Choose ROUTINE
Choose ROUTINE if you want an Action experience. On Steam, it's the newer release (2025) and ships with the modern feature baseline. 4,122 Steam reviews back the pick.
ROUTINE vs Dark Forest: The Horror
ROUTINE and Dark Forest: The Horror both land in Indie, 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 Indie, Adventure on Steam. Dark Forest: The Horror (2021) is 4 years older than ROUTINE (2025). Dark Forest: The Horror is currently ~56% cheaper on Steam than ROUTINE (10.99 USD vs. 24.99 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 Dark Forest: The Horror
Choose Dark Forest: The Horror if it's currently about 56% cheaper on the Steam Store. Dark Forest: The Horror launched in 2021.
Both ROUTINE and Dark Forest: The Horror sit in Indie and Adventure 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
 ROUTINE |  Dark Forest: The Horror | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025 | 2021 |
| Genres | Action, Indie, Adventure | Indie, Adventure |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Unrated |
| Price | 24.99 USD | 10.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 93.2% positive (4,122 reviews) | 7 reviews |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Lunar Software | Maks Volegov, Gamesforgames |
Side by side
- Both share Indie, Adventure on Steam.
- Dark Forest: The Horror (2021) is 4 years older than ROUTINE (2025).
- Dark Forest: The Horror is currently ~56% cheaper on Steam than ROUTINE (10.99 USD vs. 24.99 USD).
- ROUTINE is Deck Playable on Steam Deck; Dark Forest: The Horror has no Deck rating yet.
ROUTINE vs Dark Forest: The Horror — FAQ
- Should I play ROUTINE or Dark Forest: The Horror first?
- If you want chronology, Dark Forest: The Horror (2021) came out before ROUTINE (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 ROUTINE and Dark Forest: The Horror similar?
- They overlap on Indie, 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.
- Does ROUTINE run on Steam Deck?
- Yes — ROUTINE is rated Deck Playable by Valve. Dark Forest: The Horror doesn't have a Deck rating yet, so its Deck behaviour is currently unverified.