Top 12 Western Games for 2026
Which games are set in the Old West?
Frontier settings, horses, and the particular kind of quiet those games do well.
12 catalogued, top 12 ranked below
The western games on a map
Compare the whole catalogueThe same 12 games, plotted rather than listed. The two axes below are the ones the ranking is built from, so a game sitting high and right is a game the formula placed near the top. Change either axis to see the field a different way. Where we hold a publisher wordmark, the game is drawn as its mark rather than a dot.
12 games have both
Axes are fitted to these 12 games rather than the full 0 to 100 scale, because a filtered list shares a narrow band and would otherwise sit in one corner. End values are marked. A point on the left edge is the lowest of thesegames, not a low score.
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.
- Multi-platform
- Nintendo
- PC
- PlayStation
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.
How to choose between these
12 entries, six things that separate them
The ranking answers "which is best received". It cannot answer "which is best for you", because that depends on things no formula knows. Here is what actually separates these 12 western games, in the order worth thinking about it.
Check the sample size before the score
A score is only as good as the evidence under it. 3 of these have more than 50,000 player reviews, which makes their number very hard to move. 2 sit under 2,000, so their position is provisional and pulled heavily toward the catalogue average. Every entry below shows its own count.
Look at where critics and players disagree
The widest gap here is SteamWorld Dig, where players sit above critics by 18 points. A gap that size usually means the game changed after launch, or that it does something critics undervalue. It is worth reading why before deciding which number you trust. The disagreement map plots this across the catalogue.
Decide what you are actually willing to spend
The median here is $15.99, and the cheapest paid entry is 12 is Better Than 6 at $1.99. Prices move constantly, so a game a place or two down the list is often the better buy this week. Filter by price below rather than assuming the top pick is the right purchase.
Match it to the hardware you own
3 of these are Steam Deck Verified by Valve's own testing, and install sizes vary by more than an order of magnitude. If you are choosing for a handheld or a drive that is nearly full, that narrows the field faster than any score.
Check it supports how you want to play
Solo, with a friend online, or two people on one sofa are different requirements, and a well-reviewed game that does not support yours is the wrong game. The filters below answer this directly.
Look for the things a score hides
2 declare six or more accessibility features, and 3 carry in-game purchases. Neither shows up in a review score, and both change the experience substantially. Each entry lists its own.
Choose one if…
Tick what matters to you. This filters the ranking above rather than reordering it, so the order you see is still the order the formula produced, minus the games that do not fit. Every filter reads a field from the game's own store listing.
Nothing selected, so all 12 western games are shown below. Pick one or more above to narrow it.
western games by the numbers
The figures below describe all 12 entries on this page together, not the top pick. They are recomputed on every build, most recently on 2 September 2026, from 719,824 player reviews.
What the pricing looks like
11 of the 12 carry a listed US price, with a median of $15.99 and a mean of $22.99. The mean sitting above the median tells you the field is pulled up by a few expensive outliers. The cheapest is 12 is Better Than 6 at $1.99, the most expensive Live A Live at $49.99. 3 carry in-game purchases on top of whatever they cost. Prices are read hourly from the US Steam storefront and move constantly.
How much this field agrees with itself
Player sentiment spans 48 points across these 12 entries. That is a wide band, which means the position of an entry here genuinely matters rather than splitting hairs. 7 carry a critic aggregate, averaging 79 out of 100. Players rate this field 10 points higher than critics on average, which is worth knowing before you weigh either number. See where the two diverge.
Who makes them, and what they overlap with
The studios appearing most often here are Crytek (1), Flying Wild Hog (1), Free Reign Entertainment (1), Gaming Minds Studios (1) and Image & Form Games (1). The genres these entries also sit in are rpg (4), strategy (2), action-adventure (1), action-rpg (1), fps (1) and mmorpg (1), which is a fair map of what you are actually choosing between.
Update history 1
- First published with 3 entries ranked.
Common questions
What is the best western game in 2026?
Fallout: New Vegas ranks first, with a GamingPickz Score of 8.8 out of 10. That score is computed from player sentiment adjusted for sample size, critic reception and popularity, using the weights published on this page.
How many western games are there?
We track 12 western games. Games with fewer than 50 player reviews are excluded from the ranking, because a percentage with no sample behind it is not a measurement.
How is this list ranked?
By a published formula, not by editorial preference. Player sentiment is pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it, then weighted against critic scores and popularity. Nothing on this page is paid for and no placement can be bought.
How often is this updated?
Recomputed on every build from data read on a stated date. Player review counts move daily, so positions in the middle of the list shift more than the top or bottom.
Reader comments
Comments are not switched on yet. When they are, they will be moderated before they appear: an unmoderated thread on a page carrying advertising is a policy problem as well as a reading problem.
12 best western games, ranked
Ordered by GamingPickz Score. Every figure links back to the source that produced it.
- 1
Fallout: New Vegas
Best for: The safest bet on this list, by weight of evidence
8.8GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceFallout: New Vegas at a glance Released 2010 Studio Obsidian Entertainment Player sentiment 96% positive of 261,194 Critics 84/100 Price $9.99 Steam Deck playable Install size Not stated Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 96% shrinks to 96.0 on 261,194 reviews, then blends with the 84 critic aggregate, giving 8.8.
What the data supports- 96% positive across 261,194 reviews is a strong signal at that volume, where a few enthusiasts cannot move the number.
Desperados III at a glance Released 2020 Studio Mimimi Games Player sentiment 97% positive of 16,591 Critics 86/100 Price $39.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 20 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 97% shrinks to 96.7 on 16,591 reviews, then blends with the 86 critic aggregate, giving 8.7.
Worth checking first- Flagged for mature content on its store page.
- 3
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger
Best for: Players who trust other players over critics
8.6GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceCall of Juarez: Gunslinger at a glance Released 2013 Studio Techland Player sentiment 95% positive of 44,207 Critics 79/100 Price $14.99 Steam Deck verified Install size Not stated Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 95% shrinks to 94.9 on 44,207 reviews, then blends with the 79 critic aggregate, giving 8.6.
What the data supports- Valve has tested it and rates it Verified on the Steam Deck.
Worth checking first- Players rate it well above critics, 95 against 79. Usually a sign it improved after launch, or that it delivers something reviewers undervalued.
- Flagged for mature content on its store page.
- 4
SteamWorld Dig
Best for: Handheld play, small install and Deck verified
8.2GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceSteamWorld Dig at a glance Released 2013 Studio Image & Form Games Player sentiment 94% positive of 10,998 Critics 76/100 Price $9.99 Steam Deck verified Install size 0.19 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 94% shrinks to 93.6 on 10,998 reviews, then blends with the 76 critic aggregate, giving 8.2.
What the data supports- Valve has tested it and rates it Verified on the Steam Deck.
- Small install at 0.19 GB.
Worth checking first- Players rate it well above critics, 94 against 76. Usually a sign it improved after launch, or that it delivers something reviewers undervalued.
Red Dead Online at a glance Released 2020 Studio Rockstar Games Player sentiment 83% positive of 69,381 Critics No aggregate Price $19.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 150 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 83% shrinks to 83.0 on 69,381 reviews, giving 8.0. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
Worth checking first- Carries in-game purchases. Check what they cost before committing.
- Flagged for mature content on its store page.
- Multiplayer only. There is no solo mode to fall back on.
- 6
Hunt: Showdown 1896
Best for: The safest bet on this list, by weight of evidence
7.8GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceHunt: Showdown 1896 at a glance Released 2019 Studio Crytek Player sentiment 74% positive of 277,557 Critics 81/100 Price $15.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 75 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 74% shrinks to 74.0 on 277,557 reviews, then blends with the 81 critic aggregate, giving 7.8.
Worth checking first- Carries in-game purchases. Check what they cost before committing.
- Flagged for mature content on its store page.
- Multiplayer only. There is no solo mode to fall back on.
- 7
12 is Better Than 6
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
7.6GamingPickz Scorehigh confidence12 is Better Than 6 at a glance Released 2015 Studio Ink Stains Games Player sentiment 84% positive of 10,276 Critics 74/100 Price $1.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 0.29 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 84% shrinks to 84.0 on 10,276 reviews, then blends with the 74 critic aggregate, giving 7.6.
What the data supports- Small install at 0.29 GB.
Worth checking first- Flagged for mature content on its store page.
Railway Empire at a glance Released 2018 Studio Gaming Minds Studios Player sentiment 83% positive of 9,712 Critics 74/100 Price $29.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 7 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 83% shrinks to 83.0 on 9,712 reviews, then blends with the 74 critic aggregate, giving 7.5.
What the data supports- Small install at 7 GB.
- 9
Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath
Best for: A smaller game its players are unusually fond of
7.2GamingPickz Scoremedium confidenceOddworld: Stranger's Wrath at a glance Released 2005 Studio Oddworld Inhabitants Player sentiment 87% positive of 1,817 Critics No aggregate Price $9.99 Steam Deck playable Install size Not stated Accessibility 0 declared features Raw 87% shrinks to 86.4 on 1,817 reviews, giving 7.2. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
Worth checking first- Flagged for mature content on its store page.
- 10
Live A Live
Best for: Handheld play, small install and Deck verified
7.1GamingPickz Scorelow confidence, thin evidenceLive A Live at a glance Released 1994 Studio Square Player sentiment 86% positive of 938 Critics No aggregate Price $49.99 Steam Deck verified Install size 8 GB Accessibility 6 declared features Raw 86% shrinks to 85.3 on 938 reviews, giving 7.1. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
What the data supports- Valve has tested it and rates it Verified on the Steam Deck.
- Small install at 8 GB.
Worth checking first- Flagged for mature content on its store page.
Evil West at a glance Released 2022 Studio Flying Wild Hog Player sentiment 74% positive of 13,454 Critics No aggregate Price $49.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 40 GB Accessibility 7 declared features Raw 74% shrinks to 74.3 on 13,454 reviews, giving 7.0. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
What the data supports- Declares 7 accessibility features, well above the catalogue norm.
Worth checking first- Flagged for mature content on its store page.
New Frontier at a glance Released 2019 Studio Free Reign Entertainment Player sentiment 49% positive of 3,699 Critics No aggregate Price Not listed Steam Deck unknown Install size 16 GB Accessibility 0 declared features Raw 49% shrinks to 52.4 on 3,699 reviews, giving 5.1. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
Worth checking first- Carries in-game purchases. Check what they cost before committing.
- Flagged for mature content on its store page.
- Multiplayer only. There is no solo mode to fall back on.
