ABZU on Steam - User reviews, Price & Information
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From the art director of Journey®, ABZÛ is a beautiful underwater adventure that evokes the dream of diving. Immerse yourself in a vibrant hidden world bursting with color and life as you descend into the heart of the ocean. But beware as you swim deeper as dangers lurk in the depths.
ABZU is a relaxing, atmospheric and underwater game
developed by Giant Squid
and published by 505 Games.
Released on August 02nd 2016 is available only on Windows
in 8 languages: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish - Spain, Portuguese - Brazil, Russian and Simplified Chinese.
It has received 26,113 reviews of which 24,253 were positive and 1,860 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.1 out of 10. 😍
The game is currently priced at 19.99€ on Steam, but you can find it for less on Gamivo.
The Steam community has classified ABZU into these genres:
System requirements
These are the minimum specifications needed to play the game. For the best experience, we recommend that you verify them.
Windows
- OS *: Windows 7, 64-bit
- Processor: 3.0GHz CPU Dual Core
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Graphics: Geforce GTX 750 / Radeon R7 260X
- DirectX: Version 11
- Storage: 6 GB available space
- Sound Card: DirectX compatible sound card
User reviews & Ratings
Explore reviews from Steam users sharing their experiences and what they love about the game.
This was a pleasant surprise. I had played ABZU a couple of years ago for the incredible runtime of approximately 10 minutes before putting it down. Somehow, the game managed to bore me to death rather quickly. Looking back now, I guess I just wasn’t in the right head space when I first tried playing this. Maybe I was looking for a different kind of experience or whatever but no matter the case, I’m glad I came back and gave it another whirl. For about one afternoon (something close to 2h max), I had a chill, almost meditative time with ABZU which is just what I needed (and some of you reading this probably do too). All you basically do in this game is diving and exploring the underwater world of an alien planet that somewhat resembles our own. The ocean in ABZU is a fantastical place. Swarms of fish have made it their home, coral reefs are a beautiful sight to behold and the remnants of an old, forgotten civilization can still be found deep in the water. The water itself is vibrant, it radiates with an azure glow and when it is touched by light, it explodes into this breathtaking scenery of orange and gold colors. The plants are moving slowly in the underwater current, the sunlight is breaking through the water’s surface…the world of ABZU is magnificent. This vibe of a rich and vivid world is underscored by yet another sublime soundtrack by none other than the goat himself – Austin Wintory. I don’t know how he does it but whenever this dude sits down to compose a soundtrack for a game, the result is pretty much guaranteed to be magical. His work here is very Journey-coded of course, ABZU makes no secret of the fact that it is very much inspired by that game. It’s no surprise that the director worked on Journey as well and you can see that in the game’s core game loop, its fundamental progression and overall vibe too. Not everything in ABZU is as lively and beautiful as it seems at first. There is a darkness that has taken hold of this world. As you progress through the game, you come across sections of the ocean that seem cut off from the rest of the world. They are engulfed in darkness, lifeless and drab. It is your task you revitalize those sections and bring back the light. What exactly your role in this world is, where you come from and what caused this darkness in the first place remains rather obscure for the majority of the game. Every now and again, you find frescoes depicting the lore of the world and hinting at your heritage as well as the calamity that befell the world of ABZU. It remains rather abstract throughout the game and leaves just enough room for interpretation which I really enjoyed. It is up to you whether you take the story presented to you at face value or if you choose to regard it as a metaphor for something else, maybe something that is very much happening in our own world as well. Later on, the game becomes much clearer and there is a sort of clever and to some extent even touching twist with regards to your role as the player. I have to admit that I was actually quite moved by this kind of storytelling with a human twist which I didn’t expect at all. Sadly, I never fully got a grasp on the game’s controls. You are moving freely in an underwater environment for most of the game and if you ever played any game with a diving section, you are probably aware of the challenges with regards to the movement in such environments. ABZU lets you choose between normal and inverted controls for the player and the camera separately. This is neat but none of the configurations felt great to me. I don’t know what it was but moving through this world was more of a struggle than a smooth ride which is a shame because it prevented me from getting fully immersed in this gorgeous world. The game allows you to swim in tandem with the various inhabitants of the sea which is the coolest thing ever. You can hop onto the back of a turtle or hang onto a shark(!) and, depending on the animal you ride with, they behave differently. You can dash through the water with a small and agile fish friend or you can choose to take it slow by hanging onto a big whale; it’s really cool how unique every animal controls. I just wish I had gotten a hold of the game’s controls better so that I could have enjoyed these sections more. This personal grievance aside, ABZU is a treat. It’s impressive on an audiovisual level, the story is understated but thematically coherent as well as metaphorical in nature and the vibe and flow of the game are quite meditative. I struggled with the controls a lot and I do have to admit that, despite its short runtime, the game overstays its welcome a tiny bit towards the end. Ultimately, ABZU didn’t quite grab me in a way Journey did, but it is enough to stand on its own and carve its own, unique path. Fans of Journey and similar “walking-sim-typey” games, that are more focused on meditative vibes and exploration and less on narrative experiences, should absolutely check this game out.
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I'll be honest with you, ABZU is probably what something some people might call a swimming simulator or what people like me call it Journey but what if SEA, There's not much to do in the game rather than explore, you are pressing like 2 buttons to interact and there's no combat really, no oxygen bar, no health no stress at all, and ABZU doesn't advertises a combat game either, but what it does advertises is being able to swim in a beautiful ocean with fishes and getting lost in it. Well I'm happy to announce, ABZU is every bit excellent at what it does advertises itself as.. a swim in a mysterious ocean, discovering some lost civilisation ruins and just pure joy and wonder, and looks gorgeous while being at it. It's not a combat game or a challenging game, you can beat the whole thing in an evening, you can even hand your kid controller and they'll finish it, and they'll love every second of it. Because ABZU at it's core is a love letter to sea exploration and wonder, joy and curiosity we felt as a kid or what our inner child feels, so if you're someone fascinated by the ocean, pick it up and dive it.. you'll not regret it. If you want something more flashing or survival elements play subnautica instead, this is more free-flow exploration of the mysterious sea akin to Journey.
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I had pretty high expectations going into ABZÛ after seeing all the photos and reviews but honestly, it still managed to surprise me. Playing it felt like being transported somewhere else entirely. It’s such a calming, beautiful experience. The visuals, the music, the way you get to swim alongside all kinds of sea creatures it all felt so peaceful. The only thing that threw me off a bit was the keyboard controls. So I’d definitely recommend using a controller for a smoother experience. ♡
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So many games boast about having cutting edge graphics. But so few are actually beautiful like this one. Art direction is the key.
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ABZU is a wonderful adventure game where you travel in the underwater and free many fishes locked. The story is so beautiful that I always shed a tear at the end of every trip (it's not a lie). The designs are great and the soundtrack is really relaxing and peaceful. I enjoyed playing this game so much, it's one of my favorite game! That would be a shame to miss out such a great game like this one. I highly recommend it!!! 🐠💙
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Frequently Asked Questions
ABZU is currently priced at 19.99€ on Steam.
ABZU is currently not on sale. You can purchase it for 19.99€ on Steam.
ABZU received 24,253 positive votes out of a total of 26,113 achieving an impressive rating of 9.09.
😍
ABZU was developed by Giant Squid and published by 505 Games.
ABZU is playable and fully supported on Windows.
ABZU is not playable on MacOS.
ABZU is not playable on Linux.
ABZU is a single-player game.
ABZU does not currently offer any DLC.
ABZU does not support mods via Steam Workshop.
ABZU does not support Steam Remote Play.
ABZU is enabled for Steam Family Sharing. This means you can share the game with authorized users from your Steam Library, allowing them to play it on their own accounts. For more details on how the feature works, you can read the original Steam Family Sharing announcement or visit the Steam Family Sharing user guide and FAQ page.
You can find solutions or submit a support ticket by visiting the Steam Support page for ABZU.
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Additionally, we incorporate data from the SteamSpy API, which offers insights into game sales and player statistics. This helps us present a comprehensive view of each game's popularity and performance within the gaming community.
Last Updates| Steam data | 19 October 2025 06:06 |
|---|---|
| SteamSpy data | 31 October 2025 21:20 |
| Steam price | 01 November 2025 04:46 |
| Steam reviews | 31 October 2025 00:01 |
If you'd like to dive deeper into the details about ABZU, we invite you to check out a few dedicated websites that offer extensive information and insights. These platforms provide valuable data, analysis, and user-generated reports to enhance your understanding of the game and its performance.
- SteamDB - A comprehensive database of everything on Steam about ABZU
- SteamCharts - Analysis of ABZU concurrent players on Steam
- ProtonDB - Crowdsourced reports on Linux and Steam Deck ABZU compatibility
Game modes
Features
Online players
8
Developer
Giant Squid
Publisher
505 Games
Release
02 Aug 2016
Platforms
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