The Game Census
Dear Esther: Landmark Edition cover art

Dear Esther: Landmark Edition

The Chinese Room · Secret Mode · 2017-02-14

SteamGOGPlayStation StoreMicrosoft Store

AdventureCasualIndieFree To Play

Modes: Single player

Releases: Oct 01, 2019 (iOS), Sep 20, 2016 (PlayStation 4), Sep 20, 2016 (Xbox One), Feb 14, 2017 (Mac), Feb 14, 2017 (PC (Microsoft Windows))

Dear Esther immerses you in a stunningly realised world, a remote and desolate island somewhere in the outer Hebrides. As you step forwards, a voice begins to read fragments of a letter: 'Dear Esther...' - and so begins a journey through one of the most original first-person games of recent years.

9
playing now
75%
positive of 7.5k reviews
Mostly Positive
steam rating
200,000–500,000
owners (SteamSpy est.)
64/100
critic score (11 outlets, IGDB)
69/100
IGDB user rating (94 ratings)
1.2h
to beat · rushed 1h · completionist 3.3h
platinum
deck/linux tier (ProtonDB)
$9.99
steam price (US)

9 players in-game as of 2026-08-30 02:00 UTC (census sample)

Dear Esther is a 2012 adventure game developed and published by The Chinese Room. First released in 2008 as a free modification for the Source game engine, the game was entirely redeveloped for a commercial release in 2012. The commercial version was released for Microsoft Windows in February 2012 and OS X in May 2012; ports for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One were released by Curve Digital in September 2016.

Health check

Healthy
  • · 9 players in-game at the last census sample.
  • · 219 reviews in the last 8 weeks (~27/week).
  • · Review velocity up 11% vs the prior 8 weeks.
  • · Top 10% of 11,331 Adventure games in the census by review count.
Estimated sales: 188k–450k copies

Review-multiple estimate from 7,501 total reviews — how this is computed.

Current store prices

lowest across shops (ITAD)$8.99-10%
GOG$9.99
Microsoft Store$9.99

Deal snapshots via CheapShark, refreshed daily.

All-time low: $0.82 at Gamer Thor (2024-11-23) · bundled 3×via IsThereAnyDeal

12-month high $9.99 · on sale 109 of 161 observed days · $9.17 above the all-time low (census price snapshots)

Review momentum

PositiveNegative
474720182026Week of 2018-01-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2018-01-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2018-02-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2018-02-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2018-03-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2018-03-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2018-04-01: 8 positiveWeek of 2018-04-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2018-05-01: 8 positiveWeek of 2018-05-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2018-06-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2018-06-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2018-07-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2018-07-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2018-08-01: 7 positiveWeek of 2018-08-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2018-09-01: 10 positiveWeek of 2018-09-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2018-10-01: 4 positiveWeek of 2018-10-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2018-11-01: 22 positiveWeek of 2018-11-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2018-12-01: 6 positiveWeek of 2019-01-01: 7 positiveWeek of 2019-01-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2019-02-01: 9 positiveWeek of 2019-02-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2019-03-01: 6 positiveWeek of 2019-03-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2019-04-01: 5 positiveWeek of 2019-05-01: 30 positiveWeek of 2019-05-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2019-06-01: 31 positiveWeek of 2019-06-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2019-07-01: 29 positiveWeek of 2019-07-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2019-08-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2019-08-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2019-09-01: 8 positiveWeek of 2019-09-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2019-10-01: 12 positiveWeek of 2019-10-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2019-11-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2019-11-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2019-12-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2019-12-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2020-01-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2020-01-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2020-02-01: 14 positiveWeek of 2020-02-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-03-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2020-03-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2020-04-01: 27 positiveWeek of 2020-04-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2020-05-01: 47 positiveWeek of 2020-05-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2020-06-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2020-06-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2020-07-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2020-07-01: 19 negativeWeek of 2020-08-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2020-08-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2020-09-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2020-09-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2020-10-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2020-10-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2020-11-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2020-11-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-12-01: 33 positiveWeek of 2020-12-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2021-01-01: 27 positiveWeek of 2021-01-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2021-02-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2021-02-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2021-03-01: 23 positiveWeek of 2021-03-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2021-04-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2021-04-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2021-05-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2021-05-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2021-06-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2021-07-01: 27 positiveWeek of 2021-07-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2021-08-01: 8 positiveWeek of 2021-08-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2021-09-01: 7 positiveWeek of 2021-09-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2021-10-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2021-10-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2021-11-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2021-11-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2021-12-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2021-12-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2022-01-01: 22 positiveWeek of 2022-01-01: 12 negativeWeek of 2022-02-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2022-02-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2022-03-01: 14 positiveWeek of 2022-03-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2022-04-01: 5 positiveWeek of 2022-04-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2022-05-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2022-05-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2022-06-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2022-06-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2022-07-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2022-07-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2022-08-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2022-08-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2022-09-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2022-09-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2022-10-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2022-10-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2022-11-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2022-11-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2022-12-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2022-12-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2023-01-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2023-01-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2023-02-01: 7 positiveWeek of 2023-02-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-03-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2023-03-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-04-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2023-04-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-05-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2023-05-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2023-06-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2023-06-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2023-07-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2023-07-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2023-08-01: 3 positiveWeek of 2023-08-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2023-09-01: 12 positiveWeek of 2023-09-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-10-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2023-10-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-11-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2023-11-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-12-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2023-12-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2024-01-01: 12 positiveWeek of 2024-01-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-02-01: 10 positiveWeek of 2024-03-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2024-03-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-04-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2024-04-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2024-05-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2024-05-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-06-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2024-06-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-07-01: 43 positiveWeek of 2024-07-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2024-08-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2024-08-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2024-09-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2024-09-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2024-10-01: 12 positiveWeek of 2024-10-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2024-11-01: 9 positiveWeek of 2024-11-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-12-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2024-12-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-01-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2025-01-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-02-01: 30 positiveWeek of 2025-02-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-03-01: 31 positiveWeek of 2025-03-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-04-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2025-04-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-05-01: 26 positiveWeek of 2025-05-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-06-01: 26 positiveWeek of 2025-06-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-07-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2025-07-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2025-08-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2025-08-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2025-09-01: 8 positiveWeek of 2025-09-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-10-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2025-10-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2025-11-01: 15 positiveWeek of 2025-11-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2025-12-01: 29 positiveWeek of 2025-12-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2026-01-01: 14 positiveWeek of 2026-01-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2026-02-01: 10 positiveWeek of 2026-02-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-03-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2026-03-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2026-04-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2026-04-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2026-05-01: 35 positiveWeek of 2026-05-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2026-06-01: 12 positiveWeek of 2026-06-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2026-07-01: 25 positiveWeek of 2026-07-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2026-08-01: 5 positive
Weekly review counts (Steam review histogram). Positive above the line, negative below.

Players online

1402026-08-06 23:00 — 1 players2026-08-07 07:00 — 4 players2026-08-07 15:00 — 2 players2026-08-07 23:00 — 1 players2026-08-08 07:00 — 4 players2026-08-08 15:00 — 8 players2026-08-08 23:00 — 9 players2026-08-09 07:00 — 5 players2026-08-09 15:00 — 7 players2026-08-09 23:00 — 5 players2026-08-10 07:00 — 2 players2026-08-10 12:00 — 4 players2026-08-10 20:00 — 4 players2026-08-11 04:00 — 1 players2026-08-11 12:00 — 5 players2026-08-12 08:00 — 2 players2026-08-13 14:00 — 2 players2026-08-14 22:00 — 1 players2026-08-16 06:00 — 4 players2026-08-17 13:00 — 4 players2026-08-18 21:00 — 5 players2026-08-20 04:00 — 2 players2026-08-21 12:00 — 5 players2026-08-22 19:00 — 7 players2026-08-24 03:00 — 5 players2026-08-25 11:00 — 8 players2026-08-26 19:00 — 13 players2026-08-28 03:00 — 8 players2026-08-29 10:00 — 7 players2026-08-30 02:00 — 9 players
Concurrent players, hourly average, last 30 days (census samples).

Price history

$9.99$0.002017-02-142026-08-302017-02-14 — best price $9.992019-05-16 — best price $2.992019-12-19 — best price $2.492020-06-09 — best price $9.992020-09-17 — best price $8.892020-10-26 — best price $1.642021-01-14 — best price $1.992021-03-28 — best price $8.382021-05-04 — best price $1.992021-09-19 — best price $8.382021-12-03 — best price $8.382022-03-24 — best price $8.382022-11-22 — best price $1.432023-03-20 — best price $8.892023-08-21 — best price $1.332023-12-11 — best price $8.892024-02-26 — best price $9.592024-05-16 — best price $9.992024-08-12 — best price $7.192024-10-19 — best price $1.322024-11-28 — best price $1.162025-01-03 — best price $0.922025-02-13 — best price $8.992025-03-23 — best price $9.992025-05-03 — best price $1.322025-06-30 — best price $1.642025-08-18 — best price $1.992025-10-13 — best price $1.992025-11-30 — best price $1.662026-02-11 — best price $1.992026-04-09 — best price $9.992026-06-07 — best price $8.272026-07-31 — best price $1.632026-08-30 — best price $9.99
Lowest recorded price across tracked stores, per day (census snapshots).

Attention

225842026-05-31 — 160 pageviews2026-06-03 — 140 pageviews2026-06-06 — 148 pageviews2026-06-09 — 147 pageviews2026-06-12 — 92 pageviews2026-06-15 — 127 pageviews2026-06-18 — 103 pageviews2026-06-21 — 101 pageviews2026-06-24 — 126 pageviews2026-06-27 — 125 pageviews2026-06-30 — 116 pageviews2026-07-03 — 134 pageviews2026-07-06 — 137 pageviews2026-07-09 — 137 pageviews2026-07-12 — 98 pageviews2026-07-15 — 120 pageviews2026-07-18 — 153 pageviews2026-07-21 — 115 pageviews2026-07-24 — 134 pageviews2026-07-27 — 126 pageviews2026-07-30 — 129 pageviews2026-08-02 — 130 pageviews2026-08-05 — 103 pageviews2026-08-08 — 136 pageviews2026-08-11 — 129 pageviews2026-08-14 — 84 pageviews2026-08-17 — 131 pageviews2026-08-20 — 189 pageviews2026-08-23 — 225 pageviews2026-08-26 — 141 pageviews2026-08-28 — 125 pageviews
Daily Wikipedia pageviews (attention proxy, census-recorded).

Completion

10
achievements tracked
55.3%
earned "Donnelley"
32%
median achievement earned by

Global achievement rates from Steam.

Details

WindowsmacOSFull controller supportSingle-playerSteam AchievementsFull controller supportSteam CloudCommentary availableRemote Play on TVFamily Sharing

4 supported languages: English, French, German, Spanish - Spain

Console footprint

PlatformPlayers trackedCompletionTrophies/achievements
Steam (Steam)10,20833%10
Xbox One (Xbox)6,35660%10
PS4 (PlayStation)6,25147%10

Players tracked by Exophase (achievement/trophy trackers) — a sample of the player base, not total sales.

Where its players are

Share of Steam reviews by language (top languages measured) — a proxy for where the player base lives.

Player tags

CasualHorrorLinearPuzzleMysteryRelaxingNarrationOpen WorldStory RichAtmospheric

Census log

Computed from census-recorded observations only — dates are observation dates.

Recent updates

Players also track

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Similarity via IGDB.

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