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Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
Imagine a place of wonder, where magick and technology coexist in an uneasy balance, and an adventurer might just as easily wield a flintlock pistol as a flaming sword. Welcome to the land of Arcanum.
In short, Steam reviewers most often praise “Rich narrative and worldbuilding” (23 of 68 reviews) and “Deep customization and open-ended choices” (20); the most common complaint is “Unofficial patches fix widespread bugs” (14). What reviewers agree on ↓
What players say
Steam review score and the most-helpful voices, which may include critical ones. Score via Steam as of 2026-09-27 · quoted reviews as of 2026-05-12.
What reviewers agree on
23 of the 68 reviews raise this.
“My favorite game of all times and probably the only one that I replay every damn year (there are hundreds of hours I spent playing it throughout my life). Bought it on steam just to respect it by having in my library.…”
20 of the 68 reviews raise this.
“My favorite game of all times and probably the only one that I replay every damn year (there are hundreds of hours I spent playing it throughout my life). Bought it on steam just to respect it by having in my library.…”
“One of the best RPG, criminally underrated. Mechanically like BG1&2. Settign is way more fun and unique though. Also one of the best low-intelligence modes ever. As with all games this old, you may want to consider the…”
“Some games are good. Some games are unforgettable. Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura was unforgettable. This was a hidden gem of isometric RPGs and discovering it during my childhood felt like finding a…”
5 of the 68 reviews raise this.
“My favorite game of all times and probably the only one that I replay every damn year (there are hundreds of hours I spent playing it throughout my life). Bought it on steam just to respect it by having in my library.…”
“Definitely not a perfect game, but it's an absolute timeless piece of art when it comes to content and storytelling. One of the first rpgs I ever played back in the golden age of prerendered graphics and still one of my…”
4 of the 68 reviews raise this.
“My favorite game of all times and probably the only one that I replay every damn year (there are hundreds of hours I spent playing it throughout my life). Bought it on steam just to respect it by having in my library.…”
14 of the 68 reviews raise this · 10 of them still recommend the game.
“You'll have to install the unofficial patch, but you're playing a game from over 20 years ago, you knew what to expect, and you know it's gonna be worth it.”
“One of the best RPG, criminally underrated. Mechanically like BG1&2. Settign is way more fun and unique though. Also one of the best low-intelligence modes ever. As with all games this old, you may want to consider the…”
“Never would've played it if it weren't for a college project, and I surprisingly ended up kinda liking it. It's janky and it's definitely missing a lot of stuff, but it's got charm and the story is interesting so far.…”
8 of the 68 reviews raise this · 7 of them still recommend the game.
“I played the game with the unofficial community patch and a few of the cut content addition inside the installer. As an extra I chose the team experience gain. Gameplay wise i mostly went turn-based and the tactical…”
3 of the 68 reviews raise this · 3 of them still recommend the game.
“movement is really not very good, the camera is fixed and the HUD is way too big, but the atmosphere and character customization is pretty great”
Counted across 68 English reviews, sampled to match this game's 89.5% positive rating · as of 2026-05-12
“This game feels outdated and rough around the edges, but it still delivers the depth and freedom you expect from a classic CRPG. If you can live with the clunkiness, it is easy to get pulled into a rare, unforgettable RPG world.”
— a player, Steam review · 36 hrs played“Would I reccomend Arcanum? Ehhhh, it's complicated. I'm leaning towards Yes, but only if you meet a few criteria: - You enjoy Fallout 1 & 2 and wish to have a similar itch scratched (as the game was made with Tim Cain as project lead, in a very similar engine.) - Combat is not…”
— a player, Steam review · 29 hrs played“This is one of those games that has a ton of heart. But polish? Nope. The combat is extremely boring at best. 90% of the fights in Arcanum are against filler trash mobs that you can't skip, unlike Fallout. There is barely any encounter design in the entire game. I played a…”
— a player, Steam review · 48 hrs playedPlayer activity
Monthly average concurrent players. Live data self-collected from the Steam API · history through 2026-06 via SteamCharts.
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 (2026-10-26). Relative comparison only.
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From our knowledge graph — ranked by shared traits, not a black box. Each card says why it's here.
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Screenshots
Official Steam store screenshots — click any shot to enlarge.
Facts & details
From the Steam store record, snapshot 2026-05-12.
| Genres | RPG |
| Player tags | RPG · Steampunk · Story Rich · Isometric · Classic · Fantasy · CRPG · Open World · Singleplayer · Atmospheric · Magic · Cult Classic (SteamSpy community voting) |
| Features | Single-player · Family Sharing |
| Languages | English * * |
| Official site | https://www.activision.com/ |
Minimum system requirements (PC)
Minimum: OS *: Windows XP / Vista / 7 / 8 Processor: 1.0 GHz Memory: 256 MB RAM Graphics: DirectX 7 Compatible 3D Card DirectX: Version 7.0 Storage: 1200 MB available space Sound Card: DirectX Compatible