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Squirrel's Pick Squirrel's PickThe best game on this page. If you only try one, try this. Budget Pick Budget PickThe best game here for the least money.
Northgard: Definitive Edition
PCMacLinux
City BuilderRTSBase-Building
Strong Mods Strong ModsA deep, active modding scene extends it past its base content.
$9.79 ~115.2 hr median co-op complexity: moderate 85.3% of 68k
The Squirrel's verdictNorthgard trades card-driven tableau building for real-time territory control and clan management, adding co-op that Terraforming Mars lacks. The update track record is comparable: reviewers report post-update freezes, AI balance complaints, and bugs introduced alongside new DLC clans. At $9.79 and 115 hours median playtime, it suits players who want a longer strategic loop with territorial and combat decisions.
Not for you if you want turn-based card synergies and no real-time combat, or persistent post-update bugs and AI cheating complaints are dealbreakers.
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Closest Match Closest MatchThe most similar game to the anchor, by what players say. Hidden Gem Hidden GemLoved by the players who found it, but still under the radar.
Board GameCard GameTabletop
$19.99 ~17.5 hr median no co-op 89.9% of 704
The Squirrel's verdictBoth are board-game ports built on tableau-building and engine growth, where card combos snowball into stronger turns. Everdell trades Mars' hex-map terraforming for a woodland worker-placement economy, and its digital version sits at Very Positive with no expansion-breaking DLC pattern reported. UI has its own rough edges, but the update cycle isn't the same complaint.
Not for you if you need a polished UI with undo protection and confirmation prompts, since misclicks here aren't easily reversed.
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Life SimAmericaArtificial Intelligence
~23.1 hr median no co-op complexity: light 77.9% of 848
The Squirrel's verdictTerraforming Mars rewards building production chains and converting resources into engine growth. My Gaming Club keeps that resource-conversion core but drops the competitive card drafting for a solo business sim: you build PCs, price goods, and grow a gaming club instead of a planet. Best for players who want economic engine-building without opponents or turn structure.
Not for you if you need turn-based multiplayer strategy instead of a real-time solo business sim that reviewers say runs poorly and requires heavy grinding for progress
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Charterstone: Digital Edition
PCMacLinux
TabletopTurn-BasedBoard Game
$19.99 ~17.9 hr median no co-op 77.5% of 253
The Squirrel's verdictCharterstone is a legacy worker-placement campaign: each session permanently develops a shared village, unlocking new cards and rules over a fixed arc of games. It plays solo or in private groups, has no co-op, and the full rulebook is accessible in-app — useful for players who want the physical game's card-by-card structure without owning the box. Mostly Positive at 77.5%, $19.99, 17.9 hours median playtime. UI quirks are real: reviewers flag login backspace wiping screens and resource visibility errors in group sessions.
Not for you if you plan to run a multiplayer campaign with friends — reviewers describe stalled sessions, shared resource display errors, and save-file friction in group play.
How the Squirrel matches games
Not tag overlap. We compare what players actually say across hundreds of
thousands of reviews about how each game feels to play, then break
the comparison into the mechanics you can see in each card. The mark on
every bar is Terraforming Mars's own score, so you can read where a match runs
hotter or cooler than the anchor.
Verdicts are written against a fixed editorial standard, machine-audited,
and human spot-checked. Which games make the cut is a human call. Prices
and review data refresh automatically. Full method & AI disclosure →