Adventure · September 28, 2022
The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow (2022)
Antiquarian Thomasina Bateman is writing a book on the barrows of England, documenting the treasures she finds buried within. When an intriguing letter summons her to the small village of Bewlay, tucked away in the remote countryside, she sets off by train with her assistant a day behind. Upon her arrival, however, the mysterious man who summoned her is nowhere to be found. Her assistant never arrives. A stubborn landowner refuses access to the barrow, and the locals are wary of this woman who is traveling alone and (gasp!) wears trousers. The excavation of Hob’s Barrow is off to a rocky start. And then Thomasina starts having strange dreams… A dark , complex and evolving storyline featuring interwoven elements from real English folklore. Traditional point and click adventure game puzzles and interactions, with an easy modern interface. A cast of intriguing characters , from suspicious villagers to sickly vicars to lordly landowners, all with their own unique stories and motives. A distinct folk horror tone and grounding. Evocative pixel-art graphics, featuring cut-scenes and engaging animations. A suitably atmospheric original soundtrack from The Machine. The Demon. - one half of the duo behind the award-winning 'Football Game' soundtrack. Fiends in the furrows, the smell of damp soil, and a cat or two.
Adventure releases from 2022
91 Adventure titles launched in 2022 — top 6 by review volume.
Community Tag Signals
Tag weights reflect how many Steam users voted each descriptor — larger pills = stronger consensus.
- Point & Click · 173
- Adventure · 150
- Horror · 147
- Pixel Graphics · 142
- Female Protagonist · 138
- Puzzle · 135
- Atmospheric · 120
- Dark · 112
- Interactive Fiction · 105
- Drama · 99
- Mystery · 93
- Emotional · 90
- Retro · 83
- Story Rich · 79
- Singleplayer · 72
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 | 2.4k Steam reviews | Top 84% in Adventure |
| Positive rating | 93% positive | Genre average: 87% — this title sits in top 40% |
| Metacritic | 80/100 | Genre average 77 — top 44% of Adventure titles |
| Engagement hours | 4 h average | Top 69% for session depth among Adventure |
Reception Metrics
Steam community
93%Very Positive · 2.4k reviews
2.3k positive · 171 negative
Metacritic
80/100 critic aggregate
Curator recommendations
2.1k
Features & Capabilities
Community
- Steam Achievements
- Steam Trading Cards
- Steam Cloud
Accessibility
- Captions available
Input & Comfort
- Partial Controller Support
Other
- Single-player
- Commentary available
- Family Sharing
Press Quotes
“Under those Constable skies and that endless drizzle, then, Hob's Barrow works a sneaky kind of magic. Dig in.” Recommended – Eurogamer “A pixel art, folk horror, point-and-click masterpiece.” 5/5 – The Mirror “A beautifully dank, damp, gloomy folk horror.” Rock Paper Shotgun
Release & Availability
| Release date | Sep 28, 2022 |
|---|---|
| Developer | Cloak and Dagger Games |
| Publisher | Wadjet Eye Games |
| Base price | $6.74 -55% |
| DLC / Add-ons | 2 released |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Estimated owners | 100k–1M |
| External links | Official site · Metacritic page · Support · [email protected] |
Engagement Profile
All-time avg
4h
brief (under 5 hours)
Median
4h
Typical completion time
Achievements
40
Steam unlocks available
Editions & Packages
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