Observer Reviews

Observer is ranked in the 75th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
5 / 10.0
Mar 20, 2024

All told, Observer showcases the quintessential cyberpunk world, offering a bleak glance at a future that oozes distrust, oil, and injustice from every pore. The visuals, even on the Switch, are impressive, and portray a world so dingy that it’s borderline uncomfortable. Creeping through the jumbled mind of Dan Lazarski (Hauer) is oftentimes legitimately troubling, but despite the effective styling and a well written score, the experience is severely hampered by sluggish controls, unclear storytelling and an almost complete lack of gameplay.

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6.5 / 10.0
Feb 7, 2019

You’ll play the game as Dan Lazarski, a sort of cyber-detective operating in a dystopian future world full of augmented humans...

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89 / 100
Aug 21, 2017

Through the grimy neon-lit world of 2084 Karkow a cautionary tale of augmentation, war, and suffering blend together to make the Observer an exciting tale.

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Unscored
Aug 18, 2017

Observer is a good game. It lasts between 6 and 8 hours that will surely be short given the low difficulty, but we recommend to play it.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

50 / 100
Feb 25, 2019

Observer is a good title. Good story, a solid core, and a great setting. Simply, if you can play anywhere else, the experience will be more satisfying than on Switch.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

10 / 10.0
Dec 16, 2018

Observer is a wonderful game from start to finish. It is both fear-instilling and intriguing. So, if you're looking for a horror game that is visually striking and insightful enough to warrant self-reflection, Observer is a wonderful choice.

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6.2 / 10.0
Oct 12, 2017

Observer is one of those games that not everyone can communicate with. If we ignore game-play issues, Observer is definitely worth experiencing once. Having said that, before you start the game, you need to know you’d better not compare it with other games with similar genre as you’ll get highly disappointed!

Review in Persian | Read full review

8 / 10.0
Aug 25, 2017

Observer is light on action/gameplay but offers an extremely deep story with interesting cyberpunk world-building and some bizarrely creepy dream images to keep you up at night. The voice acting is shaky more often than not, but the story is worth the price of admission.

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8.2 / 10.0
Sep 22, 2017

Observer manages to construct a truly disturbing Orwellian reality and put the player at the heart of a sinister plot that’ll definitely creep them out. It borrows a lot from cyberpunk classics, and while it feels derivative at times, it manages to create its own cyberpunk experience and deliver a fresh take on horror gameplay

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9 / 10.0
Aug 28, 2017

Observer lays the paranoia and atmosphere on thick, while not sacrificing significantly in the gameplay and story department. The result is a nicely balanced, consistent and compelling experience that is easily recommended to horror and sci-fi fans.

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7 / 10.0
Sep 28, 2017

Observer is a first-person cyberpunk horror title from the minds behind the reputedly excellent Layers of Fear, Bloober Team. Stepping into the cybernetically enhanced mind of Daniel Lazarski, modeled after and voiced by cyberpunk veteran Rutger Hauer, as he investigates the disappearance of his son. Exploring a dark, retro-futuristic world full of dark secrets, "Big Brother" and mind-hacking, Observer is an interesting tale that, more often than not, is an exercise in patience more than it is a horror story.

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9.5 / 10.0
Sep 12, 2017

Observer is as close to a cyberpunk masterpiece as we’ll get, featuring an engaging story, excellent performances from all the voice actors involved, and impeccable worldbuilding.

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Aug 23, 2017

I highly recommend >observer_ to anyone who loves story driven experiences. It does have a link to Layers of Fear, in both its tone and brilliant level design, but is a completely different game that is dark, disturbing and delightful all at the same time.

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9 / 10.0
Aug 29, 2017

>Observer_ is a masterfully crafted game that had me engaged with the world behind it.

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9 / 10.0
Aug 22, 2017

"Observer is my favorite horror game of 2017 so far. It’s enthralling, disturbing, and makes you want to explore every corner of the building and scan every little thing."

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5 / 5
Aug 17, 2017

An amazing depiction of a decaying society through the eyes of a broken man. Cyberpunk at its finest.

Review in Portuguese | Read full review

4 / 5.0
Aug 14, 2017

Bloober Team has taken what they learned with Layers of Fear and delivered a more immersive world, and a equally as creepy story, even if the gameplay does get in the way of itself from time to time.

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6.5 / 10.0
Aug 14, 2017
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Feb 7, 2019

Observer puts another horror string in the Switch’s bow. It remains an effective and compelling sci-fi horror trip that isn’t afraid to take things at its own pace whilst sticking firmly to its own rules. That does mean that it’s not going to be to every horror fan’s tastes, but it’s admirable that it stands by its convictions to deliver an unsettling and evocative experience.

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7 / 10.0
Mar 12, 2019

With dated yet distinctive visuals, Observer is sure to suck people into the Dystopian world that Bloober Team created, but it won’t be for everyone.

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