Choose Old Man's Journey
Choose Old Man's Journey if you want the Custom Volume Controls, Stereo Sound, and Playable without Timed Input side of the pairing. Old Man's Journey launched in 2017.
Old Man's Journey vs The Guardian of Nature
Old Man's Journey and The Guardian of Nature 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. Old Man's Journey (2017) is 8 years older than The Guardian of Nature (2025). The Guardian of Nature scores higher on Steam reviews (91.4% positive) than Old Man's Journey (85.9% 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 Guardian of Nature
Choose The Guardian of Nature if you want an Early Access experience. On Steam, it's the newer release (2025) and ships with the modern feature baseline. The Guardian of Nature launched in 2025.
Both Old Man's Journey and The Guardian of Nature sit in Indie, Adventure, and Casual 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
 Old Man's Journey |  The Guardian of Nature | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2017 | 2025 |
| Genres | Indie, Adventure, Casual | Indie, Adventure, Casual, Early Access |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Steam Deck | Deck Verified | Deck Verified |
| Price | 9.99 USD | 8.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 85.9% positive (999 reviews) | 91.4% positive (58 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Broken Rules | Inlusio Interactive |
Side by side
- Both share Indie, Adventure, Casual on Steam.
- Old Man's Journey (2017) is 8 years older than The Guardian of Nature (2025).
- The Guardian of Nature scores higher on Steam reviews (91.4% positive) than Old Man's Journey (85.9% positive).
- The Guardian of Nature is currently ~10% cheaper on Steam than Old Man's Journey (8.99 USD vs. 9.99 USD).
- Both are Deck Verified.
Old Man's Journey vs The Guardian of Nature — FAQ
- Should I play Old Man's Journey or The Guardian of Nature first?
- If you want chronology, Old Man's Journey (2017) came out before The Guardian of Nature (2025). 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 Old Man's Journey and The Guardian of Nature 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 Old Man's Journey and The Guardian of Nature 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.