IMHO.

The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark vs The Dark Room

The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark and The Dark Room 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. The Dark Room (2018) is 3 years older than The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark (2021). The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark scores higher on Steam reviews (95.4% positive) than The Dark Room (90.6% 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 The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark

Choose The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark if you want a Casual game with Camera Comfort, Custom Volume Controls, and Playable without Timed Input. On Steam, it carries the stronger Steam consensus at 95.4% positive across 877 reviews.

Choose The Dark Room

Choose The Dark Room if you want an Early Access experience. The Dark Room launched in 2018.

Both The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark and The Dark Room 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

The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark vs The Dark Room — Steam metadata comparison
The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark — Steam game coverThe Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the DarkThe Dark Room — Steam game coverThe Dark Room
Released20212018
GenresIndie, Adventure, CasualIndie, Adventure, Early Access
PlatformsWindows, macOS, LinuxWindows, macOS
Steam DeckDeck VerifiedUnrated
Price14.99 USD13.99 USD
Steam reviews95.4% positive (877 reviews)90.6% positive (106 reviews)
MultiplayerSingle-player onlySingle-player only
DevelopersSpooky DoorwayDevelopers At Large, John Robertson

Side by side

The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark vs The Dark Room — FAQ

Which is better, The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark or The Dark Room?
On Steam reviews The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark scores higher (95.4% positive) than The Dark Room (90.6% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.
Should I play The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark or The Dark Room first?
If you want chronology, The Dark Room (2018) came out before The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark (2021). 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 The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark and The Dark Room 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 The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark run on Steam Deck?
Yes — The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark is rated Deck Verified by Valve. The Dark Room doesn't have a Deck rating yet, so its Deck behaviour is currently unverified.
The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark vs The Dark Room · imho.run