GamingPickz
Game vs game · side by side

Braid vs DuckTales

Braid is an action-adventure platformer game from Jonathan Blow (2008) while DuckTales is a platformer game from Capcom (1989).

Braid

2008 · Jonathan Blow

7.9GamingPickz Score

$14.99

Steam: Very Positive

DuckTales

1989 · Capcom

7.0GamingPickz Score

$3.74

Steam: Very Positive

What each one is

Steam files Braid under Action-Adventure and Platformer. In contrast, it files DuckTales under Platformer.

Braid

This is the original version of Braid from 2009, which may not work well on newer systems. For an updated version of the game with nicer graphics, more levels and a large amount of developer commentary, see Braid, Anniversary Edition.

Description from its Steam store page

DuckTales

DuckTales: Remastered is a beautiful hand-crafted reimagining of one of the most cherished 8-bit titles of all time. Go back to one of the golden ages of gaming, now refined with a level of detail that will please the most hardened devoted Disney or retro Capcom fan alike.

Description from its Steam store page

At a glance

BraidDuckTales
GamingPickz Score7.9/107.0/10
Steam ratingVery Positive (93%, 9,957)Very Positive (88%, 7,930)
Critic aggregate90/10066/100
Price$14.99$3.74
Install size1 GB
Steam Deckverifiedverified
Released20081989
DeveloperJonathan BlowCapcom

Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.

Braid vs DuckTales, point by point

Each facet side by side. A round is marked won only where a figure settles it; feel and "which is better" carry no mark, because no number we hold decides them.

  1. Genre and premise

    BraidAction-adventure platformer game
    DuckTalesPlatformer game

    What each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.

  2. How it plays

    BraidPuzzle-Platformer, Puzzle, 2D Platformer
    DuckTalesPlatformer, Adventure, Remake

    The tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.

  3. Reception

    BraidScore 7.9 · 93% on Steam · 90 critic
    DuckTalesScore 7.0 · 88% on Steam · 66 critic

    The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment, critics and popularity, computed the same way for every game.

  4. Content and scale

    Braid9,957 reviews
    DuckTales7,930 reviews · 1 GB

    Reach and footprint, not quality: more reviews or a bigger install is not a better game.

  5. Price

    Braid$14.99
    DuckTales$3.74

    Read live from Steam and subject to change.

  6. On a Steam Deck

    BraidVerified
    DuckTalesVerified

    Valve's own Deck compatibility rating.

Across the rounds a number can settle, it is level at 1 each. Which one is "better" is the part no figure decides, so we leave it to what you want from the two.

The two on the grid

Compare the whole catalogue

Braid and DuckTales on the axes the GamingPickz Score is built from, on the full 0 to 100 scale so each dot is its real position. Change either axis to compare them on any measure.

2 games have both

01000100PlayersPopularityBraid

Players. The share of Steam reviews marked positive, pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it. A game with 200 reviews moves a long way toward the average; one with 200,000 barely moves at all. Without this a title sitting at 100 percent on nine reviews outranks Half-Life 2 at 98 percent on 278,000.

Popularity. A blend of two things that are not the same. Audience is how many people wrote a Steam review, which is a floor on how many played it. Reach is how many language editions of Wikipedia document the game, which is cultural footprint rather than sales. A game can score high on one and low on the other: a huge free-to-play title has audience without reach, and a landmark console exclusive has reach without a Steam audience at all. Where both exist they are averaged; where only one does, that one carries it.

  • Nintendo
  • PlayStation

Every point links to that game's entry. The value map and the reception map are fixed views of the same data.

See the whole grid

How positions are decided

No paid placement, no favouritism, live third-party data
  • Placed by the published method, not by us. Every coordinate is computed from the axis definitions and weights printed on this site. Nobody moves a point. See the axes.
  • Nothing here is paid for. No sponsored placements, no promoted slots, no arrangement of any kind affects a position. If that ever changes it will be labelled and sit outside the ranking.
  • No favouritism, including our own. The 16 games we have written full reviews of are scored by exactly the same formula as the other 1,510, from the same third-party inputs, and they land where it puts them. Our own opinion of a game does not enter its coordinates.
  • A position is not an endorsement. It says how a game was received and what it costs, not that we recommend it. Where we do recommend something, it carries a written review with a name on it.
  • Fetched from live third-party data. Player sentiment from Steam, critic aggregates as published on store pages, prices checked hourly, attention from Wikipedia. Each figure carries its source and the date it was read, and we do not adjust any of them.

Which to pick, by what you want

  • The higher-rated of the two: Braid (GamingPickz Score 7.9)
  • The cheaper right now: DuckTales ($3.74)

What they have in common

Both are tagged by Steam players with:

2D PlatformerPlatformer2DSingleplayerGreat SoundtrackDifficultCasualClassic

Where they differ

Braid is also

Puzzle-PlatformerPuzzleIndieTime ManipulationTime TravelAtmospheric

DuckTales is also

RemakeActionRetroCartoonFamily FriendlyExploration

Tags players apply to one game and not the other.

Difficulty and who each is for

By the tags players apply, Braid is demanding, for players who want a challenge. DuckTales is demanding, for players who want a challenge.

System requirements, side by side

BraidDuckTales
Minimum GPUNVIDIA® Geforce 9600GT
Minimum CPUIntel™ Pentium 4 2.4 ghz with Hyper Threading
Minimum RAM1 GB
Install size1 GB

Can your PC run them? Check each against your own kit: Braid · DuckTales.

Accessibility features

Steam store pages declare 1 accessibility feature for Braid and 1 for DuckTales. A declaration is a floor, not a review.

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Common questions

How different are Braid and DuckTales in scope?

Braid has drawn 9,957 Steam reviews. DuckTales has drawn 7,930 Steam reviews and installs in 1 GB.

Is Braid or DuckTales better?

By the GamingPickz Score, Braid rates higher (7.9 to 7.0). That is a composite of player sentiment, the critic aggregate and popularity, not our taste. "Better" also depends on price, length and platform, which the table above lays out.

Which is cheaper, Braid or DuckTales?

DuckTales is cheaper right now at $3.74, against $14.99. Prices move, so this is read live from Steam and can change.

Do you rank one above the other for a fee?

No. Neither game, nor anyone else, pays for placement or a verdict here. The order and every figure come out of the same public data the rest of the site uses.

How we compare, and what we will not do

The GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment (adjusted for sample size), the critic aggregate and popularity, computed by the same code every ranked list on this site uses. The Steam rating label is Valve's own, reconstructed from the positive percentage and review count. Prices are read live. We do not write an opinion of which game is "better": we report the numbers and say which wins each measurable question above.

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