Deal | Quern - Undying Thoughts, the Riven successor critics loved, is now 90% off

The first-person puzzle adventure from Hungarian studio Zadbox Entertainment, Quern - Undying Thoughts, is currently 90 percent off on Steam. The discount cuts the game from its $24.99 list price to $2.49, its lowest recorded price on the platform, and runs until November 21, 2026. The original soundtrack is also 90 percent off at $0.99, while the Puzzle Adventure Classics bundle with The House of Da Vinci costs $15.73.

An island built around reusable puzzles

Released on November 28, 2016, Quern - Undying Thoughts opens with the player arriving on a remote island as the portal that brought them there closes behind them. With no way back, players explore the island in first person and piece together its history through letters left behind by its previous inhabitant, Maythorn.

Rather than treating each puzzle as a one-off, Zadbox built the game around reusable mechanics. Tools such as crystals with different functions and alchemical potions keep returning as new areas open up, so players have to think about the island as a whole instead of solving isolated challenges. Critics drew direct comparisons with Myst and Riven, with PC World calling it “the Riven successor we never got.”

Strong reception and modest system requirements

On Steam, 90 percent of more than 2,600 English user reviews are positive, earning the game a Very Positive rating, while the PC version holds an 83 Metacritic score. Recent sentiment is a little cooler, with 82 percent of the 34 English reviews posted in the last 30 days rated positive. GOG’s store listing puts the main story at around 13.5 hours.

The game ships with native Windows, macOS, and Linux builds. Minimum requirements call for an Intel Core i3-2100, 3 GB of RAM, an Nvidia GeForce GTX 650 2 GB or AMD Radeon HD 7770 2 GB, and 9 GB of storage. The recommended specification steps up to an Intel Core i7-3770K, 8 GB of RAM, and a GeForce GTX 950. Steam still lists Windows 7 as the minimum OS, although the Steam client itself now requires Windows 10 or later.

Players who prefer a controller have other options too. Quern - Undying Thoughts arrived on Xbox One in 2020 and reached Nintendo Switch on October 6, 2026.

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