Choose Foundation
Choose Foundation if it's the newer release (2025) and ships with the modern feature baseline. 10,915 Steam reviews back the pick.
Foundation vs Cliff Empire
Foundation and Cliff Empire both land in Strategy, Indie, Simulation 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, Indie, Simulation on Steam. Cliff Empire (2019) is 6 years older than Foundation (2025). Foundation scores higher on Steam reviews (86.1% positive) than Cliff Empire (84.8% 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 Cliff Empire
Choose Cliff Empire if it's currently about 49% cheaper on the Steam Store. 1,699 Steam reviews back the pick.
Both Foundation and Cliff Empire sit in Strategy, Indie, and Simulation on Steam, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (86.1% vs 84.8% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.
Side-by-side comparison
 Foundation |  Cliff Empire | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2025 | 2019 |
| Genres | Strategy, Indie, Simulation | Strategy, Indie, Simulation |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows, macOS |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Playable |
| Price | 34.99 USD | 17.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 86.1% positive (10,915 reviews) | 84.8% positive (1,699 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Polymorph Games | Lion's Shade |
Side by side
- Both share Strategy, Indie, Simulation on Steam.
- Cliff Empire (2019) is 6 years older than Foundation (2025).
- Foundation scores higher on Steam reviews (86.1% positive) than Cliff Empire (84.8% positive).
- Cliff Empire is currently ~49% cheaper on Steam than Foundation (17.99 USD vs. 34.99 USD).
- Both are Deck Playable.
Foundation vs Cliff Empire — FAQ
- Which is better, Foundation or Cliff Empire?
- On Steam reviews the two are nearly tied: Foundation sits at 86.1% positive (10,915 reviews), Cliff Empire at 84.8% (1,699). The choice usually comes down to genre fit and the platform features each one supports — see the comparison table above.
- Should I play Foundation or Cliff Empire first?
- If you want chronology, Cliff Empire (2019) came out before Foundation (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 Foundation and Cliff Empire similar?
- They overlap on Strategy, Indie, Simulation 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.