Choose Insurgency: Sandstorm
Choose Insurgency: Sandstorm if you want the Online Co-op and Co-op side of the pairing. On Steam, it has co-op, so you can bring a friend. 59,257 Steam reviews back the pick.
Insurgency: Sandstorm vs Conflict Area
Insurgency: Sandstorm and Conflict Area both land in Action 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 Action games on Steam. Insurgency: Sandstorm (2018) is 2 years older than Conflict Area (2020). Conflict Area is currently ~87% cheaper on Steam than Insurgency: Sandstorm (3.99 USD vs. 29.99 USD). 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 Conflict Area
Choose Conflict Area if you want an Indie, Adventure, and Early Access game with LAN PvP. On Steam, it's currently about 87% cheaper on the Steam Store. Conflict Area launched in 2020.
Both Insurgency: Sandstorm and Conflict Area sit in Action 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
 Insurgency: Sandstorm |  Conflict Area | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2018 | 2020 |
| Genres | Action | Action, Indie, Adventure, Early Access |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Unrated |
| Price | 29.99 USD | 3.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 86.4% positive (59,257 reviews) | 6 reviews |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Cross-Platform Multiplayer, Online Co-op | Multi-player |
| Developers | New World Interactive | SncI Games |
Side by side
- Both are Action games on Steam.
- Insurgency: Sandstorm (2018) is 2 years older than Conflict Area (2020).
- Conflict Area is currently ~87% cheaper on Steam than Insurgency: Sandstorm (3.99 USD vs. 29.99 USD).
- Insurgency: Sandstorm has co-op; Conflict Area does not.
- Insurgency: Sandstorm is Deck Playable on Steam Deck; Conflict Area has no Deck rating yet.
Insurgency: Sandstorm vs Conflict Area — FAQ
- Should I play Insurgency: Sandstorm or Conflict Area first?
- If you want chronology, Insurgency: Sandstorm (2018) came out before Conflict Area (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 Insurgency: Sandstorm and Conflict Area similar?
- They overlap on Action 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.
- Does Insurgency: Sandstorm run on Steam Deck?
- Yes — Insurgency: Sandstorm is rated Deck Playable by Valve. Conflict Area doesn't have a Deck rating yet, so its Deck behaviour is currently unverified.