What are the pros of Beholder?

Evocative dystopian atmosphere heavily inspired by George Orwell's 1984.. Compelling moral dilemmas that force players to choose between state loyalty and family survival.. Unique blend of resource management, stealth, and spying mechanics.. Strong emotional impact, effectively conveying a sense of dread and hopelessness..

What are the cons of Beholder?

Punishing difficulty spikes and strict time-based quests can lead to frustration.. Permadeath mechanics combined with a perceived lack of variety can make restarts feel repetitive.. Specific trial-and-error tasks, such as bomb defusing, can abruptly end a long playthrough.. Issues with English translation quality and overwhelming quest management..

Beholder

You’re a state-installed landlord in a totalitarian country. Place listening devices, steal and sneak into your tenants’ apartments. Use what you uncovered to report anyone capable of plotting against the state. You MUST! But WILL you?

92%

Very Positive

DeveloperAlawar Stargaze (Warm Lamp Games)

PublisherAlawar

Release DateNov 9, 2016

$13.99

Peak Players7.8K

Metacritic75

PlatformsWindows · macOS · Linux

Adventure

Indie

Strategy

AI Review Summary

Beholder is a grim dystopian surveillance simulator that forces players to balance the demands of a totalitarian state with the survival of their own family. While it successfully captures a sense of hopeless despair and moral tension, many players find the gameplay loop punishingly difficult and overly reliant on strict timers.

Pros

Evocative dystopian atmosphere heavily inspired by George Orwell's 1984.90%
Compelling moral dilemmas that force players to choose between state loyalty and family survival.85%
Unique blend of resource management, stealth, and spying mechanics.75%
Strong emotional impact, effectively conveying a sense of dread and hopelessness.70%

Cons

Punishing difficulty spikes and strict time-based quests can lead to frustration.90%
Permadeath mechanics combined with a perceived lack of variety can make restarts feel repetitive.70%
Specific trial-and-error tasks, such as bomb defusing, can abruptly end a long playthrough.60%
Issues with English translation quality and overwhelming quest management.50%

Notable Mentions

Frequently cited as a spiritual peer to Papers, Please and This War of Mine.
The game features a simplistic but effective art style that complements its dark themes.

Confidence: 83%

Based on the 200 most relevant reviewsGenerated on Aug 25, 2026

Game Vitals

Live snapshot

Player Activity

Current peak

Peak · last 90 days

514

All-time peak

7.8K

Price

Current price

$13.99

Lowest tracked

$1.39since Jul 21, 2026

Review Sentiment

Launch week

94%

Last 30 days

86%

All-time positive

92%

Review Statistics

Total Reviews31.0K

Positive: 28.4K (92%)Negative: 2.6K (8%)

Reviews from Steam Deck

12%

Dev Response Rate

11h

Avg Playtime at Review

84%

Credible Reviews