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Order of the Sinking Star is a single-player puzzle adventure from Thekla, Inc., directed by Jonathan Blow. Steam and Nintendo list it for October 8, 2026, but the US PlayStation Store still gives the PS5 release date as to be determined. The available hands-on account is a PlayStation Blog demo preview—not a documented ten-hour playthrough of the finished game.
What is Order of the Sinking Star?
Developed by Thekla, Inc. and directed by Jonathan Blow, the designer of Braid and The Witness, Order of the Sinking Star is a single-player puzzle adventure. Steam credits Arc Games and Gamirror Games as publishers. Its premise connects four worlds, each with its own characters and puzzle rules. As the adventure brings those worlds and characters together, their mechanics begin to interact.
The puzzles draw on exploration, character-specific abilities, moving blocks and other objects, beams, reflection-based movement, hazards, and narrative clues. The result is designed around learning how systems work and then applying them in new combinations, rather than combat.
What does the hands-on preview show?
In a PlayStation Blog demo preview published July 21, 2026, contributor Corey Brotherson describes beginning with the Queen, learning grid-based object-pushing and an undo/rewind mechanic, and then gaining access to several directions. The account offers concrete examples of how the game differentiates its characters and regions.
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Abilities and puzzle systems in the demo
- Hearty Heroes: Warrior Valens pushes objects, thief Tif pulls them, and wizard Isidore swaps places with objects in his line of sight.
- The Promise: Coloured beams power abilities, making beam routing part of the puzzle logic.
- Mirror Isles: A trader swaps places with a projected reflection.
Brotherson reports that enemies and new abilities add complications without introducing combat. Several hours into the demo, characters from different regions begin combining their powers. The fourth region was not available in that demo, so the preview does not establish how the entire game develops or how long a full playthrough takes.
How long is Order of the Sinking Star?
There is no verified typical completion-time estimate in the available material. Steam and Nintendo describe more than 1,000 handcrafted puzzles, dozens of mechanics, and hundreds of hours of unique gameplay. Thekla’s official game site says more than 500 hours await the most dedicated solvers. Those are developer or publisher scale claims, not independently measured playtime or a promise that most players will need hundreds of hours.
Rank #2
- Order Up: In this frantic tossing, fish flopping, order filling game, it's your team of fish mongers against the clock to fill orders by flipping cards and tossing the electronic fish back and forth.
- Flopping Fish Timer: Keep track of your time in each round with the wobbly fish timer that plays sound and flops around as you throw it between players!
- Fun, Cooperative Play: This cooperative game is perfect for your next family game night or group gathering as you play together to try and beat your score and climb the levels to Master Fishmonger! For 2-6 players ages 8 and up!
- 3 Levels: Once your team has mastered Level 1, there are 2 more levels of play, each with more fish, more orders, and more disruptions to try and beat the clock!
- Easy, Quick Play: With easy-to-follow setup instructions for each level of play, Order Up! Fish Market is quick and fun to play, so you can test your skills again and again to improve your score and try to beat level 3!
The PlayStation Blog preview separately described 900+ levels in July 2026. That figure and the storefront puzzle-count claims use different wording and should not be treated as interchangeable measures. The preview reports several hours with a demo, not ten hours in the released game.
When does Order of the Sinking Star release, and on which platforms?
| Platform | Store listing and release timing | Published platform details |
|---|---|---|
| PC (Steam) | Steam lists October 8, 2026. | Single-player, Steam achievements, Steam Cloud, and Family Sharing. Minimum requirements listed: Windows 10 or later, 8 GB RAM, DirectX 12, and 14 GB available storage. Steam lists English full audio and subtitles, plus interface and subtitle support in additional languages. |
| Nintendo Switch 2 | Nintendo’s US store lists the digital edition for October 8, 2026. | One player; TV, tabletop, and handheld modes; estimated download size of 18.9 GB. |
| PlayStation 5 | The US PlayStation Store lists the PS5 version but says the release date is to be determined. | Offline play, one player, DualSense vibration, and basic subtitles for the main story and main characters. |
The dates above reflect the respective listings as of October 7, 2026. Steam and Nintendo give a date, while the US PlayStation Store does not; the PS5 timing should not be assumed to match the other platforms. Language metadata also differs between Steam and Nintendo, so check the specific store listing for the language support on the version you plan to play.
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In a PC Gamer interview published January 7, 2026, Blow described his broader approach to puzzle games: “One thing that I used to try to tell people is, ‘Look, if you’re making a puzzle game—if it’s just a difficulty challenge that’s not really that interesting, you want it to be about something and you want what it’s about to be good.” That is Blow’s stated design philosophy, rather than an independent verdict on how successfully Order of the Sinking Star delivers on it.
Quick Recap
Best Value
Rank #4
- FUN and fast-paced board game that will have players strategising and sabotaging. Sinking City can be enjoyed all year round and is a must-have addition to games collections for school summer holidays or cosy winter nights.
- PLAYERS : 2+6 or teams
- AGES: 13+
- CONTENTS: Game Board, Instructions, 1 x Wooden Die, 6 x Playing Pieces, tokens, tiles, cards
- Let the games continue, this product has been designed to keep , please enjoy, replay, and give away for further play
Sources
- Steam: Order of the Sinking Star
- Nintendo: Order of the Sinking Star
- PlayStation Blog hands-on preview, July 21, 2026
- US PlayStation Store listing
- PC Gamer interview with Jonathan Blow, January 7, 2026
- Thekla official site
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
