SecludedGems / Browse by tag
Difficult hidden gems on Steam
Every game here is tagged Difficult on Steam, sits between 1,000 and 5,000 reviews, is rated at least 80% positive, and carries a catch drawn from its own negative reviews. Showing the 60 most reviewed of 87. How these pages are made.
Intralism86% positive from 4,841 reviews2016Deck Playable
Intralism is a fast-paced rhythm game where players match arcs to music beats. Its core loop involves precise timing and reaction, with a focus on user-created maps and global competition.
What players likedPlayers praise Intralism's stunning visuals and enjoyable community-made maps, comparing its circular four-lane rhythm to a unique and challenging experience.
The catchThere is no real difficulty system and almost no easy maps, so beginners hit a wall.
Games like Intralism →
Touhou Luna Nights is a Metroidvania action game featuring time manipulation and a tense graze system. Explore a unique world with attractive dot graphics.
What players likedPlayers praise this challenging Metroidvania for its unique time-stop mechanics, rewarding gameplay, and beautiful pixel art.
The catchSold as a metroidvania but the map is small, linear and barely worth exploring.
Games like Touhou Luna Nights →
Ratopia88% positive from 4,722 reviews20251% finish itDeck Playable
A colony builder where every rat citizen holds their own money, so you set jobs, services, taxes and policies to keep the economy running while expeditions dig into old ruins.
What players likedPlayers praise Ratopia as a unique colony management sim, akin to ONI and Rimworld, with deep economic simulation and character control.
The catchManaging the colony through a single walking rat avatar turns into tedious busywork.
Games like Ratopia →
This is a bullet hell shooter where players dodge enemy fire and defeat bosses. Players equip two seasons, one for their character and one as a sub-option, to attack and clear bullets.
What players likedPlayers praise this Touhou game as an easy and fun entry point, offering simplified mechanics and resource generation compared to others.
The catchEnemy bullets blend into busy, cluttered backgrounds
Games like Touhou Tenkuushou ~ Hidden Star in Four Seasons. →
Poly Bridge 295% positive from 4,519 reviews20201% finish itDeck Playable
A physics-based puzzle game where players build bridges. It features a core loop of designing, testing, and optimizing bridges for success.
What players likedPlayers praise Poly Bridge 2 as an excellent game for those who love designing bridges and enjoy technical, challenging puzzle games.
The catchLevels come down to frustrating trial and error, with little explanation of the physics.
Games like Poly Bridge 2 →
This is a social deduction party game where players deceive or deduce to survive. It features cooperative and traitor mechanics in a mischievous sci-fi setting.
What players likedPlayers praise this social deduction game for its fun backstabbing and betrayal, similar to games where you can kill friends.
The catchThe playerbase has dried up, so public lobbies rarely fill and matches are scarce.
Games like First Class Trouble →
A narrative-driven RPG focused on dialogue and choice in a crumbling society. It emphasizes consequences and player agency over combat.
What players likedPlayers compare it to 90s RPGs, Divinity, and Pillars of Eternity, praising its deep choices, branching paths, and impactful consequences.
The catchForced fights your build cannot win push you into constant save scumming and reloading.
Games like The Age of Decadence →
A 3D platformer where players use Quantum Masks to bend reality. It features fast-paced action and character switching.
What players likedPlayers praise "Crash Bandicoot 4" as a faithful, challenging, and fun return to the classic formula, reminiscent of the original trilogy.
The catchCompletionist challenges are punishingly difficult
Games like Crash Bandicoot™ 4: It’s About Time →
This is a real-time deck-building roguelike with bullet-hell combat. Players cast spells strategically to survive procedurally generated levels.
What players likedFans praise this Battle Network-inspired roguelike for its fast-paced, challenging gameplay that expands on core mechanics.
The catchToo much happens too fast with too little explanation of what anything does.
Games like One Step From Eden →
Deadlink89% positive from 3,627 reviews20233% finish itDeck Playable
Cyberpunk roguelite FPS where you pilot a combat shell, fighting through destructible environments. The core loop involves fast-paced combat, environmental destruction, and weapon loadout customization.
What players likedPlayers praise its fluid, ability-driven combat and movement, comparing it to Hades and DOOM Eternal.
The catchOnly four fixed levels and bosses, so runs blur together after a few hours.
Games like Deadlink →
A side-scrolling Metroidvania action game with deep combat and gear customization. Explore a dark world, fight monsters, and uncover mysteries.
What players likedPlayers praise its good graphics, music, atmosphere, and varied weapons/skills, making it a unique and mesmerizing experience.
The catchThe map is broken and unreadable, which leaves you lost in a large metroidvania.
Games like Vigil: The Longest Night →
LYNE95% positive from 3,546 reviews2014Deck Verified
LYNE is a minimalist puzzle game where players connect shapes to fill a board. It offers a calming, brain-knotting experience with handcrafted and daily generated puzzles.
What players likedLYNE is a chill, minimalistic puzzle game with pleasing graphics and sounds, offering fulfilling gameplay that encourages taking breaks.
The catchPuzzles repeat without adding new mechanics over time
Games like LYNE →
Get To Work89% positive from 3,482 reviews202414% finish itDeck Playable
This is a challenging narrative platformer with a unique rollerblade movement system. It features a satirical story about corporate climbing, rewarding fast movement and offering collectible podcast audio.
The catchMuch of the difficulty comes from janky physics and controls rather than level design.
Games like Get To Work →
The End Is Nigh94% positive from 3,444 reviews201712% finish itDeck Verified
This is a challenging adventure platformer about collecting items and overcoming difficult levels. The game features a dark, stressful atmosphere as you guide a survivor on a quest.
What players likedPlayers compare it to Super Meat Boy and Celeste, praising its precise movement and challenging, polished platforming.
The catchThe later half hands you limited lives, so dying too often restarts a whole area.
Games like The End Is Nigh →
Turbo Pug90% positive from 3,363 reviews2015Deck Playable
A casual, procedurally generated runner with random weather and unlockable pug costumes. Players collect coins and aim for high scores on leaderboards.
The catchA one button runner with so little variety that it turns repetitive within minutes.
Games like Turbo Pug →
Snake Pass80% positive from 3,323 reviews20173% finish itDeck Verified
Snake Pass is a physics-based puzzle platformer where players control a snake. Its core loop involves slithering and coiling through levels to solve environmental puzzles.
What players likedPlayers praise its unique, masterful snake movement in a 3D collectathon.
The catchThe snake controls fight you constantly and slip off holds you thought were secure.
Games like Snake Pass →
HYPER DEMON94% positive from 3,314 reviews20221% finish itDeck Playable
Arena FPS scored on speed, where killing demons faster makes the game harder and the score higher. A spherical 180 degree view plus a red rear-view overlay show threats all around you.
What players likedPlayers praise its genius, fundamental controls and natural feel, comparing it to similarly paced movement shooters.
The catchDazzling visuals wear off fast, leaving a shallow loop of the same few enemies.
Games like HYPER DEMON →
This is a first-person physics-based climbing adventure game where players ascend mountains, master holds, and collect gear. It offers a challenging, trial-and-error experience with a serene, picturesque feel.
What players likedPlayers praise its challenging, movement-based climbing gameplay, often compared to Foddian games, for its fulfilling and immersive experience.
The catchOne slip can erase hours of climbing because the peaks have no checkpoints.
Games like Peaks of Yore →
This is a brutally hard 2D platformer with electronic music. Players run, jump, and smash through levels with unique mechanics.
The catchDifficulty comes from trial and error and unfair deaths rather than tight platforming.
Games like Electronic Super Joy →
Absolute Drift88% positive from 3,177 reviews20153% finish itDeck Verified
This is a car drifting simulation game. Players master sliding mechanics through various challenges and free-roam areas.
What players likedPlayers praise its satisfying drifting mechanics and minimalist art style, comparing it to a chill, challenging, yet short experience.
The catchThe drift controls are punishing and barely explained, so the game never feels relaxing.
Games like Absolute Drift →
Retro-inspired 2D action platformer where players blast through levels with the AVGN. Features challenging gameplay, power-ups, and secrets for fans of old-school difficulty.
What players likedPlayers praise its tough but fair gameplay and pretty graphics, reminiscent of classic platformers.
The catchDifficulty is punishing for its own sake, with cheap instant death blocks everywhere.
Games like Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures →
Rhythm-based auto-runner platformer with a focus on timing actions to music. Features vibrant visuals and a charismatic narrator.
What players likedPlayers praise its rhythmic precision platforming and unique levels, comparing it to other reactive runner games.
The catchThe levels are samey reskins, so nothing new shows up after the first half hour.
Games like BIT.TRIP Presents... Runner2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien →
A physics-based downhill biking game. Ride, jump, and slide through natural landscapes, mastering controls for speed or exploration.
What players likedPlayers praise it as an enjoyable, rewarding cycling game with charming low-poly aesthetics and great gameplay, art, and sound design.
The catchThe camera often hides the trail ahead, turning runs into trial and error memorisation.
Games like Lonely Mountains: Downhill →
This is a retro arcade shoot 'em up where players dodge endless waves of enemies while automatically firing. They collect power-ups and earn coins to unlock new ships for high score chasing.
What players likedPlayers praise its balanced challenge and progression, reminiscent of classic arcade shoot 'em ups.
The catchShips only turn left or right, so steering stays clunky and hard to control.
Games like Bit Blaster XL →
This is a restaurant management simulation game with a fast-paced cooking and serving core loop. It offers a challenging and deep experience for players who enjoy strategic planning and execution.
What players likedPlayers praise its strong, balanced cooking gameplay, despite small bugs.
The catchIngredient keys are illogical and painful to rebind, and menu pages break the flow.
Games like Cook, Serve, Delicious! 2!! →
ELDERBORN86% positive from 3,023 reviews202015% finish itDeck Verified
First-person fantasy slasher with souls-like progression. Master brutal melee combat and explore a dangerous world.
What players likedPlayers praise ELDERBORN as a fun, metal-themed sword-and-sorcery game with great combat and design, reminiscent of DOOM.
The catchCombat is clunky and unresponsive, with parries and hits that fail at random.
Games like ELDERBORN →
This is a fast-paced restaurant simulation game focused on order fulfillment and menu management. Players manage a restaurant, cook dishes, and upgrade their establishment.
The catchTwenty repeat days of service per star rank turns progress into a tedious grind.
Games like Cook, Serve, Delicious →
This is a roguelike top-down shooter with procedurally generated maps. Players scavenge and craft weapons to survive a hostile research facility filled with reactivated personnel.
The catchPermadeath with almost no saving forces endless replays of the same early levels.
Games like Teleglitch: Die More Edition →
Fury Unleashed87% positive from 2,874 reviews20207% finish itDeck Verified
A roguelite platformer shooter with a combo-based combat loop and a comic book aesthetic. It offers challenging, fast-paced action with co-op and customization.
What players likedPlayers praise its fun, creative co-op gameplay and easy progression, making it enjoyable with friends.
The catchOnline co-op is buggy and awkward to set up, often breaking before you play.
Games like Fury Unleashed →
This is a dark fantasy tower defense strategy game. Players craft and combine gems to build defenses against monster hordes.
What players likedPlayers praise this complex tower defense game for its deep progression systems, reminiscent of classic browser games.
The catchProgress stalls behind heavy XP grinding, forcing repeated replays of the same levels.
Games like GemCraft - Frostborn Wrath →
Top-down roguelike action with soul-like combat. Master dodging and timing to survive procedurally generated dungeons with unique heroines and weapons.
What players likedPlayers praise its unique, beautiful art style and fun combat, making it a top-tier 2D top-down action game.
The catchCombat feels stiff and clunky, with loose hitboxes and poorly telegraphed enemy attacks.
Games like Devil Slayer - Raksasi →
Lorn's Lure86% positive from 2,710 reviews202427% finish itDeck Verified
First-person narrative platformer with climb-anything mechanics. It features retro 3D graphics and a dark, foreboding atmosphere.
What players likedPlayers praise its atmospheric, precision platforming and exploration, reminiscent of Mirror's Edge, NaissanceE, and classic platformers.
The catchThe calm exploration collapses into a punishing timed final chapter that ruins the game.
Games like Lorn's Lure →
Lovely Planet90% positive from 2,702 reviews201427% finish itDeck Playable
This is a fast-paced, first-person shooter with a focus on precise jumping and shooting mechanics. Players navigate abstract worlds, evading bullets and defeating enemies across numerous levels.
What players likedPlayers praise its challenging speedrun shooter gameplay, which requires precision and speed, set against a backdrop of simple art and fantastic music.
The catchThere is no crosshair and the slow projectiles make precise shots feel like luck.
Games like Lovely Planet →
Fast-paced action platformer with gravity shifting. Navigate floating islands and water blobs as an octopus.
The catchThe constantly rotating camera leaves a lot of players dizzy and motion sick.
Games like Airscape - The Fall of Gravity →
A danmaku shooting game where players navigate bullet patterns to solve a mysterious blizzard incident in Gensokyo. It features keyboard and gamepad controls with a focus on dodging and shooting.
What players likedPlayers praise the stunning art, music, and detailed, unique boss fights and spell cards.
The catchController support is broken and high refresh monitors run the game at double speed.
Games like TouHou Makuka Sai ~ Fantastic Danmaku Festival Part II →
La-Mulana80% positive from 2,607 reviews20136% finish itDeck Verified
This is a challenging retro-inspired action-adventure game focused on exploration and puzzle-solving within ancient ruins. Players navigate traps and monsters to uncover secrets, offering a demanding and immersive experience.
What players likedNo comparisons to other games are present in the provided review.
The catchCryptic puzzles and difficulty effectively require a guide
Games like La-Mulana →
TIS-10097% positive from 2,574 reviews2015Deck Unsupported
A puzzle game where players rewrite assembly code to repair a parallel computer. It features competitive optimization and sandbox creation with an 80s computer manual aesthetic.
What players likedPlayers say it's like old-school programming or puzzles, and they praise its ability to teach assembly language.
The catchThere is no in game tutorial, so learning the system means reading an external manual.
Games like TIS-100 →
This is a challenging action platformer with a one-button combat system where stylish kills earn checkpoints. It features intense platforming and beat-em-up action with a Lovecraftian horror feel.
What players likedPlayers praise its brutal difficulty and combat-platforming, reminiscent of masocore games.
The catchNearly every action shares one button, so deaths come from fighting the controls.
Games like They Bleed Pixels →
Angvik88% positive from 2,531 reviews201467% finish itDeck Unsupported
Platform action game with permadeath. Collect aids and fight creatures in a challenging world.
What players likedAngvik is a charming, unforgiving platformer reminiscent of Ghosts 'n Goblins and Dark Souls, praised for its satisfying challenge and replayability.
The catchNo saves or checkpoints means every death restarts the same levels from scratch.
Games like Angvik →
Hack-and-slash action RPG with gory combat and limb dismemberment. Explore a dark fantasy world as one of four unique characters to defeat Chaos.
What players likedPlayers praise its "soulslike" combat and historical significance, comparing it to early "old-school TPS" games.
The catchMovement and combat are clunky and dated, with attacks often failing to land.
Games like Blade of Darkness →
Kingdom Rush Frontiers is a tower defense game where players strategically place and upgrade towers to defend against waves of enemies. It features fast-paced, charming gameplay with diverse towers and hero abilities.
What players likedPlayers praise its expanded world, engaging campaign, and unique, challenging stages, building on the original's greatness.
The catchDifficulty and balance swing wildly, with bosses and levels that feel outright unfair.
Games like Kingdom Rush Frontiers - Tower Defense →
Tactical turn-based RPG with open-world exploration and a dark fantasy feel. Recruit followers, loot enemies for skills, and survive harsh combat.
What players likedPlayers praise Urtuk: The Desolation as an RPG chess-like game with unique art, diverse characters, and challenging, unforgiving AI.
The catchCombat turns repetitive fast, with randomised battles that all blur together.
Games like Urtuk: The Desolation →
Artisan TD87% positive from 2,454 reviews202411% finish itDeck Verified
Artisan TD is a stylized 3D tower defense game where players build mazes on handcrafted maps to defeat waves of enemies. It emphasizes strategic maze building and economic management with regular updates.
What players likedPlayers praise Artisan TD as a relaxing, strategy-focused tower defense game with elegant design and careful planning.
The catchMost maps have one exact intended solution, so progress means trial and error restarts.
Games like Artisan TD →
Hardcore retro action platformer. Players battle enemies and traps across seven worlds with simple controls and a challenging, bloody feel.
The catchCheckpoints are scarce, so every death means replaying long stretches from the start.
Games like Volgarr the Viking →
Last Command96% positive from 2,411 reviews202224% finish itDeck Verified
A bullet hell action game blending Snake mechanics with dodging and data collection for damage. Players upgrade abilities through modules to face varied enemy patterns and boss fights.
What players likedPlayers praise "Last Command" as a unique snake-bullet hell hybrid with awesome game design and fun boss fights.
The catchLong dialogue and dull overworld walks pad out the gaps between fights.
Games like Last Command →
This is an electronic music rhythm game where players spin, flick, and tap to match colors and beats. It features hand-made levels with five difficulty settings and a level editor.
What players likedPlayers praise its genius mechanics, satisfying wheel-spin gameplay, and excellent music selection, making it one of the best rhythm games.
The catchMuch of the tracklist feels bland, with few songs worth replaying.
Games like Spin Rhythm XD →
This is a 2D platformer where players use acrobatic movement to clean levels. It features fast-paced challenges, community content, and a level editor.
What players likedPlayers praise its fantastic soundtrack and describe it as a fun, "flow" style platformer.
The catchThe controls feel clunky and unresponsive, making basic movement a constant fight.
Games like Dustforce DX →
BARRIER X85% positive from 2,353 reviews20164% finish it
This is a fast-paced arcade shooter where players dodge barriers and shoot enemies. The core loop involves surviving increasingly rapid waves with electronic music.
What players likedPlayers praise its quick, addictive loop of dying and retrying, reminiscent of classic arcade difficulty, for keeping them engaged.
The catchScreen shake and flashing colours hide the obstacles and cause real eye strain.
Games like BARRIER X →
A momentum-based platformer in which a ninja carries its own speed past homicidal robots to grab gold and reach the exit, across 4,690 hand-made levels with an editor and leaderboards.
What players likedPlayers praise N++ as a perfected precision platformer, often compared to Celeste, with vast content and satisfying flow.
The catchLong standing bugs go unfixed, with broken displays, failed launches and lost saves.
Games like N (NPLUSPLUS) →
This is a fast-paced restaurant simulation game with a food truck theme. Players manage orders, cook food, and upgrade their truck across hundreds of levels.
What players likedPlayers praise its intense focus, comparing it to a demanding challenge that fully engages the mind.
The catchThe pace is relentless from the start and orders pile up faster than you can cook.
Games like Cook, Serve, Delicious! 3?! →
Physics puzzle game where players control a cosmonaut's limbs to complete tasks in zero gravity. It offers a challenging, deliberate experience with a unique control scheme.
What players likedPlayers praise its unique, hilarious, and frustrating physics-based co-op that fosters teamwork and unforgettable moments.
The catchFloppy ragdoll controls fight you constantly, turning simple tasks into long ordeals.
Games like Heavenly Bodies →
SHENZHEN I/O95% positive from 2,229 reviews20162% finish itDeck Playable
A circuit design and assembly programming puzzle game. Players build and code devices with a challenging, technical feel.
What players likedPlayers praise the challenging, satisfying puzzles and the engaging solitaire minigame, reminiscent of real-world engineering.
The catchThere is no in-game tutorial, just a 47 page PDF manual you must read first.
Games like SHENZHEN I/O →
StarVaders98% positive from 2,200 reviews20254% finish itDeck Verified
StarVaders is a deckbuilding roguelike where you pilot mechs in grid-based combat. Build card combos to defeat alien invaders and rewrite fate with time rewinds.
What players likedPlayers praise StarVaders as a unique deckbuilder with tactical grid-based combat, often compared to Slay the Spire and Into the Breach, for its deep synergies and high replayability.
The catchCards mostly just move or shoot, so runs start feeling shallow and samey.
Games like StarVaders →
oO99% positive from 2,098 reviews202315% finish itDeck Playable
Minimalist arcade dodge-em-up. Players navigate challenging obstacle courses with precise movement.
What players likedPlayers praise "oO" as a cheap, atmospheric, and challenging yet relaxing experience with cool music.
The catchDifficulty spikes at level three into frame perfect timing that stops being fun.
Games like oO →
Knock-knock87% positive from 2,054 reviews20139% finish it
A side-scrolling horror game about surviving until dawn in a cabin in the woods, where the sleepless Lodger repairs missing rooms, hides from nocturnal Guests, and works out the rules of their game.
What players likedPlayers praise its artistic atmosphere and creepy interactive experience, reminiscent of being alone at home with unsettling sounds and sights.
The catchGameplay boils down to walking rooms, flicking lights on, and waiting out timers.
Games like Knock-knock →
DeadCore85% positive from 2,043 reviews20143% finish itDeck Unsupported
A first-person platformer where players use a SwitchGun to manipulate traps and robots while climbing a giant tower. The core loop involves precise movement and puzzle-solving to uncover secrets.
The catchFloaty, inconsistent physics undermine a platformer built on pixel precise jumps.
Games like DeadCore →
This is an arcade twin-stick shooter with a draining battery mechanic. It features fast-paced combat, transforming stages, and boss battles.
What players likedPlayers praise this polished twin-stick shooter with environmental navigation, comparing it to Cannon Spike and other games in the genre.
The catchA constant draining battery timer makes every level about chasing pickups, not shooting.
Games like Assault Android Cactus+ →
Will You Snail?97% positive from 1,998 reviews202239% finish itDeck Verified
This is a challenging, fast-paced precision platformer where players outsmart an AI that predicts their movements. It features optional puzzles and a level editor for endless community content.
What players likedPlayers praise its surprisingly interesting lore and challenging AI-driven traps, reminiscent of a unique platformer experience.
The catchDeaths come down to randomly spawned spikes, so wins feel lucky rather than earned.
Games like Will You Snail? →
Action RPG with challenging combat and beast hunting. Explore a snowy world, upgrade your settlement, and uncover secrets.
What players likedPlayers praise its art, music, and story, comparing its challenging action to Salt and Sacrifice, but not a Souls game.
The catchThe elemental system forces constant gear swapping in menus between almost every fight.
Games like Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter →
Spiritfall93% positive from 1,940 reviews202412% finish itDeck Verified
A roguelite platform fighter with combo-based combat and randomized blessings. Players explore, fight, and upgrade through repeated runs.
What players likedPlayers praise "Spiritfall" as a "Smash Bros meets Hades" roguelike with tight, enjoyable combat and satisfying build variety.
The catchThe same few bosses and bland upgrades make runs blur together quickly.
Games like Spiritfall →
