90
Observation is an unnerving, beautiful, and captivating space station thriller that will stay with you long after the credits roll.
80
Observation inserts players into the circuits of the onboard AI. And because it is difficult to overlook how unnatural it is for a human mind to mimic the smooth functionality of a machine, the game effects a gap between the player and the player’s avatar that is intriguingly disorienting.
60
Great when it’s delivering gripping, cinematic moments. It’s just a shame that the bits when you’re controlling a slightly menacing AI aren’t the highlights. [Issue#164, p.91]
9
[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]
10
This is one of the best games I have played in a very long time, I will always come back to this game again and again.
0
It's a freaking NOTHING, gamers. It's not even a game. It's a poorly written, misguided attempt at a sci fi movie in which you, the owner of the game, play a bunch of fixed cameras. Not a free roaming one. No. A fixed camera. And you are told exactly what to do and what to click on. And guess what, you get to click on things, but you can only do that in one specific order, otherwise there's no progression. You know, Space Invaders has more interactivity and agenda than this wannabesohardlike2001butfailsmiserablyatabsolutebasics crap. Also,there's no story in it. There's no characters. There's an emergency situation but you have zero motivation to solve the poorly designed wannabe puzzles (when I write "puzzles" that 9 times out of 10 means clicking at stuff - the equivalent of good old point n clicky pixel hunting). You get to roleplay a personality-deprived AI and you get your orders from an entitled **** who otherwise has no personality either. Whoever came up with this crappy wannabe game should be banned from game dev forever. And this is coming from someone who loves games, movies, books and comic books about space, and a huge 2001 Odyssey, Clarke, NASA fan. So I should be liking this, but no, I see this weak ass **** for what it is, and it is, truly, a weak ass ****. It's like someone's opened the outer hatch and **** out all the oxygen, giving you a big unhealthy **** of void.
Observation
Released On:
May 21, 2019
Metascore
Generally Favorable
75
User score
Mixed or Average
6.6
My Score
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Metascore
Generally Favorable
75
73% Positive
33 Reviews
33 Reviews
24% Mixed
11 Reviews
11 Reviews
2% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
Sep 4, 2019
90
Observation is an unnerving, beautiful, and captivating space station thriller that will stay with you long after the credits roll.
Jun 20, 2019
88
Observation spins a chilling and seductive science fiction tale of suspense and mystery, juxtaposed against strong adventure gameplay and stellar production values.
User score
Mixed or Average
6.6
46% Positive
53 Ratings
53 Ratings
34% Mixed
39 Ratings
39 Ratings
20% Negative
23 Ratings
23 Ratings
Jun 22, 2025
10
This is one of the best games I have played in a very long time, I will always come back to this game again and again.
May 29, 2019
10
Fantastic, eerie storyline from a new and unusual perspective. I loved it! It had me dying to know what happens all the way to the end. I am very satisfied with how it all wrapped up!
May 21, 2019
80
An exquisite atmosphere and fresh premise make up for some slightly obtuse puzzles. Observation brims with ideas and images that fill your head.
May 22, 2019
78
Observation has its flaws (mainly in the technical side), but is a great example of how videogames can come up with new ways of telling stories.
May 30, 2019
60
After tediously fiddling through all the menial puzzles, the ending just made me shrug my shoulders instead of giving me shivers that I was supposed to have felt. It’s too bad that the promising premise fizzled as soon as the gameplay showed its true colors, watering down the prevailing mystery in the process.
May 21, 2019
30
2001 is hardly the most obvious movie to use as inspiration for a video game and perhaps predictably the end result suffers from slow-pacing and a lack of meaningful interaction.
May 24, 2019
10
Awesome game on PC and PS4. Lighting and atmosphere is great, I love the setting. The slow pace is awesome for building tension, i was very anxious!
Dec 4, 2023
7
Observation quiere contar una historia en teoría interesante pero que se diluye con sus puzzles poco interesantes y que alejan al jugador de la premisa principal, si tienes paciencia vale la pena ver el final pero claramente no es un juego para todos.
Jul 20, 2022
7
Nice idea and a good story even if Interstellar and 2001 SO cut/paste are so evident.
May 29, 2019
4
You will be spending your time solving kindergarten level 'puzzles' served through an intentionally convoluted and obtuse interface as to create the illusion of challenge. That is if you consider challenging, the idea of bumping into every wall in search of some interactive pop-up. Tedious, boring, and repetitive, this is an experience that relies heavily on its audio-visual presentation in order to entertain. Intriguing and immersive, the game is heavily inspired by classics such as 2001: A space odyssey and interstellar, while never succeeding in offering a respectable narrative pay off. Observation is a genuinely mediocre game and a concrete example of what happens when the artistic and directorial aspirations of a developer takes precedence over genuinely fun, clever, and engaging design and mechanics.
Jul 2, 2020
2
I can't even explain how cool the game idea is, and how poorly is made. I was searching for some small objects entire game wasting my time. Most of the mechanics are a joke, and there are there just to fill the hole in gameplay. Click here, go here, go there, see these numbers? Let's write to them. Most of the time I was guessing what game designer want me to do, and the ending of the game is so bad...
SummaryObservation is a sci-fi thriller uncovering what happened to Dr. Emma Fisher, and the crew of her mission, through the lens of the station’s artificial intelligence S.A.M. Players assume the role of S.A.M. by operating the station’s control systems, cameras, and tools to assist Emma in discovering what is happening to the station, the va... Read More
Rated Mfor Mature
Platforms:
- PC
- PlayStation 4
- Xbox One
Initial Release Date:May 21, 2019
Developer:
Publisher:
