Headlander similar games & best alternatives

Headlander - Trailer
Headlander - headlander_1.avif
Headlander - headlander_2.avif
Headlander - headlander_3.avif
Headlander - headlander_4.avif
Headlander - headlander_5.avif
Headlander - headlander_6.avif

Headlander

PlayStation 4, PC (Microsoft Windows), Mac, Xbox One • 2016

Should you play it?

Launch into the ultimate head trip as you blast through psychotic robots in a retro 70's sci-fi action adventure from Double Fine Productions. It is a world of automation, a utopia gone wrong in which all of humanity have transferred their minds into robotic imposter bodies and are ruled by a computer.

What works

  • Unique and creative gameplay mechanic
  • Stylish 70s retro-futuristic aesthetic
  • Humorous writing and voice acting
  • Accessible and smooth controls
  • Engaging exploration and upgrades

Things to keep in mind

  • Limited enemy variety and combat depth
  • Some backtracking can feel tedious
  • Short game length and low replay value
  • Story considered thin or underdeveloped
  • Performance issues reported on some systems

What to play next

Top picks

Games that feels the closest overall

  • Voidwrought

  • ANNO: Mutationem

  • Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap

  • Somber Echoes

  • Foregone

  • Boiling Steel

Less expressive

Games that feels like Headlander but with less self-expression and customization

  • DOOMBLADE

  • Ben and Ed

  • HAAK

  • MO:Astray

  • ICEY

  • Teslagrad Remastered

More intense

Games that feels like Headlander but with a more intense feel

  • Nine Sols

  • Silly Polly Beast

  • Soda Crisis

  • MIO: Memories in Orbit

  • The Darkest Tales — Into the Nightmare

  • The Darkest Tales

Choose your own criteria ->

From the same developer

From the same developer, ranked by motivational fit.

  • Psychonauts

  • RAD

  • Costume Quest

  • Psychonauts 2

  • Costume Quest 2

Similarity map

How to compare these games

Compare nearby games

Each card is a nearby game on the similarity map, compared with Headlander. Swipe sideways to move between games. Titles already listed in What to play next are left out.

  • Cover and title: open that game’s page.
  • What works / keep in mind: the same highlights as the desktop comparison panel.
  • Bars: the main motivational differences versus this game.
How to use the graph

Similarity map

Each dot is a game placed from its motivation profile relative to this page’s game. Direction shows which motivation differs most; distance along that axis shows how large the gap is.

  • Purple star: this page’s game at the centre — everything is relative to it.
  • Direction: each axis is a main motivational difference vs this game (e.g. more / less competitive).
  • Distance on an axis: how large that difference is (ring scales show +/− points).
  • Coloured chips: click to highlight games that mainly differ on that motivation; click again to reset.
  • Dotted line: link between this page’s game and the one selected for comparison.
  • Hover a dot to preview that game in the panel on the right; click to keep that comparison.
  • Scroll or double-click the chart to zoom.

How to read the map This is a polar difference map: direction = which motivation differs, and distance = how much (same units as the sidebar deltas).

Swipe to compare nearby games with Headlander. These titles are not in What to play next.

Headlander: A very typical example of its motivational profile. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Violence, Survival, Fellowship, Intimacy. It leans lower than usual among comparable games on Leadership, Survival, Thrill.

Last update: 21/08/2026