Choose Trailmakers
Choose Trailmakers if you want an Indie and Simulation game with Steam Leaderboards. On Steam, it carries the stronger Steam consensus at 92.9% positive across 20,710 reviews.
Trailmakers vs Need for Speed™ Payback
Trailmakers and Need for Speed™ Payback both land in Action, Adventure, 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, Adventure, Racing on Steam. Trailmakers (2019) is 1 year older than Need for Speed™ Payback (2020). Trailmakers scores higher on Steam reviews (92.9% positive) than Need for Speed™ Payback (85.2% 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 Need for Speed™ Payback
Choose Need for Speed™ Payback if you want a Sports and Strategy experience. On Steam, it's currently about 68% cheaper on the Steam Store. 7,361 Steam reviews back the pick.
Both Trailmakers and Need for Speed™ Payback sit in Action, Adventure, and Racing on Steam and both list Multi-player, Online PvP, and Online Co-op, 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
 Trailmakers |  Need for Speed™ Payback | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2019 | 2020 |
| Genres | Action, Indie, Adventure, Simulation, Racing | Action, Sports, Strategy, Adventure, Racing |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Unsupported |
| Price | 24.99 USD | 8.09 USD |
| Steam reviews | 92.9% positive (20,710 reviews) | 85.2% positive (7,361 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op | Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op |
| Developers | Flashbulb | Ghost Games |
Side by side
- Both share Action, Adventure, Racing on Steam.
- Trailmakers (2019) is 1 year older than Need for Speed™ Payback (2020).
- Trailmakers scores higher on Steam reviews (92.9% positive) than Need for Speed™ Payback (85.2% positive).
- Need for Speed™ Payback is currently ~68% cheaper on Steam than Trailmakers (8.09 USD vs. 24.99 USD).
- Both support cooperative play.
- Steam Deck: Trailmakers is Deck Playable, Need for Speed™ Payback is Deck Unsupported.
Trailmakers vs Need for Speed™ Payback — FAQ
- Which is better, Trailmakers or Need for Speed™ Payback?
- On Steam reviews Trailmakers scores higher (92.9% positive) than Need for Speed™ Payback (85.2% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, Trailmakers is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.
- Should I play Trailmakers or Need for Speed™ Payback first?
- If you want chronology, Trailmakers (2019) came out before Need for Speed™ Payback (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 Trailmakers and Need for Speed™ Payback similar?
- They overlap on Action, Adventure, 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 both Trailmakers and Need for Speed™ Payback have co-op?
- Yes — both list a co-op category on Steam. Specifics differ: Trailmakers ships Online Co-op, Co-op; Need for Speed™ Payback ships Online Co-op, Co-op.