Indie · May 21, 2014

Always Sometimes Monsters (2014)

trophy10 achievementsextension1 DLClocal_offer-90% current discountgroup100k–1M ownersrecommend1.4k recommendations
Out of money and out of luck you find yourself heart broken and on the verge of collapse. Your landlord's taken the key back, you can't finish your manuscript, and your beloved is marrying someone else. With no choice but to handle whatever life throws at you, you set out on the open road on a mission to win back the love of your life. The story from there is up to you. Can your life be salvaged, or are we always sometimes monsters? Choice A story-driven experience focusing on relationships and emotional bonds rather than traditional RPG combat and adventuring. Indecision is your enemy and empathy is your weapon in a quest to earn one last chance to win back the love of your life. Circumstance Choose from characters of different gender, race, and sexual preference and live through the common experiences and unique hardships of each based on your selection. NPCs may treat you differently based on your gender, race, or sexual preference opening and closing different paths along the way. Consequence Each playthrough is filled with a staggering number of diverging paths that can be discovered through both overt actions and subtle choices in conversation. The journey you experience will be tailored to your personal ethical compass as your decisions both conscious and subconscious change your fate. Download the original Always Sometimes Monsters soundtrack by LASER DESTROYER TEAM featuring 15 remastered tracks from the game. Available on Bandcamp. Mature Content Warning Always Sometimes Monsters deals with serious stuff, depending on your choices. Including strong language, racist, homophobic, and transphobic language, drug / alcohol use, nudity, violence, and extreme subject matter.

Indie releases from 2014

27 Indie titles launched in 2014 — top 6 by review volume.

Community Tag Signals

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

  • Indie · 156
  • RPG · 147
  • RPGMaker · 131
  • Story Rich · 87
  • Pixel Graphics · 70
  • Choices Matter · 61
  • LGBTQ+ · 56
  • Casual · 46
  • Singleplayer · 43
  • Walking Simulator · 38
  • Great Soundtrack · 35
  • Adventure · 31
  • Romance · 29
  • Female Protagonist · 16
  • 2D · 14

Peer Indie titles

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

Position in Indie

MetricThis titleGenre position
Review volume2.4k Steam reviewsTop 85% in Indie
Positive rating75% positiveGenre average: 87% — this title sits in top 90%
Metacritic73/100Genre average 77 — top 75% of Indie titles
Engagement hours4 h averageTop 88% for session depth among Indie

Reception Metrics

Steam community

75%Mostly Positive · 2.4k reviews

1.8k positive · 607 negative

Metacritic

73/100 critic aggregate

Open Metacritic page

Metacritic user score

7.1/10

Curator recommendations

1.4k

Press Quotes

“Always Sometimes Monsters deals in chaos and quantum theories – in every second of our lives, we make choices that forever impact our timelines going forward, dictating whether we keep or lose friends, maintain a job or succeed in our goals. We are the masters of our destinies, Always Sometimes Monsters says – but we can't control other people's lives. That's where it gets tricky.” 4/5 – Joystiq “It's an earnest look at life under tough economic pressure, at love…

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

4h

brief (under 5 hours)

Median

2h

Typical completion time

Achievements

10

Steam unlocks available

Release & Availability

Release dateMay 21, 2014
DeveloperVagabond Dog
Base price$0.99 -90%
DLC / Add-ons1 released
PlatformsWindows, macOS, Linux
Estimated owners100k–1M
External linksOfficial site · Metacritic page · Support · [email protected]

Content Notes

This game is a dramatic experience about the harsh realities living in a capitalistic society, and the contents of the game reflect the violence and prejudice inherent to modern life within such a system.

Editions & Packages

  • Buy Always Sometimes Monsters