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The Talos Principle
The Talos Principle is a first-person puzzle game in the tradition of philosophical science fiction. Made by Croteam and written by Tom Jubert (FTL, The Swapper) and Jonas Kyratzes (The Sea Will Claim Everything).
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
62 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“You gotta be in the mood for existential contemplation to get the most out of this but it's a fantastic puzzle game. I would also begrudge no one for finding the dry reading a bit tedious, so there's that. You can tell…”
“Masterpiece. if you love Serene and beautiful Environments, Peaceful Music, Puzzles that give your brain some good exercise, and/or you love philosophy, then this is one of the best things to invest your time in. I…”
“Look, the puzzles are great, the scenery is lovely, the notes at the terminals are part of an intriguing backstory that tugs me in... Milton. I cannot stand being talked down to by a billboard for being forced to select…”
37 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“You gotta be in the mood for existential contemplation to get the most out of this but it's a fantastic puzzle game. I would also begrudge no one for finding the dry reading a bit tedious, so there's that. You can tell…”
“The Talos principle is one of my favorite game, period. It was a long ride as It took me years to complete it, but I enjoy every minute of it. First the lore is so well made and intriguing, I was so drown to it from the…”
“It absolutely twists my stomach to think about all the people who have yet to play this game. I would go as far to say it is a 10/10 puzzle game. The story, the mechanics, the art style, the atmosphere, it's all so…”
18 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“Masterpiece. if you love Serene and beautiful Environments, Peaceful Music, Puzzles that give your brain some good exercise, and/or you love philosophy, then this is one of the best things to invest your time in. I…”
“The Talos principle is one of my favorite game, period. It was a long ride as It took me years to complete it, but I enjoy every minute of it. First the lore is so well made and intriguing, I was so drown to it from the…”
“It's a pretty simple puzzle game, but the further you progress, the harder it gets as more features are unlocked. I really liked it; it didn't feel repetitive at all and some levels made me think a bit more. If you like…”
17 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“Masterpiece. if you love Serene and beautiful Environments, Peaceful Music, Puzzles that give your brain some good exercise, and/or you love philosophy, then this is one of the best things to invest your time in. I…”
“Look, the puzzles are great, the scenery is lovely, the notes at the terminals are part of an intriguing backstory that tugs me in... Milton. I cannot stand being talked down to by a billboard for being forced to select…”
“Pretentiousness and pseudo-intellectualism wrapped around a fun, but monotonous puzzle game. So many logical fallacies and plain old bad takes presented as some deep truth. Not a bad puzzle game, the scenery is nice,…”
10 of the 103 reviews raise this.
“Masterpiece. if you love Serene and beautiful Environments, Peaceful Music, Puzzles that give your brain some good exercise, and/or you love philosophy, then this is one of the best things to invest your time in. I…”
“loved it. best game I have ever played. gave my brain a good workout for an hour each night after downing tools for the day. Loved the entirety of the maps the story, the puzzles, the messages on the walls, the…”
“Brilliant puzzle game. Really works at your temporal and spatial skills. This is NOT easy, I hate to admit it but I needed some help, and in the DLC I completely skipped some of the stars and just got enough to complete…”
11 of the 103 reviews raise this · 10 of them still recommend the game.
“By a very small margin I would recommend this game to people who like to play these sorts of puzzle-adventure games. It's beautiful, imaginative and, for a while, fun to solve the many clever puzzles. But as the…”
“Eh, I could not get into it. The first areas puzzles were pretty easy, it looks like difficulty picks up in the other zone, but I did like, idk 35 puzzles already and I’m just not feeling it. I’ve played similar puzzle…”
“Brilliant puzzle game. Really works at your temporal and spatial skills. This is NOT easy, I hate to admit it but I needed some help, and in the DLC I completely skipped some of the stars and just got enough to complete…”
10 of the 103 reviews raise this · 6 of them still recommend the game.
“Look, the puzzles are great, the scenery is lovely, the notes at the terminals are part of an intriguing backstory that tugs me in... Milton. I cannot stand being talked down to by a billboard for being forced to select…”
“Pretentiousness and pseudo-intellectualism wrapped around a fun, but monotonous puzzle game. So many logical fallacies and plain old bad takes presented as some deep truth. Not a bad puzzle game, the scenery is nice,…”
“I can see why this game would be very enjoyable but it felt like it couldn't decide what it wants to be - a pure puzzle game or a narrative driven, "deep" experience. I guess it kinda shows that first they made the…”
6 of the 103 reviews raise this · 3 of them still recommend the game.
“Pretentiousness and pseudo-intellectualism wrapped around a fun, but monotonous puzzle game. So many logical fallacies and plain old bad takes presented as some deep truth. Not a bad puzzle game, the scenery is nice,…”
“I can see why this game would be very enjoyable but it felt like it couldn't decide what it wants to be - a pure puzzle game or a narrative driven, "deep" experience. I guess it kinda shows that first they made the…”
“Eh, I could not get into it. The first areas puzzles were pretty easy, it looks like difficulty picks up in the other zone, but I did like, idk 35 puzzles already and I’m just not feeling it. I’ve played similar puzzle…”
3 of the 103 reviews raise this · 3 of them still recommend the game.
“Pretty cool puzzle game with an original story to accompany you along your journey . Every puzzle in the game (other than the stars) felt doable. I also enjoyed the DLC, i think they improved a lot on the base game and…”
“This game made me feel less alone and gave my heart some relief. Sometimes the weight of not being able to grasp reality and existence is too much for me, and I don’t have anyone to talk to about it, but this game made…”
“The game is good; the puzzle difficulty curve isn't too steep. But I have 3D motion sickness”
Counted across 103 English reviews, sampled to match this game's 95.4% positive rating · as of 2026-05-20
“A world of questions, philosophy, challenges and meaning, or lack of it. Knowledge is some kind of freedom, but here you'll have to think a lot to deserve it, if you do want it, of course. And while god tries to convince me he's useful, I learn that even the most loyal…”
— a player, Steam review · 34 hrs played“Very good game about consciousness and faith written by a smart ass that forces a Socratic dialogue on you every 15 to 30 minutes”
— a player, Steam review · 26 hrs played“One of the best games ever made. While the puzzles might feel outdated to some I would say the game more than makes up for it with the amazing atmosphere coupled with it's fantastic soundtrack. The ever intriguing story will have you debate yourself or whomever you play with and…”
— a player, Steam review · 21 hrs playedPlayer activity
Monthly average concurrent players. Live count fetched 2026-07-11 12:05 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.
The Grand Finale | Announcing The Talos Principle 3
What differentiates a story from the real world, or a simulation? A story is a series of choices, a set of moments captured, examined, and elevated. The real world goes on and on, but a story must hav
The Talos Principle Reawakened - A Year In The Simulation
Today, we celebrate exactly one year since we went back into the simulation with The Talos Principle: Reawakened.Reawakened allowed you to experience the simulation from its absolute genesis. You walk
The Talos Principle - Cerebral Puzzle Showcase
The Talos Principle franchise is part of the Cerebral Puzzle Showcase, and all titles are currently on sale! Experience the classic that started it all — The Talos Principle (2014) — a groundbreaking
The Talos Principle: Reawakened is Out Now!
Hi everyone! The time has come. Just over a decade after the original launched, The Talos Principle: Reawakened is out now! We poured our hearts and souls into this project. It was designed with the c
The Talos Principle Reawakened: Thinking Not Required
We’re excited to unveil The Talos Principle Reawakened not just a remaster, but a complete modernization of the 2014 classic, carefully redesigned for 2025 gaming standards. Because let’s be honest ga
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Screenshots
Official Steam store screenshots — click any shot to enlarge.
Facts & details
From the Steam store record, snapshot 2026-05-20.
| Genres | Action, Adventure, Indie |
| Player tags | Puzzle · Philosophical · First-Person · Sci-fi · Atmospheric · Story Rich · Singleplayer · Great Soundtrack · Robots · Exploration · Adventure · Indie (SteamSpy community voting) |
| Features | Single-player · Steam Achievements · Full controller support · Steam Trading Cards · Steam Workshop · Steam Cloud · Includes level editor · Remote Play on TV |
| Languages | English * , French * , Italian * , German * , Spanish - Spain * , Russian * , Japanese * , Korean * , Polish * , Portuguese - Brazil * , Simplified Chinese * , Traditional Chinese * , Czech * |
| Controller | Full support |
| Achievements | 40 |
| Estimated owners | 1,000,000 – 2,000,000 (SteamSpy) |
| Official site | http://www.thetalosprinciple.com |
Minimum system requirements (PC)
Minimum: OS *: Windows 7 Processor: Dual-core 2.0 GHz Memory: 2 GB RAM Graphics: DirectX 11 class GPU with 1GB VRAM (nVidia GeForce 480 GTX, AMD Radeon HD 5870) DirectX: Version 9.0c Storage: 5 GB available space