Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon vs The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
A grim, smaller open world versus the all-time giant of the genre — pick your trade-off between freshness and proven depth.
Updated 21d ago
A grimdark Skyrim-killer with crunchier combat and packed-with-stuff exploration — buys in if you can stomach the solo-dev pacing.
Still the best-value RPG on Steam — Complete is $10 over base for $25 of expansions. Check your OS first: the next patch drops Windows 10 and DirectX 11.
By the numbers
Prices checked Sep 8; they move faster than we refresh, so confirm on the store page.
Recent-review figures are Steam's own last-30-days window, read Sep 8.
| Measure | Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon | The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt |
|---|---|---|
| Value The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt wins on value | ||
| Price now | $44.99 Steam | $39.99 Humble Store |
| All-time low | $17.99 | $3.99 |
| Cost / hour | $1.61/hr $44.99 · 28 h main story | $0.77/hr $39.99 · 52 h main story |
| Off its low | +150% low was Feb 2024 | +902% low was Jun 2024 |
| Main story | 28 h | 52 h |
| Health The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt wins on player health | ||
| Steam reviews | 88% 35k reviews | 97% 887k reviews |
| Recent reviews | 84% 669 votes · vs 88% lifetime | 94% 7k votes · vs 97% lifetime |
| Peak players | 4,509 Aug 2026 · ↓ 33% MoM | 31,849 Aug 2026 · ↓ 13% MoM |
| Launch peak | 18% of May 2025 launch peak · as of Aug 2026 | 35% of May 2015 launch peak · as of Aug 2026 |
| All-time peak | 25,568 May 2025 | 103,329 Jan 2020 |
| Support | ||
| Last patch | 2 months ago | — |
| Patch cadence | 1 in last 90 days | — |
| Steam Deck | Platinum | Platinum |
Shared scale — same months across the bottom, same player-count axis up the side, so the two lines are directly comparable. A shorter line means a younger game.
What players say
Patterns from long-haul reviewers, taken from each game's verdict. Not live sentiment — each side is dated below.
Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon
Exploration is the hook that keeps 100-hour fans coming back — every hidden nook holds something worth the detour, and combat's weighty crunch holds up across playthroughs.
Mid-game quests start to drag, and interior spaces lacking maps make navigation a persistent friction even for veterans.
from our August 2026 verdict
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
That an eleven-year-old game still reads as current, and Blood and Wine in particular — long-haul players name the expansion as the high point.
The incoming Windows 11 and SSD floor on an eleven-year-old game, the enhanced build's frame drops in cities, and quests that lean on witcher-sense tracking.
from our July 2026 verdict
Key differences
Which one is for you?
Pick Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon if
- You want a darker, more grounded take on Arthurian lore
- You prefer exploring without quest markers or handholding
- You can tolerate rough edges for a solo-dev passion project
Pick The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt if
- You're a fan of choice-driven stories that shape the world
- You value long, refined side content like Blood and Wine
- You already have Windows 11 and an SSD, so the next patch won't affect you
Bottom line
If you want a fresher, more experimental spin on the formula, go Tainted Grail; if you crave the proven, content-rich classic, Witcher 3 still holds up.
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