The Game Census
The Darkside Detective cover art

The Darkside Detective

Spooky Doorway · Akupara Games · 2017-07-27

SteamGOGPlayStation StoreEpic Games StoreMicrosoft Store

AdventureCasualIndie

Modes: Single player

Releases: Jul 27, 2017 (Mac), Jul 27, 2017 (Linux), Jul 27, 2017 (PC (Microsoft Windows)), Dec 09, 2025 (Android), Apr 08, 2021 (Google Stadia), Aug 01, 2019 (Nintendo Switch)

Grab your trench coat, tune your sixth sense and join the Darkside Division as they investigate the outright bizarre, the downright dangerous and the confusing cases of Twin Lakes. Flesh-hungry tentacles, mafian zombies, and the occasional missing sock are no match for The Darkside Detective.

The Darkside Detective is an Adventure, Casual, Indie game released in 2017, priced at $14.99, with an estimated 200,000 .. 500,000 owners and a Very Positive review sentiment (94% of 5208 reviews).

10
playing now
94%
positive of 5.2k reviews
Very Positive
steam rating
200,000–500,000
owners (SteamSpy est.)
55/100
critic score (1 outlets, IGDB)
74/100
IGDB user rating (46 ratings)
5h
to beat · completionist 4.7h
platinum
deck/linux tier (ProtonDB)
$14.99
steam price (US)

10 players in-game as of 2026-08-30 03:00 UTC (census sample)

The Darkside Detective is a 2017 point-and-click adventure developed by Spooky Doorway, and published by Akupara Games. It was released for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux on July 27, 2017, for Nintendo Switch on February 7, 2018 and for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Stadia in April 2021. A version for the Atari VCS released in August 2021. A limited run of 5,000 physical copies for the Nintendo Switch was released on 26 September 2019. A sequel, The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark, was released in April 2021.

Health check

Healthy
  • · 10 players in-game at the last census sample.
  • · 204 reviews in the last 8 weeks (~26/week).
  • · Review velocity up 9% vs the prior 8 weeks.
  • · Top 12% of 11,312 Adventure games in the census by review count.
Estimated sales: 130k–312k copies

Review-multiple estimate from 5,208 total reviews — how this is computed.

Current store prices

GOG$6.75-55%
Microsoft Store$14.99

Deal snapshots via CheapShark, refreshed daily.

All-time low: $2.94 at eTail.Market (2024-09-29) · bundled 8×via IsThereAnyDeal

12-month high $14.99 · on sale 141 of 189 observed days · $3.81 above the all-time low (census price snapshots)

Review momentum

PositiveNegative
13113120182026Week of 2018-01-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2018-02-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2018-03-01: 14 positiveWeek of 2018-03-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2018-04-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2018-05-01: 8 positiveWeek of 2018-06-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2018-07-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2018-07-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2018-08-01: 9 positiveWeek of 2018-09-01: 6 positiveWeek of 2018-10-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2018-11-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2018-11-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2018-12-01: 8 positiveWeek of 2018-12-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2019-01-01: 8 positiveWeek of 2019-01-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2019-02-01: 5 positiveWeek of 2019-03-01: 22 positiveWeek of 2019-03-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2019-04-01: 7 positiveWeek of 2019-05-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2019-05-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2019-06-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2019-07-01: 23 positiveWeek of 2019-07-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2019-08-01: 10 positiveWeek of 2019-08-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2019-09-01: 6 positiveWeek of 2019-10-01: 6 positiveWeek of 2019-10-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2019-11-01: 25 positiveWeek of 2019-12-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2020-01-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2020-01-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2020-02-01: 11 positiveWeek of 2020-02-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-03-01: 40 positiveWeek of 2020-03-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2020-04-01: 22 positiveWeek of 2020-04-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-05-01: 30 positiveWeek of 2020-05-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-06-01: 26 positiveWeek of 2020-07-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2020-07-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-08-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2020-08-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2020-09-01: 27 positiveWeek of 2020-10-01: 30 positiveWeek of 2020-10-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-11-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2020-11-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2020-12-01: 34 positiveWeek of 2020-12-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2021-01-01: 29 positiveWeek of 2021-01-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2021-02-01: 51 positiveWeek of 2021-02-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2021-03-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2021-03-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2021-04-01: 87 positiveWeek of 2021-04-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2021-05-01: 60 positiveWeek of 2021-05-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2021-06-01: 131 positiveWeek of 2021-06-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2021-07-01: 83 positiveWeek of 2021-07-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2021-08-01: 69 positiveWeek of 2021-08-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2021-09-01: 80 positiveWeek of 2021-09-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2021-10-01: 46 positiveWeek of 2021-10-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2021-11-01: 50 positiveWeek of 2021-11-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2021-12-01: 63 positiveWeek of 2021-12-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2022-01-01: 73 positiveWeek of 2022-01-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2022-02-01: 33 positiveWeek of 2022-02-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2022-03-01: 73 positiveWeek of 2022-03-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2022-04-01: 88 positiveWeek of 2022-04-01: 7 negativeWeek of 2022-05-01: 72 positiveWeek of 2022-05-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2022-06-01: 47 positiveWeek of 2022-06-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2022-07-01: 74 positiveWeek of 2022-07-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2022-08-01: 37 positiveWeek of 2022-08-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2022-09-01: 46 positiveWeek of 2022-09-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2022-10-01: 44 positiveWeek of 2022-10-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2022-11-01: 48 positiveWeek of 2022-11-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2022-12-01: 85 positiveWeek of 2022-12-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2023-01-01: 65 positiveWeek of 2023-01-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2023-02-01: 44 positiveWeek of 2023-02-01: 6 negativeWeek of 2023-03-01: 34 positiveWeek of 2023-03-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-04-01: 30 positiveWeek of 2023-04-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-05-01: 26 positiveWeek of 2023-05-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2023-06-01: 29 positiveWeek of 2023-06-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-07-01: 38 positiveWeek of 2023-07-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-08-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2023-08-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2023-09-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2023-09-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-10-01: 41 positiveWeek of 2023-10-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2023-11-01: 30 positiveWeek of 2023-11-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2023-12-01: 22 positiveWeek of 2023-12-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-01-01: 25 positiveWeek of 2024-01-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2024-02-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2024-02-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-03-01: 73 positiveWeek of 2024-03-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-04-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2024-04-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-05-01: 27 positiveWeek of 2024-05-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-06-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2024-06-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-07-01: 43 positiveWeek of 2024-07-01: 9 negativeWeek of 2024-08-01: 31 positiveWeek of 2024-08-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-09-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2024-09-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-10-01: 63 positiveWeek of 2024-10-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2024-11-01: 31 positiveWeek of 2024-11-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-12-01: 27 positiveWeek of 2024-12-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-01-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2025-01-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-02-01: 22 positiveWeek of 2025-03-01: 26 positiveWeek of 2025-03-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-04-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2025-04-01: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-05-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2025-05-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-06-01: 28 positiveWeek of 2025-07-01: 24 positiveWeek of 2025-07-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-08-01: 19 positiveWeek of 2025-08-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-09-01: 20 positiveWeek of 2025-09-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-10-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2025-11-01: 25 positiveWeek of 2025-11-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-12-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2025-12-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-01-01: 44 positiveWeek of 2026-01-01: 5 negativeWeek of 2026-02-01: 21 positiveWeek of 2026-03-01: 18 positiveWeek of 2026-03-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-04-01: 13 positiveWeek of 2026-04-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-05-01: 30 positiveWeek of 2026-05-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-06-01: 17 positiveWeek of 2026-06-01: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-07-01: 26 positiveWeek of 2026-07-01: 3 negativeWeek of 2026-08-01: 6 positive
Weekly review counts (Steam review histogram). Positive above the line, negative below.

Players online

1422026-08-06 23:00 — 6 players2026-08-07 07:00 — 7 players2026-08-07 14:00 — 14 players2026-08-07 22:00 — 9 players2026-08-08 06:00 — 9 players2026-08-08 14:00 — 7 players2026-08-08 22:00 — 4 players2026-08-09 06:00 — 5 players2026-08-09 14:00 — 8 players2026-08-09 22:00 — 14 players2026-08-10 06:00 — 4 players2026-08-10 15:00 — 14 players2026-08-10 23:00 — 4 players2026-08-11 07:00 — 10 players2026-08-11 15:00 — 13 players2026-08-12 22:00 — 7 players2026-08-14 06:00 — 2 players2026-08-15 14:00 — 11 players2026-08-16 22:00 — 9 players2026-08-18 05:00 — 6 players2026-08-19 13:00 — 13 players2026-08-20 20:00 — 14 players2026-08-22 04:00 — 5 players2026-08-23 11:00 — 11 players2026-08-24 19:00 — 6 players2026-08-26 03:00 — 14 players2026-08-27 11:00 — 5 players2026-08-28 19:00 — 5 players2026-08-30 03:00 — 10 players
Concurrent players, hourly average, last 30 days (census samples).

Price history

$14.99$3.212017-07-272026-08-302017-07-27 — best price $9.992018-11-01 — best price $12.992020-01-24 — best price $7.792020-09-12 — best price $13.612020-12-17 — best price $10.392021-04-15 — best price $5.842021-07-30 — best price $5.852021-11-03 — best price $12.992022-01-18 — best price $11.692022-04-17 — best price $12.992022-07-14 — best price $4.152022-10-03 — best price $4.152022-12-15 — best price $3.682023-02-08 — best price $5.122023-04-17 — best price $6.122023-06-24 — best price $14.992023-09-04 — best price $11.972023-12-04 — best price $4.022024-02-14 — best price $7.492024-04-04 — best price $4.492024-05-27 — best price $13.052024-07-25 — best price $11.512024-10-04 — best price $3.292025-01-02 — best price $14.992025-02-25 — best price $14.992025-04-21 — best price $14.992025-06-16 — best price $11.512025-08-21 — best price $7.502025-10-19 — best price $11.012025-12-11 — best price $4.792026-02-14 — best price $11.892026-04-07 — best price $5.512026-05-28 — best price $5.992026-07-28 — best price $11.892026-08-30 — best price $6.75
Lowest recorded price across tracked stores, per day (census snapshots).

Attention

136242026-06-01 — 32 pageviews2026-06-04 — 24 pageviews2026-06-07 — 38 pageviews2026-06-10 — 35 pageviews2026-06-13 — 29 pageviews2026-06-16 — 30 pageviews2026-06-19 — 42 pageviews2026-06-22 — 31 pageviews2026-06-25 — 34 pageviews2026-06-28 — 37 pageviews2026-07-01 — 136 pageviews2026-07-04 — 39 pageviews2026-07-07 — 29 pageviews2026-07-10 — 36 pageviews2026-07-13 — 30 pageviews2026-07-16 — 36 pageviews2026-07-19 — 37 pageviews2026-07-22 — 44 pageviews2026-07-25 — 33 pageviews2026-07-28 — 45 pageviews2026-07-31 — 54 pageviews2026-08-03 — 37 pageviews2026-08-06 — 33 pageviews2026-08-09 — 34 pageviews2026-08-12 — 38 pageviews2026-08-15 — 34 pageviews2026-08-18 — 35 pageviews2026-08-21 — 36 pageviews2026-08-24 — 41 pageviews2026-08-27 — 36 pageviews2026-08-28 — 43 pageviews
Daily Wikipedia pageviews (attention proxy, census-recorded).

Completion

30
achievements tracked
78.3%
earned "Problem Solvent"
32.1%
median achievement earned by

Global achievement rates from Steam.

Details

WindowsmacOSLinuxFull controller supportSingle-playerSteam AchievementsFull controller supportSteam Trading CardsCamera ComfortCustom Volume ControlsMouse Only OptionPlayable without Timed InputDualShock Controller SupportDualShock Controller Support1 DLC

5 supported languages: English, French, German, Spanish - Spain, Simplified Chinese

Console footprint

PlatformPlayers trackedCompletionTrophies/achievements
Steam (Steam)6,06320%30
PS5 (PlayStation)47157%31
Windows (Xbox)26347%30
PS4 (PlayStation)19373%31
PS4 (PlayStation)12473%31
Switch (Nintendo)350%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

2DFunnyIndieRetroCasualComedyPuzzleMysteryAdventureDetective

Census log

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

Recent updates

Players also track

Anna's QuestRusty Lake HotelOmensight: Definitive EditionUnforeseen IncidentsQuern - Undying ThoughtsRusty Lake: RootsPikunikuRusty Lake Paradise

Similarity via IGDB.

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