Choose Pacer
Choose Pacer if you want a Sports and Simulation experience. Pacer launched in 2020.
Pacer vs BallisticNG
Pacer and BallisticNG both land in Action, Indie, Racing 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, Indie, Racing on Steam. BallisticNG (2018) is 2 years older than Pacer (2020). BallisticNG scores higher on Steam reviews (95.6% positive) than Pacer (72.4% 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 BallisticNG
Choose BallisticNG if you want the Shared/Split Screen, Shared/Split Screen PvP, and LAN PvP side of the pairing. On Steam, it carries the stronger Steam consensus at 95.6% positive across 1,916 reviews.
Both Pacer and BallisticNG sit in Action, Indie, and Racing on Steam and both list Multi-player, Steam Leaderboards, 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.
Side-by-side comparison
 Pacer |  BallisticNG | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2020 | 2018 |
| Genres | Action, Sports, Indie, Simulation, Racing | Action, Indie, Racing |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Steam Deck | Deck Verified | Deck Verified |
| Price | 39.99 USD | 14.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 72.4% positive (428 reviews) | 95.6% positive (1,916 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player | Multi-player, Cross-Platform Multiplayer |
| Developers | R8 Games Ltd | Neognosis |
Side by side
- Both share Action, Indie, Racing on Steam.
- BallisticNG (2018) is 2 years older than Pacer (2020).
- BallisticNG scores higher on Steam reviews (95.6% positive) than Pacer (72.4% positive).
- BallisticNG is currently ~63% cheaper on Steam than Pacer (14.99 USD vs. 39.99 USD).
- Both are Deck Verified.
Pacer vs BallisticNG — FAQ
- Which is better, Pacer or BallisticNG?
- On Steam reviews BallisticNG scores higher (95.6% positive) than Pacer (72.4% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, BallisticNG is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.
- Should I play Pacer or BallisticNG first?
- If you want chronology, BallisticNG (2018) came out before Pacer (2020). 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 Pacer and BallisticNG similar?
- They overlap on Action, Indie, Racing 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 Pacer and BallisticNG 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.