Sanctum 2 vs Town of Salem
Sanctum 2 is an FPS RPG game from Coffee Stain Studios (2013) while Town of Salem is an RPG strategy game from BlankMediaGames (2014).
Quick answer: Town of Salem rates higher, 7.7 to 7.6 on the GamingPickz Score, and Town of Salem is the cheaper at $4.99.
What each one is
Sanctum 2 is filed under FPS and RPG. In contrast, Town of Salem under RPG and Strategy.
Sanctum 2 is the sequel to the world’s first Tower Defense/FPS hybrid game. Pick from four unique character classes and embark on a mission to protect the oxygen-producing Cores from hordes of deadly aliens who are threatened by their existence.
Inspired by the party games Werewolf and Mafia, Town of Salem is a game of murder, mystery and deception.
Story, characters and reception
Plot
Sanctum 2 takes place in the future on the planet Loek-III where a major human colony has been established by the Britech Foundation in the city of Elysion-1, a vast elegant metropolis. A previous arboreal settlement, Brightholme, had been set up in the wilderness but had collapsed from repeated attacks by the Lumes, a race of diverse creatures native to the planet. It is hinted that some settlers still survive in the ruins of Brightholme and are part of… (Wikipedia)
Reception
Sanctum 2 received mostly positive reviews from critics. The game holds an aggregated Metacritic score of 77/100 for Microsoft Windows , based on 28 critic reviews, and for Xbox 360 , based on 12 critic reviews. ^ "Sanctum 2 Critic Reviews for PC" . (Wikipedia)
Reception
In 2020, PC Gamer named Town of Salem one of the best free-to-play browser games. They described it as difficult to explain, but easy to get the hang of. Matt Cox of Rock, Paper, Shotgun described the game as "an online hidden role game with no friends or eyeballs, and a whole load of bullshit. (Wikipedia)
At a glance
| Sanctum 2 | Town of Salem | |
|---|---|---|
| GamingPickz Score | 7.6/10 | 7.7/10 |
| Steam rating | Very Positive (90%, 14,389) | Very Positive (88%, 36,262) |
| Critic aggregate | 77/100 | No aggregate |
| Price | $14.99 | $4.99 |
| Install size | — | 3 GB |
| Steam Deck | verified | playable |
| Released | 2013 | 2014 |
| Developer | Coffee Stain Studios | BlankMediaGames |
Prices and Steam ratings are read live and move over time.
Sanctum 2 vs Town of Salem, 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.
Genre and premise
Sanctum 2FPS RPG gameTown of SalemRPG strategy gameWhat each is filed as. Each game describes itself in full above; we do not judge a premise.
How it plays
Sanctum 2Tower Defense, FPS, Co-opTown of SalemStrategy, Mystery, IndieThe tags players apply most, in order of votes. A read on feel, not a verdict.
Reception
Sanctum 2Score 7.6 · 90% on Steam · 77 criticTown of Salem ✓Score 7.7 · 88% on SteamThe GamingPickz Score is a composite of player sentiment, critics and popularity, computed the same way for every game.
Content and scale
Sanctum 214,389 reviews · 6 add-onsTown of Salem36,262 reviews · 2 add-ons · 3 GBReach and footprint, not quality: more reviews or a bigger install is not a better game.
Price
Sanctum 2$14.99Town of Salem ✓$4.99Read live from Steam and subject to change.
On a Steam Deck
Sanctum 2 ✓VerifiedTown of SalemPlayableValve's own Deck compatibility rating.
Town of Salem takes 2 of the marked rounds to 1. That is only what a number can decide, not which you will enjoy more.
The two on the grid
Compare the whole catalogueSanctum 2 and Town of Salem 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
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.
- PC
Every point links to that game's entry. The value map and the reception map are fixed views of the same data.
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: Town of Salem (GamingPickz Score 7.7)
- The cheaper right now: Town of Salem ($4.99)
- Better on a Steam Deck: Sanctum 2 (verified)
- The safer bet by weight of reviews: Town of Salem (36,262 reviews)
What they have in common
Both are tagged by Steam players with:
StrategyActionIndieMultiplayerSurvivalFunnyRPG
Where they differ
Tower DefenseFPSCo-opSci-fiOnline Co-OpFirst-Person
MysterySocial DeductionCasualWerewolvesTactical2D
Tags players apply to one game and not the other.
Difficulty and who each is for
By the tags players apply, Sanctum 2 is middle-of-the-road on difficulty. Town of Salem is relaxed, easy to pick up.
System requirements, side by side
| Sanctum 2 | Town of Salem | |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum GPU | — | — |
| Minimum CPU | — | 2 Ghz |
| Minimum RAM | — | 2 GB |
| Install size | — | 3 GB |
Can your PC run them? Check each against your own kit: Sanctum 2 · Town of Salem.
Accessibility features
Steam store pages declare 1 accessibility feature for Sanctum 2 and 0 for Town of Salem. A declaration is a floor, not a review.
If you like one, also try
Common questions
How different are Sanctum 2 and Town of Salem in scope?
Sanctum 2 has drawn 14,389 Steam reviews and ships 6 add-ons. Town of Salem has drawn 36,262 Steam reviews, ships 2 add-ons and installs in 3 GB.
Is Sanctum 2 or Town of Salem better?
By the GamingPickz Score, Town of Salem rates higher (7.7 to 7.6). 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, Sanctum 2 or Town of Salem?
Town of Salem is cheaper right now at $4.99, against $14.99. Prices move, so this is read live from Steam and can change.
Should I get Sanctum 2 or Town of Salem?
Town of Salem rates higher, 7.7 to 7.6 on the GamingPickz Score, and Town of Salem is the cheaper at $4.99. It also depends on what you want: the "which to pick" section above calls out which is cheaper, lighter on storage, better on a Steam Deck and the safer bet by weight of reviews.
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.
Related comparisons
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.