Choose Rivals of Aether
Choose Rivals of Aether if you want the Online PvP side of the pairing. 27,490 Steam reviews back the pick.
Rivals of Aether vs Wand Wars
Rivals of Aether and Wand Wars 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. Wand Wars (2016) is 1 year older than Rivals of Aether (2017). Both sit near 97% positive on Steam (Rivals of Aether: 27,490 reviews, Wand Wars: 131). 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 Wand Wars
Choose Wand Wars if you want an Action and Sports experience. On Steam, it's currently about 60% cheaper on the Steam Store. Wand Wars launched in 2016.
Both Rivals of Aether and Wand Wars sit in Indie on Steam and both list Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen, and Steam Leaderboards, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (96.6% vs 96.9% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.
Side-by-side comparison
 Rivals of Aether |  Wand Wars | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2017 | 2016 |
| Genres | Indie | Action, Sports, Indie |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Steam Deck | Deck Verified | Deck Verified |
| Price | 29.99 USD | 11.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 96.6% positive (27,490 reviews) | 96.9% positive (131 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op | Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op |
| Developers | Aether Studios | Moonradish Inc. |
Side by side
- Both are Indie games on Steam.
- Wand Wars (2016) is 1 year older than Rivals of Aether (2017).
- Both sit near 97% positive on Steam (Rivals of Aether: 27,490 reviews, Wand Wars: 131).
- Wand Wars is currently ~60% cheaper on Steam than Rivals of Aether (11.99 USD vs. 29.99 USD).
- Both support cooperative play.
- Both are Deck Verified.
Rivals of Aether vs Wand Wars — FAQ
- Which is better, Rivals of Aether or Wand Wars?
- On Steam reviews the two are nearly tied: Rivals of Aether sits at 96.6% positive (27,490 reviews), Wand Wars at 96.9% (131). The choice usually comes down to genre fit and the platform features each one supports — see the comparison table above.
- Should I play Rivals of Aether or Wand Wars first?
- If you want chronology, Wand Wars (2016) came out before Rivals of Aether (2017). 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 Rivals of Aether and Wand Wars 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.
- Do both Rivals of Aether and Wand Wars have co-op?
- Yes — both list a co-op category on Steam. Specifics differ: Rivals of Aether ships Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op; Wand Wars ships Shared/Split Screen Co-op, Co-op.
- Do Rivals of Aether and Wand Wars 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.