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Tell Me Why on Steam - User reviews, Price & Information
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Tell Me Why is the multi-award winning episodic adventure game from Dontnod Entertainment in which twins use their supernatural bond to discover the truth of their troubled past.
Tell Me Why is a choices matter, story rich and lgbtq+ game
developed by DONTNOD Entertainment
and published by Xbox Game Studios.
Released on August 27th 2020 is available only on Windows
in 8 languages: English, French, Italian, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese - Brazil and Spanish - Latin America.
It has received 13,883 reviews of which 11,457 were positive and 2,426 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.1 out of 10. 😎
The game is free to play on Steam.
The Steam community has classified Tell Me Why into these genres:
Media & Screenshots
Get an in-depth look at Tell Me Why through various videos and screenshots.
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 version 1903 or higher
- Processor: Intel core i3 4130 (3.4 Ghz 2C / 4T) AMD FX 4300 (3.8 Ghz 4C / 4T)
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GTX 750Ti or Nvidia GTX 1050 or AMD Radeon R7 260X or AMD Radeon RX 560
- DirectX: Version 11
- Storage: 25 GB available space
Steam Price & Best Deals
User reviews & Ratings
Explore reviews from Steam users sharing their experiences and what they love about the game.
Tell Me Why Review Tell Me Why is a neat adventure, but one let down more by its meager story than by anything else. Don’t Nod has always done a strong job creating heartwrenching stories, and while this game clearly put real care and research into its LGBTQ representation, I do feel it falls a little short of the mark and, at times, wades into troubling territory. The game does leave you with an aching sadness, but that sadness comes more from what happened to Mary-Ann and the life she lived than from the story building toward the kind of emotional crescendo Don’t Nod has reached in previous games. The voice actors do admirable work, with Alyson standing out a little more than Tyler, whose delivery sometimes leans too hard into a stoic dudebro register. Ultimately, with only three episodes, the game does not have enough time to weave its many disparate narratives into a fully cohesive and satisfying resolution. There are good ideas here, some very good ones, but they often feel like they are fighting for space in a story that needed more room to breathe. The one thing the game does genuinely well is its representation of the trans experience. As a straight man who used to be heavily religious because that is how I was brought up, I know I am ignorant on the subject in a lot of ways. But through this game, I came to understand Tyler’s struggles in a more intimate way. It opened my mind to what trans people have to deal with just to simply exist. Mouth breathers will call that propaganda, but that is because mouth breathers call anything outside their own reflection propaganda. The game is not trying to indoctrinate anyone. It is sharing a story. And if sharing the pain, dignity, fear, and humanity of marginalized people is propaganda, then you might as well call half of American history propaganda too. From Harriet Tubman, to Martin Luther King Jr., to Emmett Till, these stories are not propaganda simply because they make the comfortable uncomfortable. They are people telling the truth of what it cost them to exist. However, this also brings me to my main complaint with the game. Without getting too specific for spoiler reasons, there is a moment where something very dire occurs, and at first it appears to be rooted in a parent’s rejection of Tyler. The story seems to be pointing toward a familiar and painful kind of bigotry. But as the truth becomes clearer, the game reframes that moment as something closer to a tragic misunderstanding, and ultimately that makes me take a beat. Not because I think the game is malicious, or because I think it handles Tyler without care. I do think the care is there. But the reveal risks implying that Tyler’s fear of rejection was misplaced, rather than fully grappling with why that fear would have felt so real to him in the first place. From my limited perspective, I can imagine that for a trans child, especially one already living with confusion, isolation, and emotional instability at home, fear would not simply be some irrational invention. It would be a survival instinct. It would be the body reading the room before the mind has the words. That is where the writing becomes uncomfortable for me. The story comes close to suggesting that Tyler projected hostility where there may not have been any, and while that may work as individual tragedy, it becomes more complicated when placed inside a story about trans identity. It brushes against the same kind of dismissive logic used against women when they are told to calm down, or against minorities when they are told they are imagining prejudice. Maybe they are not imagining it. Maybe they have simply learned, through experience, what danger sounds like before it fully announces itself. So I respect Tell Me Why. I admire what it is trying to do. I think its heart is in the right place, and I think Tyler is handled with more humanity than a lot of games would have managed. But I also think the story needed more time, more precision, and maybe a little more courage in its final stretch. It wants to be a story about memory, trauma, identity, and family, but by the end, it feels like it only has enough space to gesture at those things rather than fully land them. A thoughtful game, an important game in some ways, but not quite a great one. A 7/10 for me, which is on my scale a good game, but not quite an 8 and great.
A really enjoyable game :) I've enjoyed other previous games by DONTNOD, and this scratches the same itch. I really liked the two main characters and their story arc. The main plot itself is good, but not fantastic - where some of the plot points were heading weren't too surprising. But I still enjoyed myself - the emotional moments hit the right spot, and it was refreshing "only" having 3 episodes to go through. And, well, it was free when I got it, so all the better :) A nice 8/10 in my opinion.
Disclaimer: this review contains NO spoilers. Tell Me Why was a sensational and deeply inspiring experience. I was genuinely frustrated by how unknown this game is, because the first and only time I saw someone talk about it was in a TikTok post ranking the Life is Strange saga, where Tell Me Why was included almost as an afterthought. I decided to check it out, played the first chapter, fell in love instantly, and the story hooked me so strongly that, since it was on sale, I bought the remaining chapters. It was an excellent decision. For those already familiar with Don’t Nod’s games, or more specifically the Life is Strange series, the feeling will probably be the same as mine: “Is this from the same universe as Life is Strange?” The game features very similar gameplay, this time with two protagonists who share a supernatural power tied to deep emotional trauma and a heavy story. As with their other games, the gameplay is smooth, the narrative is creative, and the puzzles are very well balanced. Here, puzzles are explored even more, without ever becoming frustrating. I simply couldn’t stop playing. The story kept me completely engaged, and each chapter ends with a strong hook for the next one, which is essential for an episodic game. The difficulty is simple, especially welcoming for players already familiar with Life is Strange, and the memory mechanic is used very effectively. Even so, unlike other games in the series, I believe the story itself is more important than the power. The visuals are beautiful, especially due to the setting in Delos Crossing, a fictional town in Alaska filled with stunning natural landscapes. I also like how the game limits itself to this single location and still manages to explore it extremely well, maintaining a strong sense of spatial coherence. The soundtrack is simple. I usually get very attached to game soundtracks, but here it didn’t stand out to me as much, although it is far from bad. I experienced no technical issues: no bugs, no crashes, and no FPS drops. Without a doubt, the game’s greatest strength is its story. I would love to talk more about it, but I prefer to avoid spoilers. Everything revolves around a specific event, full of twists, constant suspicion, and genuine surprises. How surprised you will be depends a lot on the interpretations you build during your playthrough. I uncovered one of the game’s major plot points early on, but that didn’t diminish my experience at all. It is not something obvious, just a matter of perspective. The relationships between the characters are also extremely well developed, which adds a lot of emotional weight to the narrative. Another highlight is the Book of Goblins. Beyond the main story, the game showcases excellent writing, and this book works as a narrative mechanic similar to Max’s and Sean’s diaries in Life is Strange 1 and 2. It contains several short fables that, if carefully analyzed, help contextualize the story in a subtle and symbolic way. The writing is outstanding. I strongly recommend not reading them all at once. As the game progresses, these stories gain new meanings, and only near the end does everything fully come together. I would also like to dedicate a paragraph to praising how the protagonist Tyler was written. Tyler is a trans man, and his representation is handled with remarkable sensitivity. The game explores his childhood, his self-discovery, and the different reactions of those around him with great care and respect. You can feel the creators’ affection for the character. As a cis man, I cannot fully speak from that perspective, but as a bisexual person, I can say that LGBTQIAPN+ players will likely connect even more deeply with Tyler’s story, especially trans players. Still, Tyler is not defined solely by this. It is simply part of his background. Above all, he is a man who has been through a lot, and that is enough. As for the negatives, there is nothing truly serious. I can only point out a couple of very personal issues. First, the facial expressions could have been more refined. They are not bad, but in certain moments, especially with Tyler and Alyson, neutral expressions linger longer than they should, causing slight discomfort. Second, the choice system. The game offers two epilogues and a variable relationship between the twins, but I believe most players end up making very similar decisions and reaching the same endings. This did not affect my enjoyment, but personally, I prefer when choices truly divide players and spark deeper discussion. Tell Me Why is a game for those who love story-driven experiences and forming emotional connections with characters. It is casual, immersive, and deeply engaging. As I often say, you are not paying just for a product, but for an experience. My final verdict is simple: yes, it is absolutely worth it. The first chapter is free, which makes it easy to try before buying, although I personally think chapters 2 and 3 are even better. Especially on sale, this is an experience that truly deserves to be lived.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, Tell Me Why is free to play on Steam.
Tell Me Why is not on sale because is already free to play on Steam.
Yes, Tell Me Why received 11,457 positive votes out of a total of 13,883 achieving a rating of 8.07.
😎
Tell Me Why was developed by DONTNOD Entertainment and published by Xbox Game Studios.
Yes, Tell Me Why is playable and fully supported on Windows.
No, Tell Me Why is not playable on MacOS.
No, Tell Me Why is not playable on Linux.
Tell Me Why is a single-player game.
Yes, there are 3 DLCs available for Tell Me Why. Explore additional content available for Tell Me Why on Steam.
No, Tell Me Why does not support mods via Steam Workshop.
No, Tell Me Why does not support Steam Remote Play.
Yes, Tell Me Why 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 Tell Me Why.
Data sources
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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 | 23 July 2026 06:24 UTC |
|---|---|
| SteamSpy data | 27 July 2026 20:28 UTC |
| Steam price | 23 July 2026 06:24 UTC |
| Steam reviews | 27 July 2026 01:50 UTC |
If you'd like to dive deeper into the details about Tell Me Why, 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 Tell Me Why
- SteamCharts - Analysis of Tell Me Why concurrent players on Steam
- ProtonDB - Crowdsourced reports on Linux and Steam Deck Tell Me Why compatibility
Game modes
Features
Online players
328
Developer
DONTNOD Entertainment
Publisher
Xbox Game Studios
Release
27 Aug 2020
Platforms