Action · August 17, 2017
Darkwood (2017)
Darkwood provides a new perspective on survival horror. Scavenge and explore the rich, ever-changing free-roam world by day, then hunker down in your hideout and pray for the morning light. Survival horror from a top-down perspective that is terrifying to play. No hand holding or quest markers. Test your skills and figure things out on your own! By day explore the randomly generated, ever-sinister woods, scavenge for materials, craft weapons and discover new secrets. By night find shelter, barricade, set up traps and hide or defend yourself from the horrors that lurk in the dark. Gain skills and perks by extracting a strange essence from mutated fauna and flora and injecting it into your bloodstream. Watch out for unexpected consequences… Make decisions that impact the world of Darkwood, its inhabitants and the story you experience. Meet eerie characters, learn their stories and decide their fate. And remember - don’t trust anyone. As nights go by, the lines between reality and nightmarish fantasies begin to blur. Are you ready to step into Darkwood?
Action releases from 2017
180 Action titles launched in 2017 — top 6 by review volume.
Position in Action
| Metric | This title | Genre position |
|---|---|---|
| Review volume | 21.6k Steam reviews | Top 23% in Action |
| Positive rating | 95% positive | Genre average: 83% — this title sits in top 14% |
| Metacritic | 80/100 | Genre average 77 — top 42% of Action titles |
| Engagement hours | 9 h average | Top 52% for session depth among Action |
Community Tag Signals
Tag weights reflect how many Steam users voted each descriptor — larger pills = stronger consensus.
- Horror · 713
- Survival Horror · 602
- Top-Down · 532
- Atmospheric · 520
- Survival · 518
- Dark · 444
- Indie · 326
- Open World · 324
- Singleplayer · 320
- Lovecraftian · 301
- Exploration · 288
- RPG · 257
- Adventure · 249
- Crafting · 246
- Psychological Horror · 220
Peer Action titles
Comparable titles in the same genre and review-volume band — ranked by Steam positive percentage.
Reception Metrics
Steam community
95%Overwhelmingly Positive · 21.6k reviews
20.5k positive · 1.1k negative
Metacritic
80/100 critic aggregate
Metacritic user score
8.2/10
Curator recommendations
20.5k
Localization Coverage
Interface / Subtitles (11)
- English
- Polish
- Russian
- German
- Spanish - Spain
- Portuguese - Brazil
- Italian
- Simplified Chinese
- Turkish
- Hungarian
- French
Press Quotes
“Darkwood is a promising top-down horror roguelike that has cult classic written all over it.” Jeffrey Matulef, Eurogamer “Darkwood has an astonishing atmosphere. Tension. It’s an unnerving experience. Anguish. Those shrieks. That dog.” Adam Smith, Rock, Paper, Shotgun “I gauge the scariness of horror games using my patented Curl Chance™ system, which measures how likely I am to curl into a ball of whimpering fear when I play them. I rate the new trailer for Darkwood, an upcoming top-down survival…
Features & Capabilities
Community
- Steam Achievements
- Steam Trading Cards
- Steam Cloud
- Remote Play on TV
Input & Comfort
- Full controller support
Other
- Single-player
- Family Sharing
Engagement Profile
All-time avg
9h
short (5–15 hours)
Median
2h
Typical completion time
2-week avg
1h
Current engagement
Achievements
15
Steam unlocks available
Release & Availability
| Release date | Aug 17, 2017 |
|---|---|
| Developer | Acid Wizard Studio |
| Publisher | Hooded Horse, Acid Wizard Studio |
| Base price | $2.99 -80% |
| DLC / Add-ons | 2 released |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Estimated owners | 1M–10M |
| External links | Official site · Metacritic page · [email protected] |
Editions & Packages
Buy Darkwood