Adventure · May 21, 2020
Observation (2020)
Observation is a sci-fi thriller uncovering what happened to Dr. Emma Fisher, and the crew of her mission, through the lens of the station’s artificial intelligence S.A.M. Players assume the role of S.A.M. by operating the station’s control systems, cameras, and tools to assist Emma in discovering what is happening to the station, the vanished crew, and S.A.M. himself. You're not on the station, you are the station Blending narrative adventure, puzzles, exploration, and cosmic existential horror, uncover the true nature of yourself, your crew, and the mysterious always-present hexagon on Saturn...
Adventure releases from 2020
100 Adventure titles launched in 2020 — top 6 by review volume.
Peer Adventure titles
Comparable titles in the same genre and review-volume band — ranked by Steam positive percentage.
Position in Adventure
| Metric | This title | Genre position |
|---|---|---|
| Review volume | 4.8k Steam reviews | Top 48% in Adventure |
| Positive rating | 78% positive | Genre average: 87% — this title sits in top 87% |
| Metacritic | 79/100 | Genre average 77 — top 49% of Adventure titles |
| Engagement hours | 5 h average | Top 60% for session depth among Adventure |
Community Tag Signals
Tag weights reflect how many Steam users voted each descriptor — larger pills = stronger consensus.
- Indie · 165
- Adventure · 158
- Sci-fi · 62
- Space · 62
- Horror · 53
- Atmospheric · 38
- Story Rich · 37
- Puzzle · 33
- Psychological Horror · 31
- Singleplayer · 28
- Artificial Intelligence · 27
- Thriller · 26
- Mystery · 21
- Female Protagonist · 19
- Walking Simulator · 14
Localization Coverage
Interface / Subtitles (11)
- English volume_up
- French
- German
- Spanish - Spain
- Japanese
- Korean
- Portuguese - Brazil
- Russian
- Simplified Chinese
- Traditional Chinese
- Italian volume_up
Full audio (2)
- English
- Italian
Reception Metrics
Steam community
78%Mostly Positive · 4.8k reviews
3.7k positive · 1.1k negative
Metacritic
79/100 critic aggregate
Metacritic user score
7.4/10
Curator recommendations
4.4k
Press Quotes
“Observation is a smart, original science fiction story propelled by its novel approach to puzzle design and stunning attention to detail.” 9/10 – IGN “Observation shouldn’t be missed by anyone in search of a mind-bending and unsettling thrill.” 9/10 – Game Informer “Old science fiction meets New Weird in this 2001: A Space Odyssey homage” 9/10 – PC World
Engagement Profile
All-time avg
5h
short (5–15 hours)
Median
6h
Typical completion time
Achievements
11
Steam unlocks available
Release & Availability
| Release date | May 21, 2020 |
|---|---|
| Developer | No Code |
| Publisher | Devolver Digital |
| Base price | $6.24 -75% |
| Platforms | Windows |
| Estimated owners | 100k–1M |
| External links | Official site · Metacritic page · Support |
Features & Capabilities
Community
- Steam Achievements
- Remote Play on TV
Input & Comfort
- Full controller support
Other
- Single-player
- Family Sharing
Content Notes
Observation contains a few rare scenes of blood and gore.
Editions & Packages
Buy Observation