Adventure · September 19, 2018

The Gardens Between (2018)

trophy17 achievementsextension1 DLClocal_offer-66% current discountgroup10k–100k ownersrecommend2.3k recommendations
The Gardens Between is a single-player adventure-puzzle game about time, memory and friendship. Best friends Arina and Frendt fall into a series of vibrant, dreamlike island gardens peppered with everyday objects from their childhood. Together they embark on an emotional journey that examines the significance of their friendship. Manipulate time to solve puzzles and reach the apex of each isle. Follow the duo as they unpack and explore their precious moments spent together, lighting up constellations and illuminating threads of a bittersweet narrative. Features Vibrant, storybook-inspired art style Dreamy tale of adventure, friendship and growing-up Gorgeous single player experience with a meaningful personal story Bespoke ingenious puzzles require the manipulation of time to solve Accessible design; simple controls, and no text, speech, time pressure or complex UI Relaxing, ambient soundtrack by feature-artist Tim Shiel Play in full detail on your gorgeous 4k screen Reception 'Magical moments.' - GameSpot 'Incredibly clever.' - Nintendo Life 'Every element works in unison.' - Shindig.nz 'A magical journey.' - Polygon 'You really need to play it.' - Engadget Awards and Festivals 'Excellence In Art' Winner IMGA 2020 'Apple Design Award' Winner 2019 'Best Puzzles' Winner Webby Awards 2019 Apple 'Mac Game of the Year' Winner 2018 'Game of the Year' Winner at the Australia Game Developer Awards 2018 'Most Innovative Game' Winner by Game Two 2018 'Best Technology' Winner at Sense Of Wonder Night 2018 'Best of MIX' Winner at MIX Seattle 2018 'Game Design Excellence' Winner BIC Fest 2017

Adventure releases from 2018

73 Adventure titles launched in 2018 — top 6 by review volume.

Community Tag Signals

Tag weights reflect how many Steam users voted each descriptor — larger pills = stronger consensus.

  • Short · 282
  • Time Manipulation · 275
  • Emotional · 271
  • Story Rich · 259
  • Walking Simulator · 255
  • Nostalgia · 245
  • Surreal · 245
  • Relaxing · 243
  • Atmospheric · 235
  • Mystery · 221
  • Linear · 218
  • Puzzle · 214
  • Female Protagonist · 213
  • Logic · 212
  • Narrative · 212

Peer Adventure titles

Comparable titles in the same genre and review-volume band — ranked by Steam positive percentage.

Position in Adventure

MetricThis titleGenre position
Review volume2.7k Steam reviewsTop 78% in Adventure
Positive rating94% positiveGenre average: 87% — this title sits in top 34%
Metacritic80/100Genre average 77 — top 44% of Adventure titles
Engagement hours2 h averageTop 93% for session depth among Adventure

Localization Coverage

Interface / Subtitles (12)

  • English
  • French
  • Italian
  • German
  • Spanish - Spain
  • Dutch
  • Portuguese - Portugal
  • Japanese
  • Korean
  • Portuguese - Brazil
  • Russian
  • Simplified Chinese

Reception Metrics

Steam community

94%Very Positive · 2.7k reviews

2.5k positive · 161 negative

Metacritic

80/100 critic aggregate

Open Metacritic page

Metacritic user score

7.1/10

Curator recommendations

2.3k

Press Quotes

“A masterwork. Impeccably crafted.” 4 / 5 – The Guardian “A masterpiece. Shockingly moving.” 9.5 / 10 – Gaming Trend “Mind-boggling goodness.” Destructoid

Engagement Profile

All-time avg

2h

brief (under 5 hours)

Median

2h

Typical completion time

Achievements

17

Steam unlocks available

Features & Capabilities

Community

  • Steam Achievements
  • Steam Cloud
  • Remote Play on TV

Input & Comfort

  • Full controller support

Other

  • Single-player
  • Family Sharing

Release & Availability

Release dateSep 19, 2018
DeveloperThe Voxel Agents
Base price$6.79 -66%
DLC / Add-ons1 released
PlatformsWindows, macOS, Linux
Estimated owners10k–100k
External linksOfficial site · Metacritic page · Support · [email protected]

Editions & Packages

  • Buy The Gardens Between