85
Back to the Dawn is a deceptively deep game. It draws you in with its quirky animal characters and holds you tight with its complex mechanics, branching narratives, and brutal sense of fairness. There’s no hand-holding here, just a dense sandbox where your choices, relationships, and instincts shape the story. It's not always easy, and sometimes the game feels downright punishing. But that’s the point. You’ll fail. You’ll restart. And you’ll come back smarter, more prepared, and even more determined to crack the system or break free from it. For fans of RPGs, survival sims, and story-rich adventures, this is one prison worth checking into. Just don’t expect it to be a walk in the yard.
80
For a game set in a jail, Back to the Dawn offers an impressive amount of freedom. Coupled with a conspiracy-minded story, and more side-quests you can shake a shiv at, you'll be hooked.
60
Back to the Dawn is a fascinating game at first glance, due to its uncanny mix of prison, animals, and laid back music. But as you dive into its systems and figure out what your goals are, you run into a sort of identity issue. Does this game want to be open-ended or not? It’s hard to tell, and the rush to complete goals within a strict time limit betrays the offerings of things to do and people to meet. This confusion between what this experience does or doesn’t want to be, and a surprising lack of personality beneath the surface, both made my time with this adventure feel laborious.
7
This is a puzzle / point & click/ turn-based combat / social sim / survival game. Really cool concept. I loved going around & learning about all the different animals & the prison politics, but you have to manage your body & mind so rigorously at the start since you're poor & constantly suffer from negative effects & then the game ends & you have to reload a previous save & try again. If you make it past the first few nights & learn how everything works, it becomes much more manageable, to the point where you don't even know what to do besides waste time or pickpocket everyone multiple times until you have an abundance of stuff & need to upgrade your storage. The main goal is to escape prison, & there's multiple ways to do so, but it's the journey along the way that's enjoyable in this one.
9
Dans son genre, Back to the Dawn est très solide. On nous emporte dans un univers sympathique et intéressant qui réussit à capter notre attention. On mise sur des mécaniques simples, efficaces et complètes et l’univers présenté offre un souci du détail sur tellement d’aspects que l’immersion est presque parfaite. On ressent la pression du temps et le besoin de devoir être prêt à tout. Il faut planifier ses actions, aussi banale soit-elle, et ça, c’est génial! C’est un jeu de rêve si vous aimez l’univers carcéral et les jeux de rôle uniques. La seule chose qui m’empêche de lui donner une note parfaite est l’absence de doublages et la direction artistique qui aurait pu être plus impressionnante. Il n’en demeure pas moins que l’expérience globale et les mécaniques de jeu sont extraordinaires! J’ai adoré mon expérience et je vais absolument y rejouer maintes fois encore pour explorer toutes les possibilités. Cela étant dit, je donne à Back to the Dawn la note de 9 sur 10.
5
I had high hopes for this game but unfortunately it didn't click for me. I don't know, somewhat stressful experience (although makes sense for the prison theme) where I never felt I had enough time, resources or health. I was constantly tired, smelly, broke or hungry and dealing with that didn't really leave me with enough time to progress the story.
Back to the Dawn
Released On:
Jul 18, 2025
Metascore
Generally Favorable
81
User score
Generally Favorable
8.0
My Score
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All Platforms
Metascore
Generally Favorable
81
85% Positive
11 Reviews
11 Reviews
15% Mixed
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Jul 17, 2025
100
Back to the Dawn is one of the most unique indie RPGs I’ve played in recent memory—gritty, tense, mechanically rewarding, and full of well-developed characters who surprise you with their humanity, despite being cartoon animals. Its depiction of prison life is thoughtful and serious without relying on shock value, and the branching narrative gives your decisions real weight.
Jul 30, 2025
88
Back to the Dawn is a management RPG set in a prison populated by anthropomorphic animals, with strong survival elements. You have twenty-one days to organize an escape, keeping an eye on time, resources, social relationships, and skills. Every action consumes precious minutes and can influence future events. The turn-based combat system mirrors typical JRPG gameplay. Deep, branching, and challenging, it surprises with its wealth of options and narrative variety, despite its lackluster sound. A brilliant and strategic game, worth replaying several times to see as many endings as possible.
User score
Generally Favorable
8.0
79% Positive
22 Ratings
22 Ratings
14% Mixed
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
7% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
Mar 25, 2026
10
I play with this game Switch2. This game is very engaging and I love the graphics.
Jun 24, 2026
9
Dans son genre, Back to the Dawn est très solide. On nous emporte dans un univers sympathique et intéressant qui réussit à capter notre attention. On mise sur des mécaniques simples, efficaces et complètes et l’univers présenté offre un souci du détail sur tellement d’aspects que l’immersion est presque parfaite. On ressent la pression du temps et le besoin de devoir être prêt à tout. Il faut planifier ses actions, aussi banale soit-elle, et ça, c’est génial! C’est un jeu de rêve si vous aimez l’univers carcéral et les jeux de rôle uniques. La seule chose qui m’empêche de lui donner une note parfaite est l’absence de doublages et la direction artistique qui aurait pu être plus impressionnante. Il n’en demeure pas moins que l’expérience globale et les mécaniques de jeu sont extraordinaires! J’ai adoré mon expérience et je vais absolument y rejouer maintes fois encore pour explorer toutes les possibilités. Cela étant dit, je donne à Back to the Dawn la note de 9 sur 10.
Jul 22, 2025
85
Back to the Dawn is a smart, content-rich RPG that encourages creative problem-solving and experimentation. With two distinct protagonists, an open structure, and a wide cast of characters, it’s a great fit for players who love choice-driven gameplay and tactical planning. While some areas (like the combat system or portrayal of female characters) could use further depth, the overall experience is thoughtful, challenging, and highly rewarding. It’s easy to get hooked on the game’s daily rhythm of planning, reacting, and discovering new paths.
Sep 22, 2025
80
For a game set in a jail, Back to the Dawn offers an impressive amount of freedom. Coupled with a conspiracy-minded story, and more side-quests you can shake a shiv at, you'll be hooked.
Jul 20, 2025
80
Metal Head takes the mechanics of time, skill and priority management very seriously, and delivers a rich, immersive and gripping narrative experience, with a gallery of engaging characters.
Jul 25, 2025
75
Back to the Dawn is a prison RPG with great in-game time mechanics, a good story and a lot of replayability. Some of its narrative choices, however, are a little too stereotypical.
Sep 10, 2025
60
Back to the Dawn is a fascinating game at first glance, due to its uncanny mix of prison, animals, and laid back music. But as you dive into its systems and figure out what your goals are, you run into a sort of identity issue. Does this game want to be open-ended or not? It’s hard to tell, and the rush to complete goals within a strict time limit betrays the offerings of things to do and people to meet. This confusion between what this experience does or doesn’t want to be, and a surprising lack of personality beneath the surface, both made my time with this adventure feel laborious.
Mar 26, 2026
9
매우 매우 재밌음. 각 주인공마다 경험할 수 있는 탈출 루트 및 메인 스토리 줄기가 여럿 존재하여 회차플레이를 하고 싶게 만드는 매력이 있음. 인디게임 치고 디테일함이 꽤나 수준급이라 감탄을 하게 되는 부분이 있다
Dec 24, 2025
9
Gran videojuego, gran ambientación y atmosfera de la cárcel, aprendes a conocer a los personajes y a encariñarte con algunos, un juego muy inmersivo, se siente la presión dentro de la cárcel asechándote mientras pasan los días, el único detalle es que es muy corto en mi opinión y nunca le hicieron traducción al español, por lo que difícil recomendarlo. Además de eso nada que decir, gran trabajo se nota que esta hecho con cariño y atención al detalle.
Jul 30, 2026
7
This is a puzzle / point & click/ turn-based combat / social sim / survival game. Really cool concept. I loved going around & learning about all the different animals & the prison politics, but you have to manage your body & mind so rigorously at the start since you're poor & constantly suffer from negative effects & then the game ends & you have to reload a previous save & try again. If you make it past the first few nights & learn how everything works, it becomes much more manageable, to the point where you don't even know what to do besides waste time or pickpocket everyone multiple times until you have an abundance of stuff & need to upgrade your storage. The main goal is to escape prison, & there's multiple ways to do so, but it's the journey along the way that's enjoyable in this one.
Apr 17, 2026
5
I had high hopes for this game but unfortunately it didn't click for me. I don't know, somewhat stressful experience (although makes sense for the prison theme) where I never felt I had enough time, resources or health. I was constantly tired, smelly, broke or hungry and dealing with that didn't really leave me with enough time to progress the story.
Aug 26, 2025
3
Some of the lighting, especially the main menu animations were amazing, but the same cant be said about player animations. The art in this game was fine, but the character animations were very clunky and weird. For the actual gameplay, it was pretty boring. The story setup is pretty slow, and I frankly didn't find it interesting for me. Each character seems to have their own story (prisoner), so there is a lot to explore, but as an avid book reader these stories weren't great. There isn't much to do in the game either, which was what made it dull. You are just aimlessly clicking things and doing mindless minitasks for money
SummaryIn Back to the Dawn, you play a reporter caught up in a dark conspiracy and who got thrown into a maximum-security prison for not playing ball. Gather your wits and learn how to survive in this hostile environment. Explore every inch of the prison and exploit any weakness you find. Make friends (or foes) with your fellow inmates and with... Read More
