Order of the Sinking Star Launches to 97 Percent Positive Steam Reviews
Steam Next Fest demo data and a 97 percent positive review rate show that a dense puzzle game from a well-known designer can draw a large audience without a sequel or franchise hook.
Key Facts
- Order of the Sinking Star was released on PC via Steam on October 9, 2026, for 3,400 yen including tax.
- The game is directed by Jonathan Blow and was developed over about 10 years since The Witness.
- Order of the Sinking Star features more than 1,000 puzzles across four worlds.
- Steam user reviews exceeded 470 as of the time of writing, with 97 percent positive and a Very Positive rating.
- Japanese versions for PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch 2 are scheduled for release by PLAYISM within 2026.
Reporting from 4 sources: 4Gamer.net, Denfaminicogamer, Automaton, Game Spark.
Arc Games released Thekla's Order of the Sinking Star on PC via Steam on October 9, 2026, priced at 3,400 yen including tax. The game is directed by Jonathan Blow, known for Braid and The Witness, and was developed over about 10 years since The Witness. Steam user reviews exceeded 470 as of the time of writing, with 97 percent positive and a Very Positive rating. The game features more than 1,000 handcrafted puzzles across four worlds, each with its own mechanics, characters, and story. Players control characters on grid-divided stages, solving puzzles by moving objects and using abilities such as pushing, pulling, and teleporting. As the story progresses, worlds merge through a special area called the Gold Room, unlocking combined areas. The demo topped player numbers for single-player demos at Steam Next Fest in June. Japanese PS5 and Nintendo Switch 2 versions are scheduled for release by PLAYISM within 2026, with Japanese display and subtitles supported.
Reviewers who finished the four worlds point to the merge system as the part that separates it from other puzzle games. Clearing the Gold Room connects two worlds at a time, and six combined areas unlock depending on which pairs the player brings together. In those areas, magic mirrors from the eastern world can be coordinated with the colored light beams of the western world, or one character's ability can be applied to another world's mechanisms.
- Northern world: adventurers including a warrior who runs a moving business, a thief, and a wizard, each with a push, pull, or teleport ability.
- Eastern world: magic mirror puzzles where players swap places with their own reflection or with reflected objects, using distance and placement to reach distant spots.
- Western world: giant gems redirect beams of light in different colors that pass through walls and destroy rocks.
- Southern world: floating islands where players bounce large stones and change the flow of water to open a route.
The playable cast includes a queen, a thief, a warrior, a wizard, and a talking ship. Patrick Traynor of "Patrick's Parabox" and Marc ten Bosch of "Miegakure" worked on the design with Blow, and development uses Jai, a programming language Blow created. Metacritic scores sit at 83 for PC, 85 for Switch 2, and 86 for PS5. Peak concurrent players reached 4,634, according to SteamDB.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 4 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.
Sources
- 4Gamer.net 「The Witness」「Braid」を手掛けたJonathan Blow氏の新作「Order of the Sinking Star」，本日リリース
- Denfaminicogamer 『The Witness』開発者による新作パズルゲーム『Order of the Sinking Star』が好評率“97%”の「非常に好評」スタート。1000個以上のパズルが待つ広大な世界で数百時間遊べる
- Automaton 『The Witness』作者の10年ぶり新作『Order of the Sinking Star』、さっそくSteamで“97％高評価”。「1000問超のパズル」が物量で迫る、濃密すぎ大迷宮
- Game Spark “圧倒的に好評”スタート！『The Witness』『Braid』開発者の10年ぶり新作『Order of the Sinking Star』1,000超パズルを手作りした狂気