The Game Census
Return of the Obra Dinn cover art

Return of the Obra Dinn

Lucas Pope · 3909 · 2018-10-18

SteamGOGPlayStation StoreMicrosoft Store

AdventureIndie

Modes: Single player

Releases: Oct 17, 2019 (Nintendo Switch), Oct 18, 2018 (PC (Microsoft Windows)), Oct 18, 2019 (PlayStation 4), Oct 18, 2019 (Xbox One), Oct 18, 2018 (Mac)

Lost at sea 1803 ~ The good ship Obra Dinn.

138
playing now
97%
positive of 35k reviews
Overwhelmingly Positive
steam rating
500,000–1,000,000
owners (SteamSpy est.)
95/100
critic score (7 outlets, IGDB)
90/100
IGDB user rating (502 ratings)
10h
to beat · rushed 6h · completionist 13h
platinum
deck/linux tier (ProtonDB)
$19.99
steam price (US)

138 players in-game as of 2026-08-30 01:00 UTC (census sample)

Return of the Obra Dinn is a 2018 adventure and puzzle video game created by Lucas Pope and published by 3909 LLC. It was Pope's second commercial game, following 2013's Papers, Please, and was first released for macOS and Windows before being ported to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One a year later. Return of the Obra Dinn was praised for its gameplay, art style, and narrative; it won several awards, including the Seumas McNally Grand Prize.

Health check

Healthy
  • · 138 players in-game at the last census sample.
  • · 3,254 reviews in the last 8 weeks (~407/week).
  • · Review velocity up 15% vs the prior 8 weeks.
  • · Top 3% of 11,312 Adventure games in the census by review count.

Health tier since 2026-08-30

Estimated sales: 877k–2.1M copies

Review-multiple estimate from 35,076 total reviews — how this is computed.

Current store prices

GOG$19.99
Microsoft Store$19.99

Deal snapshots via CheapShark, refreshed daily.

All-time low: $9.99 at GOG (2020-10-16) · bundled 1×via IsThereAnyDeal

12-month high $19.99 · on sale 5 of 11 observed days · $10.00 above the all-time low (census price snapshots)

Review momentum

PositiveNegative
89389320182026Week of 2018-10-01: 686 positiveWeek of 2018-10-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2018-11-01: 893 positiveWeek of 2018-11-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2018-12-01: 452 positiveWeek of 2018-12-01: 18 negativeWeek of 2019-01-01: 431 positiveWeek of 2019-01-01: 19 negativeWeek of 2019-02-01: 237 positiveWeek of 2019-02-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2019-03-01: 162 positiveWeek of 2019-03-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2019-04-01: 665 positiveWeek of 2019-04-01: 40 negativeWeek of 2019-05-01: 230 positiveWeek of 2019-05-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2019-06-01: 330 positiveWeek of 2019-06-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2019-07-01: 431 positiveWeek of 2019-07-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2019-08-01: 102 positiveWeek of 2019-08-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2019-09-01: 101 positiveWeek of 2019-09-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2019-10-01: 103 positiveWeek of 2019-10-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2019-11-01: 198 positiveWeek of 2019-11-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2019-12-01: 436 positiveWeek of 2019-12-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2020-01-01: 403 positiveWeek of 2020-01-01: 21 negativeWeek of 2020-02-01: 418 positiveWeek of 2020-02-01: 17 negativeWeek of 2020-03-01: 247 positiveWeek of 2020-03-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2020-04-01: 254 positiveWeek of 2020-04-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2020-05-01: 501 positiveWeek of 2020-05-01: 23 negativeWeek of 2020-06-01: 315 positiveWeek of 2020-06-01: 15 negativeWeek of 2020-07-01: 611 positiveWeek of 2020-07-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2020-08-01: 333 positiveWeek of 2020-08-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2020-09-01: 250 positiveWeek of 2020-09-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2020-10-01: 624 positiveWeek of 2020-10-01: 36 negativeWeek of 2020-11-01: 375 positiveWeek of 2020-11-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2020-12-01: 360 positiveWeek of 2020-12-01: 19 negativeWeek of 2021-01-01: 430 positiveWeek of 2021-01-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2021-02-01: 337 positiveWeek of 2021-02-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2021-03-01: 259 positiveWeek of 2021-03-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2021-04-01: 219 positiveWeek of 2021-04-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2021-05-01: 194 positiveWeek of 2021-05-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2021-06-01: 237 positiveWeek of 2021-06-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2021-07-01: 327 positiveWeek of 2021-07-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2021-08-01: 216 positiveWeek of 2021-08-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2021-09-01: 162 positiveWeek of 2021-09-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2021-10-01: 432 positiveWeek of 2021-10-01: 17 negativeWeek of 2021-11-01: 221 positiveWeek of 2021-11-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2021-12-01: 239 positiveWeek of 2021-12-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2022-01-01: 336 positiveWeek of 2022-01-01: 15 negativeWeek of 2022-02-01: 181 positiveWeek of 2022-02-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2022-03-01: 149 positiveWeek of 2022-03-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2022-04-01: 250 positiveWeek of 2022-04-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2022-05-01: 339 positiveWeek of 2022-05-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2022-06-01: 262 positiveWeek of 2022-06-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2022-07-01: 358 positiveWeek of 2022-07-01: 18 negativeWeek of 2022-08-01: 188 positiveWeek of 2022-08-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2022-09-01: 165 positiveWeek of 2022-09-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2022-10-01: 237 positiveWeek of 2022-10-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2022-11-01: 393 positiveWeek of 2022-11-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2022-12-01: 313 positiveWeek of 2022-12-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2023-01-01: 291 positiveWeek of 2023-01-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2023-02-01: 657 positiveWeek of 2023-02-01: 29 negativeWeek of 2023-03-01: 648 positiveWeek of 2023-03-01: 19 negativeWeek of 2023-04-01: 267 positiveWeek of 2023-04-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2023-05-01: 204 positiveWeek of 2023-05-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2023-06-01: 180 positiveWeek of 2023-06-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2023-07-01: 512 positiveWeek of 2023-07-01: 26 negativeWeek of 2023-08-01: 394 positiveWeek of 2023-08-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2023-09-01: 225 positiveWeek of 2023-09-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2023-10-01: 579 positiveWeek of 2023-10-01: 23 negativeWeek of 2023-11-01: 329 positiveWeek of 2023-11-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2023-12-01: 350 positiveWeek of 2023-12-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2024-01-01: 415 positiveWeek of 2024-01-01: 16 negativeWeek of 2024-02-01: 242 positiveWeek of 2024-02-01: 12 negativeWeek of 2024-03-01: 224 positiveWeek of 2024-03-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2024-04-01: 192 positiveWeek of 2024-04-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2024-05-01: 340 positiveWeek of 2024-05-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2024-06-01: 407 positiveWeek of 2024-06-01: 12 negativeWeek of 2024-07-01: 254 positiveWeek of 2024-07-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2024-08-01: 229 positiveWeek of 2024-08-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2024-09-01: 203 positiveWeek of 2024-09-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-10-01: 357 positiveWeek of 2024-10-01: 17 negativeWeek of 2024-11-01: 289 positiveWeek of 2024-11-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2024-12-01: 414 positiveWeek of 2024-12-01: 15 negativeWeek of 2025-01-01: 413 positiveWeek of 2025-01-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2025-02-01: 282 positiveWeek of 2025-02-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2025-03-01: 228 positiveWeek of 2025-03-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2025-04-01: 185 positiveWeek of 2025-04-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2025-05-01: 234 positiveWeek of 2025-05-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2025-06-01: 404 positiveWeek of 2025-06-01: 10 negativeWeek of 2025-07-01: 215 positiveWeek of 2025-07-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2025-08-01: 220 positiveWeek of 2025-08-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2025-09-01: 205 positiveWeek of 2025-09-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2025-10-01: 810 positiveWeek of 2025-10-01: 43 negativeWeek of 2025-11-01: 462 positiveWeek of 2025-11-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2025-12-01: 321 positiveWeek of 2025-12-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2026-01-01: 881 positiveWeek of 2026-01-01: 46 negativeWeek of 2026-02-01: 356 positiveWeek of 2026-02-01: 19 negativeWeek of 2026-03-01: 251 positiveWeek of 2026-03-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2026-04-01: 197 positiveWeek of 2026-04-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2026-05-01: 326 positiveWeek of 2026-05-01: 15 negativeWeek of 2026-06-01: 472 positiveWeek of 2026-06-01: 25 negativeWeek of 2026-07-01: 300 positiveWeek of 2026-07-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2026-08-01: 249 positiveWeek of 2026-08-01: 14 negative
Weekly review counts (Steam review histogram). Positive above the line, negative below.

Players online

219842026-08-06 22:00 — 135 players2026-08-07 06:00 — 93 players2026-08-07 14:00 — 145 players2026-08-07 22:00 — 150 players2026-08-08 06:00 — 114 players2026-08-08 14:00 — 192 players2026-08-08 22:00 — 150 players2026-08-09 06:00 — 143 players2026-08-09 14:00 — 219 players2026-08-09 22:00 — 149 players2026-08-10 06:00 — 98 players2026-08-10 14:00 — 174 players2026-08-10 22:00 — 129 players2026-08-11 06:00 — 96 players2026-08-11 14:00 — 157 players2026-08-12 22:00 — 112 players2026-08-14 06:00 — 99 players2026-08-15 13:00 — 198 players2026-08-16 21:00 — 149 players2026-08-18 05:00 — 84 players2026-08-19 12:00 — 128 players2026-08-20 20:00 — 154 players2026-08-22 03:00 — 129 players2026-08-23 11:00 — 189 players2026-08-24 19:00 — 160 players2026-08-26 03:00 — 120 players2026-08-27 11:00 — 92 players2026-08-28 18:00 — 143 players2026-08-30 01:00 — 138 players
Concurrent players, hourly average, last 30 days (census samples).

Price history

$19.99$9.992018-10-182026-08-302018-10-18 — best price $19.992019-04-18 — best price $14.992019-06-18 — best price $19.992019-07-09 — best price $19.992019-12-03 — best price $19.992019-12-19 — best price $15.992020-01-28 — best price $13.992020-03-23 — best price $15.992020-05-27 — best price $14.992020-08-09 — best price $15.992020-12-16 — best price $14.992021-02-10 — best price $12.992021-04-01 — best price $19.992021-06-28 — best price $19.992021-09-29 — best price $14.992021-10-18 — best price $13.992021-12-22 — best price $14.992022-04-11 — best price $19.992022-05-24 — best price $19.992022-06-23 — best price $13.992022-10-27 — best price $11.992022-12-01 — best price $19.992023-02-20 — best price $9.992023-06-12 — best price $11.992023-07-24 — best price $11.992023-10-17 — best price $9.992023-12-21 — best price $13.392024-05-30 — best price $19.992024-10-18 — best price $13.392024-12-19 — best price $13.392025-06-18 — best price $13.392025-10-16 — best price $9.992026-01-12 — best price $11.992026-06-17 — best price $13.392026-08-30 — best price $19.99
Lowest recorded price across tracked stores, per day (census snapshots).

Completion

16
achievements tracked
61.7%
earned "Any 6"
45.4%
median achievement earned by

Global achievement rates from Steam.

Details

WindowsmacOSFull controller supportSingle-playerSteam AchievementsFull controller supportSteam CloudRemote Play on TVFamily Sharing1 DLC

13 supported languages: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish - Spain, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese - Brazil, Russian, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese…

Console footprint

PlatformPlayers trackedCompletionTrophies/achievements
Steam (Steam)16,91127%16
PS4 (PlayStation)3,16171%17
Xbox One (Xbox)87744%16
Switch (Nintendo)2990%0
Switch (Nintendo)120%0

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

IndieNavalRetroPuzzleMysteryAdventureDetectiveDifficultHistoricalStory Rich

Census log

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

Players also track

Children of MortaPLANET ALPHAUnforeseen IncidentsQuern - Undying ThoughtsForgotton AnneLEGRAND LEGACY: Tale of the FateboundsPikunikuDream Alone

Similarity via IGDB.

Official site ↗Wikipedia ↗Reddit ↗