The retro-computer styled mystery puzzle game Return of the Obra Dinn has received a final release date of October 18th for all consoles, including Nintendo Switch, PS4, and Xbox One.
Return of the Obra Dinn is the second major effort from Lucas Pope, the solo indie developer behind the surprise hit paperwork simulator Papers, Please from 2013, and continues Pope’s legacy of bureaucratic themes somehow being made highly engaging and interesting through the use of simple mechanics. Return of the Obra Dinn has the player assume the role of a representative of an insurance investigator from the East India Company, who must investigate the recent return of the ship the Obra Dinn, which recently floated into London waters with its entire crew mysteriously missing.
The Steam page for the game describes the game in a bit more detail:
In 1802, the merchant ship Obra Dinn set out from London for the Orient with over 200 tons of trade goods. Six months later it hadn’t met its rendezvous point at the Cape of Good Hope and was declared lost at sea. Early this morning of October 14th, 1807, the Obra Dinn drifted into port at Falmouth with damaged sails and no visible crew. As insurance investigator for the East India Company’s London Office, dispatch immediately to Falmouth, find means to board the ship, and prepare an assessment of damages. Return of the Obra Dinn is a first-person mystery adventure based on exploration and logical deduction.
The game has seen massive critical acclaim since it’s initial release for PC in 2018, with many outlets and critics naming it as one of the best games of the year, praising it for its stylized retro computer aesthetic and highly unique core mechanics that allow the player to organically explore an exciting and unconventional mystery narrative. The game did reasonably well on a commercial level, but will now have a chance to reach a much wider audience across multiple platforms.
Return of the Obra Dinn will release on October 18th for Nintendo Switch, PS4, and Xbox One, and is available now for PC.
