The Drifter Reviews
The Drifter is a gorgeous and moody point 'n' click adventure with impeccable art, but its pulp leanings undermine its best qualities.
The Drifter is a new standard in point and click adventures and deserves to be spoken about in the same breath as the very best the genre has to offer. The look, sound, and feel of the game are all superb and it tells a story that never stops being thrilling. All in all, it's an essential purchase for anybody who has even a passing interest in the genre.
The puzzles are logical, never distracting, often contained within single screens in an escape room style. Excellent voice acting and a cynical narrator complete an experience that demonstrates that adventures can still have a lot to offer, when crafted by skilled hands.
Review in Italian | Read full review
What stumbles there are, though, do little to loosen The Drifter’s sturdy grasp of the genre. With a steady stream of plot twists and storytelling intrigue, the game is a propulsive and polished example of the form, every bit the satisfying pulp adventure it sets out to be.
The Drifter is an excellent adventure game with a fantastic story, excellent sound, and lovely pixel art, though sadly drags a bit here and there.
A brutal, lightning-paced take on the point-and-click adventure, The Drifter stands confidently among the greats of Australian horror fiction. Building a uniquely unsettling atmosphere with its chilling prose and narration, it presents a compelling supernatural mystery that will satisfy any adventure game fan. With gorgeous pixel art, killer voice acting, a soundtrack full of bangers, and an engaging gameplay loop, The Drifter is a home-grown triumph.
The Drifter has everything you want from a modern point-and-click adventure – a banging story, excellent characters that are unabashedly Australian, and expertly designed puzzles. It's one of the best adventure games you'll ever play and it feels like an evolution for the genre, and Powerhoof deserves all the acclaim about to come its way.
Exciting and good-looking wild science fiction in the shape of a classic quest that doesn't look archaic.
Review in Russian | Read full review
If concepts like Stephen King, John Carpenter, and low-budget 80s horror films hold a special place in your life, you’ll absolutely love The Drifter.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
Deserving of a place in the point and click hall of fame, The Drifter is a pulpy thriller with fantastic storytelling, excellent puzzles and truly stand-out voice acting. Undoubtedly one of the highlights of 2025, make sure this is on your radar if you're a fan of adventure games with unforgettable narratives.
The Drifter is a well-written, fast-paced point-and-click thriller that will keep you glued to your seat. It's a must-play for those who love puzzlers, mystery, and adventure.
Adventure game fans should absolutely not miss what The Drifter has to offer.
I was optimistic about The Drifter just from seeing the trailer, but I was unprepared for just how remarkable the game truly is. From gorgeous pixel art, to fantastic vocal performances, to a truly bonkers and melancholy storyline, The Drifter is one of the most memorable and unique experiences I’ve had in a point-and-click adventure in a long time. If you’re a fan of the genre, The Drifter is undeniably a must-play.
Fast, brutal, emotional—The Drifter is the point-and-click game you didn't know you were waiting for—one of the best narrative adventures in years.
What I thought would be a quick review I’d check off the backlog turned out to be one of the most emotionally gripping and atmospherically rich games I’ve played in a long time. It’s got heart, horror, puzzles that actually made me feel smart without being frustrating, and a story that had me hooked from start to finish. Powerhoof has made something special here, and The Drifter absolutely deserves your attention.
Parts of The Drifter don’t fully come together in the end, but the journey to get there is one of the best I’ve experienced in a point-and-click game in years, and its setup for playing on a controller should become the new baseline for the genre. Add in excellent voice acting and killer atmosphere, and this is a game that anyone who enjoys the genre should absolutely check out.
The Drifter is a sharp and stylish revival of the point-and-click formula that manages to feel both nostalgic and refreshingly new. With its gripping narrative, excellent writing, strong character work (especially with the voice acting) and clever puzzle design, it’s an experience that’ll keep players utterly engrossed from start to end. Whether you’re here for the sci-fi mystery, the emotional weight of a sombre homecoming, or the moody old-school pixel art, there’s something memorable waiting at every turn.
The Drifter is a phenomenal experience that takes you on a roller-coaster ride unlike any other game that I’ve played in recent memory. The gameplay may be simple to some but it provides players with a lot of satisfaction with every puzzle solved. Couple that with a gripping story featuring incredible writing, memorable characters, hard hitting themes and messages, amazing art design and a brilliant soundtrack, and The Drifter has everything that it needs to provide you with a perfect experience that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
The Drifter is a great point-and-click adventure that keeps you engaged throughout, with smart puzzles and great characters.
I’ve played a lot of point-and-clicks. Some innovate, some imitate. The Drifter does both, but with intent. It honors the classics while carving out its own identity. It doesn’t waste your time with obtuse puzzles or bloated dialogue. It delivers a tightly constructed mystery, grounded in human fear, and pushes it through sci-fi terror and gritty realism. Is it perfect? No. But it’s smart. It’s polished. And it’s interesting something I can’t say about half the games trying to cash in on ‘retro’ adventure nostalgia.