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Squirrel's Pick Squirrel's PickThe best game on this page. If you only try one, try this.
Base-BuildingSpaceColony Sim
$24.99 ~47.1 hr median no co-op complexity: moderate 85.8% of 11k
The Squirrel's verdictShip design and crew management are central here too, but Space Haven replaces roguelike runs and permadeath with persistent colony-sim building — you grow one vessel over many hours rather than restarting after each death. Reviews cite a rough tutorial and a clunky UI as the main barriers, not difficulty. Median playtime runs 47.1 hours.
Not for you if you want tight roguelike runs with permadeath stakes rather than open-ended ship building and long-term colony management.
2
Closest Match Closest MatchThe most similar game to the anchor, by what players say.
Rogue-liteSpacePerma Death
Moral Weight Moral WeightHard choices with real consequences are central here.
$19.99 ~36.7 hr median no co-op complexity: moderate 94.3% of 4k
The Squirrel's verdictBoth are top-down internal-ship roguelikes about jumping between sectors while managing crew and systems under pressure. Void War leans harder into boarding actions and crew-level detail in a grimdark setting, and reviewers report a gentler learning curve than Shortest Trip's brutal difficulty. Median playtime sits at 36.7 hours, suggesting a shorter commitment overall.
Not for you if you came to Shortest Trip for its punishing, near-unwinnable difficulty and want the sequel to hurt just as much.
3
Budget Pick Budget PickThe best game here for the least money.
Sci-fiTactical RPGTrading
Strong Mods Strong ModsA deep, active modding scene extends it past its base content.
$14.99 ~70.9 hr median no co-op complexity: heavy 83.6% of 4k
The Squirrel's verdictBoth are punishing space sims where systems overlap into unpredictable failure states and losing runs teach you more than winning ones. Star Traders swaps Shortest Trip's single-ship internal management for a persistent open world of crews, contracts, and RNG-driven skill checks across a full map. Median playtime runs 70+ hours, for players who want the grind extended, not shortened.
Not for you if you want a clear tutorial or predictable outcomes instead of heavy RNG skill checks deciding most encounters.
4
ActionSci-fiAdventure
$15.99 ~14.7 hr median no co-op complexity: moderate 74.4% of 3k
The Squirrel's verdictBoth put you in charge of a ship's crew fighting through hostile encounters room by room, with tight resource and damage management under pressure. Space Crew trades Shortest Trip's roguelike run structure and sector-hopping for a fixed mission campaign with persistent unlocks and slower, grind-driven progression. Median playtime sits around 14.7 hours.
Not for you if you want the roguelike run-and-restart structure rather than a linear mission campaign with grindy unlock pacing.
5
Battlestar Galactica: Scattered Hopes
PC
RTSRogueliteTactical
$18.74 ~17.4 hr median no co-op complexity: moderate 76.6% of 958
The Squirrel's verdictScattered Hopes runs on the same steep-learning-curve roguelike loop — rare wins, repeated restarts, resource pressure throughout — but wraps it in a BSG license and adds constant scripted crisis events on top of the run structure, plus meta-progression between attempts. Reviews flag inconsistent traits and slow-unlocking upgrades. Median playtime is 17.4 hours.
Not for you if constant interrupting crisis prompts and unreliable perk/trait mechanics would frustrate you more than a steep learning curve alone.
6
SpaceSci-fiBase-Building
$19.99 ~29.2 hr median no co-op complexity: moderate 75.4% of 2k
The Squirrel's verdictThe Last Starship shares Shortest Trip's focus on internal system management and crew placement, but removes the roguelike run structure entirely — one persistent ship you build and modify over time, no sector-jumping under permadeath pressure. Reviews flag an underdeveloped endgame and bugs following its 1.0 release. Median playtime is 29.2 hours.
Not for you if you came for permadeath tension and repeated roguelike runs — reviews describe thin endgame content and performance problems once ships get large.
7
Rogue-liteBase-BuildingSpace
$9.99 ~12.1 hr median no co-op complexity: light 77.5% of 231
The Squirrel's verdictRogue Station layers Rimworld-style base-building onto internal-ship combat: skill trees per ship part and roguelite unlocks between runs soften the single-run harshness of Shortest Trip. Reviews flag door and weapon bugs as real obstacles to stability. At $9.99 with a median playtime around 12 hours, it's a lower-stakes entry into the genre.
Not for you if you want polished, stable systems — reviews report bugs that can brick runs or make weapons non-functional.
8
Space Commander: War and Trade
PCMacLinux
ActionRPGBase-Building
Free ~9.5 hr median no co-op complexity: light 67.8% of 701
The Squirrel's verdictBoth put you in direct control of a ship in a punishing space economy where losing time and resources stings. Space Commander drops the roguelike run structure for persistent trading and combat: missions, cargo runs, capital ship fights. Reviews flag enemy difficulty scaling past mission rewards and speed controls that limit combat maneuvering. Free to try.
Not for you if you came for STE's run-based structure and crew builds rather than persistent trading, and want ship speed control that reviews say is missing here.