Games like The Painscreek Killings
If The Painscreek Killings is your kind of game, the closest matches are The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, INFRA and Firewatch — picked from the ranked list below. Each pick is ranked by what players of this game also play, shared genres and tags, and review-mined similarity — not a generic popularity list.
Get personalized picks →About The Painscreek Killings: Investigate an infamous cold case in the eerie, abandoned town of Painscreek. Search for evidence, connect the dots and uncover who killed Vivian Roberts. Can you expose the truth behind this town’s dark secrets?
Players who liked The Painscreek Killings also play
Steam players who put hours into The Painscreek Killings also tend to own these titles — a signal called collaborative filtering. imho.run cross-references millions of library ownership patterns to surface games whose real audiences overlap, regardless of whether their genre tags match.
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter
WHY THIS
Top pick for The Painscreek Killings fans by collaborative filtering across millions of Steam libraries. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is a first-person story-driven mystery. Purchase this game to get both the original and the Unreal Engine 4 remaster called The Vanishing of Ethan Carter Redux.
INFRA
WHY THIS
Second-strongest match for The Painscreek Killings fans by collaborative filtering across millions of Steam libraries. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
INFRA puts you into the boots of a structural analyst on a routine mission. Quickly though, your task turns into a fight for survival, all caused by deep-rooted schemes of the past. Your tools are simple: your camera and the wits to navigate a labyrinth of debris.
Firewatch
WHY THIS
Third-strongest match for The Painscreek Killings fans by collaborative filtering across millions of Steam libraries. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Firewatch is a single-player first-person mystery set in the Wyoming wilderness, where your only emotional lifeline is the person on the other end of a handheld radio.
Kona
WHY THIS
Ranked #4 for The Painscreek Killings fans by collaborative filtering across millions of Steam libraries. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Northern Canada, 1970. A strange blizzard ravages Atamipek Lake. Step into the shoes of a detective to explore the eerie village, investigate surreal events, and battle the elements to survive. Kona is a chilly interactive tale you won't soon forget.
Scene Investigators
WHY THIS
Ranked #5 for The Painscreek Killings fans by collaborative filtering across millions of Steam libraries. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Scene Investigators is a hardcore deductive reasoning game for fans of the "true crime" genre. Step into re-created crime scenes, observe closely for pieces of evidence, analyze possible motives behind the crimes, and uncover what truly happened.
The Inheritance of Crimson Manor
WHY THIS
Ranked #6 for The Painscreek Killings fans by collaborative filtering across millions of Steam libraries. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Explore a beautiful and Enigmatic Victorian Manor with a dark secret, In this gothic horror story first person exploration puzzle game filled with fine art, secret passages and mysterious mechanical puzzles playing as the executor of the last will from the enigmatic Railroad Magnate Hadley Strange.
The Forgotten City
WHY THIS
Ranked #7 for The Painscreek Killings fans by collaborative filtering across millions of Steam libraries. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
The Forgotten City is a narrative-driven time loop adventure in ancient Rome. Discover the ruins of an ancient underground city, travel 2000 years into the past, and unravel the mystery of who destroyed it by cleverly exploiting the power to wind back time. The fate of the city is in your hands.
Strange Horticulture
WHY THIS
Ranked #8 for The Painscreek Killings fans by collaborative filtering across millions of Steam libraries. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Strange Horticulture is an occult puzzle game in which you play as the proprietor of a local plant store. Find and identify new plants, pet your cat, speak to a coven, or join a cult. Use your collection of powerful plants to influence the story and unravel Undermere’s dark mysteries.
Reviewers mention these as similar to The Painscreek Killings
Surfaced from review text: when other players write 'if you liked X, try Y', we catch the name and resolve it back to a Steam game.
Return of the Obra Dinn
WHY THIS
Reviewers of The Painscreek Killings cross-mention this title as a similar play. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Lost at sea 1803 ~ The good ship Obra Dinn.
The Room
WHY THIS
Reviewers of The Painscreek Killings cross-mention this title as a similar play. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
A mysterious invitation leads to the attic of an abandoned house. In the room is a cast-iron safe laced with strange carvings and on top, a note from your distant companion. It promises something ancient and astonishing concealed in the iron chamber - you need only find a way in.
Scene Investigators
WHY THIS
Reviewers of The Painscreek Killings cross-mention this title as a similar play. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Scene Investigators is a hardcore deductive reasoning game for fans of the "true crime" genre. Step into re-created crime scenes, observe closely for pieces of evidence, analyze possible motives behind the crimes, and uncover what truly happened.
Kona
WHY THIS
Reviewers of The Painscreek Killings cross-mention this title as a similar play. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Northern Canada, 1970. A strange blizzard ravages Atamipek Lake. Step into the shoes of a detective to explore the eerie village, investigate surreal events, and battle the elements to survive. Kona is a chilly interactive tale you won't soon forget.
Outer Wilds
WHY THIS
Reviewers of The Painscreek Killings cross-mention this title as a similar play. Shares Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Named Game of the Year 2019 by Giant Bomb, Polygon, Eurogamer, and The Guardian, Outer Wilds is a critically-acclaimed and award-winning open world mystery about a solar system trapped in an endless time loop.
Paradise Killer
WHY THIS
Reviewers of The Painscreek Killings cross-mention this title as a similar play. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Paradise Island, a world outside reality. There’s been a murder that only "investigation freak" Lady Love Dies can solve. Gather evidence and interrogate suspects in this open world adventure. You can accuse anyone, but you’ll have to prove your case in trial. It’s up to you to decide who’s guilty.
Rusty Lake: Roots
WHY THIS
Reviewers of The Painscreek Killings cross-mention this title as a similar play. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Experience the beginning and end of characters' lives and build your own family tree! Rusty Lake: Roots is the second premium point-and-click adventure by the creators of the Cube Escape series and Rusty Lake Hotel.
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter
WHY THIS
Reviewers of The Painscreek Killings cross-mention this title as a similar play. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is a first-person story-driven mystery. Purchase this game to get both the original and the Unreal Engine 4 remaster called The Vanishing of Ethan Carter Redux.
Cheaper alternatives
Games in the same vein priced at least 40% below The Painscreek Killings at current Steam store prices.
Garry's Mod
WHY THIS
Priced ~75% under The Painscreek Killings on Steam right now. Shares Indie with The Painscreek Killings.
Garry's Mod is a physics sandbox. There aren't any predefined aims or goals. We give you the tools and leave you to play.
Lethal Company
WHY THIS
Priced ~50% under The Painscreek Killings on Steam right now. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
A co-op horror about scavenging at abandoned moons to sell scrap to the Company.
People Playground
WHY THIS
Priced ~50% under The Painscreek Killings on Steam right now. Shares Indie with The Painscreek Killings.
Shoot, stab, burn, poison, tear, vaporise, or crush ragdolls in a large open space.
Vampire Survivors
WHY THIS
Priced ~75% under The Painscreek Killings on Steam right now. Shares Indie with The Painscreek Killings.
Mow down thousands of night creatures and survive until dawn! Vampire Survivors is a gothic horror casual game with rogue-lite elements, where your choices can allow you to quickly snowball against the hundreds of monsters that get thrown at you. Be the bullet hell!
PEAK
WHY THIS
Priced ~60% under The Painscreek Killings on Steam right now. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
PEAK is a co-op climbing game where the slightest mistake can spell your doom. Either solo or as a group of lost nature scouts, your only hope of rescue from a mysterious island is to scale the mountain at its center. Do you have what it takes to reach the PEAK?
Free alternatives
Free-to-play games that recommended players of this title also tend to enjoy.
Doki Doki Literature Club!
WHY THIS
Free-to-play pick from the same recommendation pool — no purchase to try it. Shares Indie with The Painscreek Killings.
The Literature Club is full of cute girls! Will you write the way into their heart? This game is not suitable for children or those who are easily disturbed.
Life is Strange - Episode 1
WHY THIS
Free-to-play pick from the same recommendation pool — no purchase to try it. Shares Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Episode 1 now FREE! Life is Strange is an award-winning and critically acclaimed episodic adventure game that allows the player to rewind time and affect the past, present and future.
Ultimate Custom Night
WHY THIS
Free-to-play pick from the same recommendation pool — no purchase to try it. Shares Indie with The Painscreek Killings.
Welcome to the ultimate FNAF mashup, featuring 50 selectable characters and custom difficulties!
ENA: Dream BBQ
WHY THIS
Free-to-play pick from the same recommendation pool — no purchase to try it. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Experience surreal environments and inexplicable characters as ENA in a new wild world.
The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog
WHY THIS
Free-to-play pick from the same recommendation pool — no purchase to try it. Shares Indie with The Painscreek Killings.
Sonic the Hedgehog...was murdered!? Get to the bottom of the mystery in this brand-new adventure!
Indigo Park: Chapter 1
WHY THIS
Free-to-play pick from the same recommendation pool — no purchase to try it. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Explore the abandoned childhood wonder of Indigo Park! Guided by Rambley the Raccoon, help restore power to the destroyed amusement park while you run from the reason it shut down.
The Looker
WHY THIS
Free-to-play pick from the same recommendation pool — no purchase to try it. Shares Indie with The Painscreek Killings.
You wake up, alone, on a strangely familiar island full of puzzles that will frustrate and annoy you.
Sheepy: A Short Adventure
WHY THIS
Free-to-play pick from the same recommendation pool — no purchase to try it. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
A Short Handcrafted Pixel Art Platformer that follows Sheepy, an abandoned plushy brought to life. Sheepy: A Short Adventure is the first short game from MrSuicideSheep.
Narrow it down
Head-to-head comparisons
Plays great on Steam Deck
Valve-Verified or Playable picks from the similar pool — ready to go on Deck out of the box.
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter
WHY THIS
Deck Verified — runs on Steam Deck out of the box. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter is a first-person story-driven mystery. Purchase this game to get both the original and the Unreal Engine 4 remaster called The Vanishing of Ethan Carter Redux.
Firewatch
WHY THIS
Deck Verified — runs on Steam Deck out of the box. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Firewatch is a single-player first-person mystery set in the Wyoming wilderness, where your only emotional lifeline is the person on the other end of a handheld radio.
Kona
WHY THIS
Deck Verified — runs on Steam Deck out of the box. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Northern Canada, 1970. A strange blizzard ravages Atamipek Lake. Step into the shoes of a detective to explore the eerie village, investigate surreal events, and battle the elements to survive. Kona is a chilly interactive tale you won't soon forget.
The Forgotten City
WHY THIS
Deck Verified — runs on Steam Deck out of the box. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
The Forgotten City is a narrative-driven time loop adventure in ancient Rome. Discover the ruins of an ancient underground city, travel 2000 years into the past, and unravel the mystery of who destroyed it by cleverly exploiting the power to wind back time. The fate of the city is in your hands.
Strange Horticulture
WHY THIS
Deck Verified — runs on Steam Deck out of the box. Shares Indie and Adventure with The Painscreek Killings.
Strange Horticulture is an occult puzzle game in which you play as the proprietor of a local plant store. Find and identify new plants, pet your cat, speak to a coven, or join a cult. Use your collection of powerful plants to influence the story and unravel Undermere’s dark mysteries.
Frequently asked about The Painscreek Killings
- Does The Painscreek Killings run on Steam Deck?
- The Painscreek Killings is rated Playable on Steam Deck — it runs, but expect some manual adjustments (control remapping, text size, or graphics settings) for the best experience.
- How much does The Painscreek Killings cost?
- The Painscreek Killings is listed on Steam at 19.99 USD (current store price; Steam sales may reduce this temporarily).
- What games are most similar to The Painscreek Killings?
- Based on Steam play patterns and shared genres/tags, the games most often recommended alongside The Painscreek Killings are The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, INFRA, Firewatch.
- Who developed The Painscreek Killings?
- The Painscreek Killings was developed by EQ Studios.
imho.run ranks Steam game alternatives using a mix of collaborative filtering (ALS / iALS / EASE / LightGCN), content scoring over genres, categories, Steam tags, developers, and publishers, plus AI-extracted vibes mined from review text. The page above is generated in seed mode anchored on The Painscreek Killings.
For library-aware picks tuned to your specific taste, sign in with Steam on the home page.