The Game Census
Protocol cover art

Protocol

Fair Games Studio · Sad Horse studio · 2018-11-20

SteamMicrosoft Store

ActionAdventureIndie

Modes: Single player · Perspectives: First person

Releases: Apr 30, 2021 (Xbox One), Apr 30, 2021 (PlayStation 4), Feb 2018 (PC (Microsoft Windows))

By signing below, you agree to follow the Protocol. Protocol is a program of strict rules created to make first contact with an alien life form that got shot down in the Arctic Circle.

Protocol is an Action, Adventure, Indie game released in 2018, estimated to have 20,000 .. 50,000 owners, priced at $8.99, with Mostly Positive (74% of 341 reviews).

1
playing now
74%
positive of 341 reviews
Mostly Positive
steam's rating (official)
20,000–50,000
owners (SteamSpy est.)
50/100
IGDB user rating (2 ratings)
platinum
deck/linux tier (ProtonDB)
Verified
Steam Deck (Valve)
SteamOS: Playable
$8.99
steam price (US)

1 players in-game as of 2026-10-14 22:00 UTC (census sample)

The story takes place in the near future. Your objective is to make "first contact" with an alien life form. Any violation of the Protocol will lead to the elimination of you and the entire operation. Remember, the fate of the humanity may depend on your actions. Once signed, the Protocol must be promptly implemented.(Storyline via IGDB)

Health check

Quiet
  • · 1 players in-game at the last census sample.
  • · 15 reviews in the last 8 weeks (~2/week).
  • · Review velocity up 0% vs the prior 8 weeks.
  • · Current weekly pace is under 5% of the all-time peak week (45 reviews).
  • · Top 24% of 27,727 Action games in the census by review count.

Health tier since 2026-09-01

Estimated sales: 8.5k–20k copies

Review-multiple estimate from 341 total reviews — how this is computed.

Current store prices

Microsoft Store$20.99

Deal snapshots via CheapShark, refreshed daily.

All-time low: $4.49 at Steam (2025-08-25)via IsThereAnyDeal

12-month high $20.99 · on sale 16 of 22 observed days (census price snapshots)

Review momentum

PositiveNegative
313120182026Week of 2018-11-01: 31 positiveWeek of 2018-11-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2018-12-01: 22 positiveWeek of 2018-12-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2019-01-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2019-01-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2019-02-01: 10 positiveWeek of 2019-02-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2019-03-01: 4 positiveWeek of 2019-03-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2019-04-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2019-04-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2019-05-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2019-05-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2019-06-01: 9 positiveWeek of 2019-06-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2019-07-01: 9 positiveWeek of 2019-07-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2019-08-01: 4 positiveWeek of 2019-08-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2019-11-01: 7 positiveWeek of 2019-11-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2019-12-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2019-12-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-01-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2020-01-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2020-02-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2020-02-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-04-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2020-05-01: 4 positiveWeek of 2020-05-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2020-06-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2020-07-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2020-07-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-08-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2020-09-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2020-10-01: 4 positiveWeek of 2020-10-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-11-01: 4 positiveWeek of 2020-11-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2020-12-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2020-12-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2021-01-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2021-02-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2021-04-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2021-04-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2021-05-01: 3 positiveWeek of 2021-05-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2021-06-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2021-07-01: 4 positiveWeek of 2021-08-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2021-09-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2021-10-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2021-11-01: 3 positiveWeek of 2021-12-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2022-01-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2022-01-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2022-02-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2022-02-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2022-03-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2022-05-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2022-07-01: 3 positiveWeek of 2022-09-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2022-11-01: 5 positiveWeek of 2022-12-01: 3 positiveWeek of 2023-01-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2023-01-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-02-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2023-02-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-03-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2023-04-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-05-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2023-06-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2023-07-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2023-07-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-08-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-09-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2023-10-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2023-10-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2023-11-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2023-11-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2023-12-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2024-01-01: 4 positiveWeek of 2024-02-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2024-02-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-03-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-04-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2024-05-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2024-05-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-06-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2024-06-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-07-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2024-07-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-08-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2024-09-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2024-11-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2024-11-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-01-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2025-02-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2025-05-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2025-06-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2025-06-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-07-01: 3 positiveWeek of 2025-08-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-09-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2025-10-01: 3 positiveWeek of 2025-11-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2026-01-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2026-02-01: 6 positiveWeek of 2026-02-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-03-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2026-04-01: 2 positiveWeek of 2026-06-01: 1 positiveWeek of 2026-07-01: 1 negative
Weekly review counts (Steam review histogram). Positive above the line, negative below.

Players online

202026-09-15 07:00 — 0 players2026-09-16 15:00 — 2 players2026-09-17 23:00 — 0 players2026-09-19 06:00 — 0 players2026-09-20 14:00 — 0 players2026-09-21 22:00 — 0 players2026-09-23 05:00 — 0 players2026-09-24 13:00 — 2 players2026-09-25 20:00 — 0 players2026-09-27 04:00 — 0 players2026-09-28 11:00 — 0 players2026-09-29 19:00 — 0 players2026-10-01 02:00 — 0 players2026-10-02 10:00 — 0 players2026-10-03 18:00 — 0 players2026-10-05 02:00 — 0 players2026-10-06 09:00 — 1 players2026-10-07 17:00 — 0 players2026-10-09 00:00 — 0 players2026-10-10 08:00 — 0 players2026-10-11 15:00 — 1 players2026-10-12 23:00 — 0 players2026-10-14 06:00 — 0 players2026-10-14 22:00 — 1 players
Concurrent players, hourly average, last 30 days (census samples).

Price history

$100.00$4.492018-04-202026-10-092018-04-20 — best price $100.002019-01-07 — best price $19.992019-02-01 — best price $19.992019-05-10 — best price $11.992019-09-05 — best price $19.992019-12-19 — best price $11.992020-05-28 — best price $9.992020-07-20 — best price $14.992020-11-02 — best price $19.992020-12-22 — best price $9.992021-05-03 — best price $19.992021-08-30 — best price $11.992021-12-01 — best price $19.992022-02-21 — best price $9.992022-05-02 — best price $7.492022-07-01 — best price $14.992022-09-19 — best price $14.992022-12-22 — best price $8.992023-03-23 — best price $14.992023-06-30 — best price $8.992023-09-11 — best price $14.992023-12-06 — best price $11.992024-01-15 — best price $11.992024-03-21 — best price $10.992024-06-27 — best price $6.592024-09-16 — best price $10.992024-12-09 — best price $6.292025-01-27 — best price $8.992025-05-26 — best price $5.392025-09-01 — best price $8.992026-01-12 — best price $5.392026-03-26 — best price $8.992026-07-09 — best price $8.992026-09-11 — best price $20.992026-10-09 — best price $20.99
Lowest recorded price across tracked stores, per day (census snapshots).

Completion

51
achievements tracked
81.7%
earned "I.Z."
9.9%
median achievement earned by

Global achievement rates from Steam.

Details

WindowsFull controller supportSingle-playerSteam AchievementsFull controller supportSteam CloudFamily Sharing2 DLC

10 supported languages: English, Russian, French, German, Spanish - Spain, Portuguese - Brazil, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Korean, Japanese

Post-launch support: 2 DLC released, first 2018-11-29 (Steam store data)

Console footprint

PlatformPlayers trackedCompletionTrophies/achievements
Steam (Steam)3014%51
Xbox One (Xbox)1273%51
PS4 (PlayStation)753%52
Steam (Steam)3100%3

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

Player tags

FPSIndieActionAliensComedySci-fiAdventureCyberpunkNarrationDark Humor

Census log

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

Players also track

Don't Knock TwiceRusty Lake HotelPLANET ALPHAPikunikuDream AloneRusty Lake ParadiseThe Sinking City RemasteredRebel Galaxy Outlaw

Similarity via IGDB.

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