Choose Black Desert
Choose Black Desert if you want a Massively Multiplayer game with MMO, Online Co-op, and Co-op. On Steam, it's currently about 44% cheaper on the Steam Store. 35,523 Steam reviews back the pick.
Black Desert vs Pirates of the Sea
Black Desert and Pirates of the Sea both land in Action, Strategy, Adventure 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, Strategy, Adventure on Steam. Black Desert (2017) is 4 years older than Pirates of the Sea (2021). Black Desert is currently ~44% cheaper on Steam than Pirates of the Sea (9.99 USD vs. 17.99 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 Pirates of the Sea
Choose Pirates of the Sea if you want an Indie experience. On Steam, it's the newer release (2021) and ships with the modern feature baseline. Pirates of the Sea launched in 2021.
Both Black Desert and Pirates of the Sea sit in Action, Strategy, and Adventure 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
 Black Desert |  Pirates of the Sea | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2017 | 2021 |
| Genres | Action, Strategy, Adventure, Massively Multiplayer, RPG | Action, Strategy, Indie, Adventure, RPG |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Unsupported | Unrated |
| Price | 9.99 USD | 17.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 72.5% positive (35,523 reviews) | 5 reviews |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op | Multi-player |
| Developers | Pearl Abyss | Bad Guys Games |
Side by side
- Both share Action, Strategy, Adventure on Steam.
- Black Desert (2017) is 4 years older than Pirates of the Sea (2021).
- Black Desert is currently ~44% cheaper on Steam than Pirates of the Sea (9.99 USD vs. 17.99 USD).
- Black Desert has co-op; Pirates of the Sea does not.
- Black Desert is Deck Unsupported on Steam Deck; Pirates of the Sea has no Deck rating yet.
Black Desert vs Pirates of the Sea — FAQ
- Should I play Black Desert or Pirates of the Sea first?
- If you want chronology, Black Desert (2017) came out before Pirates of the Sea (2021). 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 Black Desert and Pirates of the Sea similar?
- They overlap on Action, Strategy, Adventure 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.