventure, Casual | Indie, Adventure, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Steam Deck | Deck Verified | Deck Verified |
| Price | 14.99 USD | 14.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 94.2% positive (1,987 reviews) | 95.4% positive (877 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Spooky Doorway | Spooky Doorway |
Side by side
- Both share Indie, Adventure, Casual on Steam.
- The Darkside Detective (2017) is 4 years older than The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark (2021).
- The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark scores higher on Steam reviews (95.4% positive) than The Darkside Detective (94.2% positive).
- The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark is currently ~0% cheaper on Steam than The Darkside Detective (14.99 USD vs. 14.99 USD).
- Both are Deck Verified.
The Darkside Detective vs The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark — FAQ
- Which is better, The Darkside Detective or The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark?
- On Steam reviews the two are nearly tied: The Darkside Detective sits at 94.2% positive (1,987 reviews), The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark at 95.4% (877). The choice usually comes down to genre fit and the platform features each one supports — see the comparison table above.
- Should I play The Darkside Detective or The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark first?
- If you want chronology, The Darkside Detective (2017) came out before The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark (2021). 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 The Darkside Detective and The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark similar?
- They overlap on Indie, Adventure, 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.
- Do The Darkside Detective and The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark both run on Steam Deck?
- Yes — both are Steam Deck Verified, meaning Valve confirms they run with full controller support, legible text, and default settings out of the box.