Home / Games / ABZU
ABZU
From the art director of Journey®, ABZÛ is a beautiful underwater adventure that evokes the dream of diving. Immerse yourself in a vibrant hidden world bursting with color and life as you descend into the heart of the ocean. But beware as you swim deeper as dangers lurk in the depths.
What players say
Steam review score and the most-helpful voices, which may include critical ones. Data as of 2026-05-20.
What reviewers agree on
61 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“3/10 Beautiful visuals, but not much else. Yes, the world is very pretty. But the controls are unintuitive and clunky. The music is generic and subpar. And the game itself... well, there's hardly any game here. You swim…”
“it's pretty, but i don't think a game is the right form of media for this. i think a short film or something like that would be much better, due to the gameplay being very lackluster in my opinion. not to mention the…”
34 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“It's a beautiful game and a fun one at that but the problem is the price. For a game that lasts 2 hours there is no way to justify the price, okay price when on 75% discount.”
“I cannot speak highly enough about ABZU. I first played this game way back when it released in 2016. I had just come back to gaming after falling away from it for about 10 years, and was experiencing moving art. This…”
“Abzu isn't a game - it's an experience. Rather short, but incredibly beautiful. As someone who isn't a massive fan of the ocean, or deep water for that matter, I found this game to be calming and fun, to ride huge sea…”
20 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“This game leaves you wanting to reset your brain to forget it all just to play it again. This is by far one of the most beautiful games I have ever played. If you aren't sucked in by the amazing and captivating story or…”
“more an experience than a game. It's a 2 hourish long underwater adventure with not really much to it. The score for this is unreal. Like near the end with all the chanting and stuff it sounds so professional. Honestly…”
“Its a game like no other. And I loved it. The atmosphere, the music and the gameplay. I felt free to do whatever I wanted, although being directed. Until the end I wrestled a bit with the up-down swimming on the…”
18 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“[h3] One of the most breathtaking cinematic story games ever made. [/h3] The plot is simple to follow, the game's magnificent cinematic re-creation of the oceans are stunning. It always felt like I was playing the game…”
“Abzu isn't a game - it's an experience. Rather short, but incredibly beautiful. As someone who isn't a massive fan of the ocean, or deep water for that matter, I found this game to be calming and fun, to ride huge sea…”
“I did enjoy the story and all the shark love. The shell achievement is a bit buggy, and the only fix being deleting your save file and starting over. If you're playing the game to enjoy the atmosphere and don't care…”
11 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“[h3] One of the most breathtaking cinematic story games ever made. [/h3] The plot is simple to follow, the game's magnificent cinematic re-creation of the oceans are stunning. It always felt like I was playing the game…”
“This game leaves you wanting to reset your brain to forget it all just to play it again. This is by far one of the most beautiful games I have ever played. If you aren't sucked in by the amazing and captivating story or…”
“I absolutely LOVED this game! I was worried I'd have to play it with a controller after reading a few reviews but to my delight I played it on PC with no problems at all. This game hit me hard in a good way. I'm a…”
26 of the 103 reviews raise this · 24 of them still recommend the game.
“3/10 Beautiful visuals, but not much else. Yes, the world is very pretty. But the controls are unintuitive and clunky. The music is generic and subpar. And the game itself... well, there's hardly any game here. You swim…”
“this game is fairly short and takes you on a magical ride. i really appreciate the talent and artistry that went into creating this; it's visually stunning. while i enjoyed my first handed experience, i find that the…”
“It's a beautiful game and a fun one at that but the problem is the price. For a game that lasts 2 hours there is no way to justify the price, okay price when on 75% discount.”
12 of the 103 reviews raise this · 10 of them still recommend the game.
“3/10 Beautiful visuals, but not much else. Yes, the world is very pretty. But the controls are unintuitive and clunky. The music is generic and subpar. And the game itself... well, there's hardly any game here. You swim…”
“it's pretty, but i don't think a game is the right form of media for this. i think a short film or something like that would be much better, due to the gameplay being very lackluster in my opinion. not to mention the…”
“[b]TLDR:[/b] ABZU brings a gorgeous underwater exploration experience, but I expect it's not that chill/relaxing for some people. [b]Story:[/b] There are a few story and lore pieces told using pure 'Show, don't tell',…”
9 of the 103 reviews raise this · 4 of them still recommend the game.
“3/10 Beautiful visuals, but not much else. Yes, the world is very pretty. But the controls are unintuitive and clunky. The music is generic and subpar. And the game itself... well, there's hardly any game here. You swim…”
“it's pretty, but i don't think a game is the right form of media for this. i think a short film or something like that would be much better, due to the gameplay being very lackluster in my opinion. not to mention the…”
“This is a complete miss for me purely because of how bad it feels to play on PC. The options will not let you change the key binding, and damn does it feel bad to simply move around in this world. You go forward using…”
7 of the 103 reviews raise this · 6 of them still recommend the game.
“It's a beautiful game and a fun one at that but the problem is the price. For a game that lasts 2 hours there is no way to justify the price, okay price when on 75% discount.”
“Hard to say anything bad about it, The visuals are stunning, the atmosphere hits somewhere between peaceful and mystical, and you just... go with it No real objective, no pressure, just this slow drift through something…”
“short game, but very beautiful, and the music is fantastic. personally, I recommend getting it on sale rather than at full price...I got it sale myself. It does tell a story, you just have to pay attention and look for…”
5 of the 103 reviews raise this · 3 of them still recommend the game.
“3/10 Beautiful visuals, but not much else. Yes, the world is very pretty. But the controls are unintuitive and clunky. The music is generic and subpar. And the game itself... well, there's hardly any game here. You swim…”
“[h2]Overall: 5/10[/h2] [h3]Story:[/h3] In my opinion, the 'narrative' here is both intriguing and frustrating in equal measure. While there is technically a story present, it is intentionally very minimalistic, as there…”
“[b]TLDR:[/b] ABZU brings a gorgeous underwater exploration experience, but I expect it's not that chill/relaxing for some people. [b]Story:[/b] There are a few story and lore pieces told using pure 'Show, don't tell',…”
Counted across 103 English reviews, sampled to match this game's 92.9% positive rating · as of 2026-05-20
“A wonderful journey beneath the deep blue sea, full of small surprises. Whether you're riding a manta ray or drifting along a fast current, the world feels fun and exciting while still holding many mysteries to explore. Abzu is one of the most relaxing games I’ve played so far.…”
— a player, Steam review · 4 hrs played“TL;DR - 8/10 - Recommended if you want to chill and relax while swimming with sea life in highly-stylized environments. Very light exploration. Very light hazards on one or two levels (that don't kill you). Very light emotional drama. Not a must play, but enjoyable enough. And…”
— a player, Steam review · 4 hrs played“[h1]Modern day 2-hour Opera for Normies who can't go to an actual one with an excellent visual treat.[/h1] These types of games are hard to write review by because it's incredibly difficult to put such a mesmerizing expression of art in words. Yes, this is not your typical…”
— a player, Steam review · 3 hrs playedPlayer activity
Monthly average concurrent players. Live count fetched 2026-07-11 10:14 UTC · history via SteamCharts.
Achievement stats
Global completion rates across all Steam players — a data view of how far people actually get. Source: Steam official stats · as of 2026-07-25.
Price tracking
US-region pricing (USD), sampled twice daily by our own tracker since 2026-07-11. Steam prices vary by region — always confirm your local price on Steam.
Regional prices at last sample, in local currency — Steam sets each region's price independently.
Cheapest → most expensive, converted to USD at ECB reference rates (2026-07-24). Relative comparison only.
Latest official news
Developer announcements via the Steam news API — links go to the original posts. More across all games on the news hub.
Sword of the Sea - Accolades
Thank you for supporting us on this epic sesh. Sword of the Sea is OUT NOW.
Sword of the Sea - Out Now!
We forgot to shout about it here, but the game actually launched 6 months ago - Our game is OUT on Steam! The good news is we've addressed some bugs and improved some quality of life features since th
Sword of the Sea - August 19th 2025
Embark on a breathtaking new adventure from the visionary team behind The Pathless. In Sword of the Sea, you’ll surf across undulating sand dunes and explore mysterious ruins, awe-inspiring landscapes
Giant Squid Dev Blog
One of the many ingredients in a Giant Squid game is fluid movement. Join our very own Joel Finney, the Lead Animator at Giant Squid, as he goes behind the scenes on how we made the animation of The W
Sword of the Sea in Development
Surf across the surreal undulating landscapes of the Necropolis on a quest to unveil a lost ocean teeming with life in Sword of the Sea. Featuring a beautiful score by Austin Wintory. https://cdn.akam
Games like ABZU
From our knowledge graph — ranked by shared traits, not a black box. Each card says why it's here.
RiME
88.4% · 2,303 reviews
shares Walking Simulator, Great Soundtrack, Open World, Third Person
The First Tree
71.6% · 2,937 reviews
shares Short, Walking Simulator, Great Soundtrack, Open World
Beyond Blue
87.7% · 826 reviews
shares Underwater, Walking Simulator, Great Soundtrack, Open World
Submerged
78.3% · 1,988 reviews
shares Beautiful, Walking Simulator, Great Soundtrack, Open World
Eastshade
89.9% · 3,721 reviews
shares Beautiful, Walking Simulator, Great Soundtrack, Open World
A Short Hike
99.1% · 14,594 reviews
shares Beautiful, Short, Walking Simulator, Great Soundtrack
Brothers - A Tale of Two Sons
94.3% · 20,209 reviews
shares Beautiful, Short, Walking Simulator, Great Soundtrack
Meadow - A Shelter Game
89.9% · 2,702 reviews
shares Beautiful, Walking Simulator, Great Soundtrack, Open World
Screenshots
Official Steam store screenshots — click any shot to enlarge.
Facts & details
From the Steam store record, snapshot 2026-05-20.
| Genres | Adventure, Casual, Indie, Simulation |
| Player tags | Relaxing · Atmospheric · Underwater · Exploration · Great Soundtrack · Adventure · Singleplayer · Casual · Colorful · Indie · Beautiful · Fantasy (SteamSpy community voting) |
| Features | Single-player · Steam Achievements · Full controller support · Steam Trading Cards · Family Sharing |
| Languages | English, French, Italian, German, Spanish - Spain, Portuguese - Brazil, Russian, Simplified Chinese |
| Controller | Full support |
| Achievements | 12 |
| Estimated owners | 500,000 – 1,000,000 (SteamSpy) |
| Official site | http://www.abzugame.com |
Minimum system requirements (PC)
Minimum: OS *: Windows 7, 64-bit Processor: 3.0GHz CPU Dual Core Memory: 4 GB RAM Graphics: Geforce GTX 750 / Radeon R7 260X DirectX: Version 11 Storage: 6 GB available space Sound Card: DirectX compatible sound card