Choose Faraway: Puzzle Escape
Choose Faraway: Puzzle Escape if it's currently about 38% cheaper on the Steam Store. Faraway: Puzzle Escape launched in 2021.
Faraway: Puzzle Escape vs The Academy: The First Riddle
Faraway: Puzzle Escape and The Academy: The First Riddle both land in Adventure, Casual 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 Adventure, Casual on Steam. The Academy: The First Riddle (2020) is 1 year older than Faraway: Puzzle Escape (2021). Both sit near 65% positive on Steam (Faraway: Puzzle Escape: 69 reviews, The Academy: The First Riddle: 48). 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 Academy: The First Riddle
Choose The Academy: The First Riddle if you want an Indie experience. On Steam, it's Steam Deck Verified, so handheld play works out of the box. The Academy: The First Riddle launched in 2020.
Both Faraway: Puzzle Escape and The Academy: The First Riddle sit in Adventure and Casual on Steam, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (65.2% vs 64.6% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.
Side-by-side comparison
 Faraway: Puzzle Escape |  The Academy: The First Riddle | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2021 | 2020 |
| Genres | Adventure, Casual | Indie, Adventure, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows, macOS |
| Steam Deck | Deck Playable | Deck Verified |
| Price | 4.99 USD | 7.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 65.2% positive (69 reviews) | 64.6% positive (48 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | Pine Studio | Pine Studio |
Side by side
- Both share Adventure, Casual on Steam.
- The Academy: The First Riddle (2020) is 1 year older than Faraway: Puzzle Escape (2021).
- Both sit near 65% positive on Steam (Faraway: Puzzle Escape: 69 reviews, The Academy: The First Riddle: 48).
- Faraway: Puzzle Escape is currently ~38% cheaper on Steam than The Academy: The First Riddle (4.99 USD vs. 7.99 USD).
- Steam Deck: Faraway: Puzzle Escape is Deck Playable, The Academy: The First Riddle is Deck Verified.
Faraway: Puzzle Escape vs The Academy: The First Riddle — FAQ
- Should I play Faraway: Puzzle Escape or The Academy: The First Riddle first?
- If you want chronology, The Academy: The First Riddle (2020) came out before Faraway: Puzzle Escape (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 Faraway: Puzzle Escape and The Academy: The First Riddle similar?
- They overlap on Adventure, Casual 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.