Choose Blackwake
Choose Blackwake if you want an Action game with Online Co-op and Co-op. On Steam, it carries the stronger Steam consensus at 82.5% positive across 13,263 reviews.
Blackwake vs Pirate Ships
Blackwake and Pirate Ships both land in Strategy, Indie, Free To Play 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 Strategy, Indie, Free To Play on Steam. Blackwake (2020) is 6 years older than Pirate Ships (2026). Blackwake scores higher on Steam reviews (82.5% positive) than Pirate Ships (77.1% 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 Pirate Ships
Choose Pirate Ships if it's the newer release (2026) and ships with the modern feature baseline. Pirate Ships launched in 2026.
Both Blackwake and Pirate Ships sit in Strategy, Indie, and Free To Play on Steam and both list Multi-player, Online PvP, and 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
 Blackwake |  Pirate Ships | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2020 | 2026 |
| Genres | Action, Strategy, Indie, Free To Play, Casual | Strategy, Indie, Free To Play, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS | Windows, macOS |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Playable |
| Price | Free to play | Free to play |
| Steam reviews | 82.5% positive (13,263 reviews) | 77.1% positive (140 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op | Multi-player, Cross-Platform Multiplayer |
| Developers | Mastfire Studios Pty Ltd | HeroCraft Ltd. |
Side by side
- Both share Strategy, Indie, Free To Play on Steam.
- Blackwake (2020) is 6 years older than Pirate Ships (2026).
- Blackwake scores higher on Steam reviews (82.5% positive) than Pirate Ships (77.1% positive).
- Both are free to play.
- Blackwake has co-op; Pirate Ships does not.
- Both are Deck Playable.
Blackwake vs Pirate Ships — FAQ
- Which is better, Blackwake or Pirate Ships?
- On Steam reviews Blackwake scores higher (82.5% positive) than Pirate Ships (77.1% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, Blackwake is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.
- Should I play Blackwake or Pirate Ships first?
- If you want chronology, Blackwake (2020) came out before Pirate Ships (2026). 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 Blackwake and Pirate Ships similar?
- They overlap on Strategy, Indie, Free To Play 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.