Choose Free Towns
Choose Free Towns if you want a Casual experience. On Steam, it's currently about 41% cheaper on the Steam Store. Free Towns launched in 2017.
Free Towns vs Mandate Order
Free Towns and Mandate Order both land in Strategy, Simulation, Early Access 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, Simulation, Early Access on Steam. Free Towns (2017) is 9 years older than Mandate Order (2026). Free Towns is currently ~41% cheaper on Steam than Mandate Order (9.99 USD vs. 16.99 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 Mandate Order
Choose Mandate Order if you want an Indie game with Camera Comfort, Custom Volume Controls, and Playable without Timed Input. On Steam, it's the newer release (2026) and ships with the modern feature baseline. 1,242 Steam reviews back the pick.
Both Free Towns and Mandate Order sit in Strategy, Simulation, and Early Access 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
 Free Towns |  Mandate Order | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2017 | 2026 |
| Genres | Strategy, Simulation, Casual, Early Access | Strategy, Indie, Simulation, Early Access |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Unrated | Unrated |
| Price | 9.99 USD | 16.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 2 reviews | 81.1% positive (1,242 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Vlad Cristian | Digital Sky |
Side by side
- Both share Strategy, Simulation, Early Access on Steam.
- Free Towns (2017) is 9 years older than Mandate Order (2026).
- Free Towns is currently ~41% cheaper on Steam than Mandate Order (9.99 USD vs. 16.99 USD).
Free Towns vs Mandate Order — FAQ
- Should I play Free Towns or Mandate Order first?
- If you want chronology, Free Towns (2017) came out before Mandate Order (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 Free Towns and Mandate Order similar?
- They overlap on Strategy, Simulation, Early Access 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.