Best Documentary Games on Steam
Steam currently has 153 Documentary games available to download and play. Explore our list of the best picks ranked by Player Score. Our Player Score rankings are calculated directly from reviews left on the Steam store and will be updated in real-time as more players leave their feedback. Documentary game rankings were last updated on 3/22/2024.
Looking for more? Explore other lists such as:
- Free documentary games on Steam
- Best documentary Steam Deck games
- Best documentary Linux games on Steam
- Best documentary Steam games for Mac OS
- Free Steam games
- Most played Steam games
- Best rated Steam games
1. Free to Play
Free to Play is a feature-length documentary that follows three professional gamers from around the world as they compete for a million dollar prize in the first Dota 2 International Tournament.
Free to Play holds the #1 spot for "best Documentary game on Steam" with a Player Score of 92. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 11,010 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 10,464 positive reviews and 546 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is completely free to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, there is no confirmed information regarding Steam Deck support for this game.
2. Half-Life: Alyx - Final Hours
THE FINAL HOURS OF HALF-LIFE: ALYX is an interactive storybook, written by Geoff Keighley, that takes fans inside Valve Software to chronicle the company’s past decade of game development, including the return of Half-Life.
Half-Life: Alyx - Final Hours has achieved a Player Score of 89, placing it in the #2 spot for the best Documentary games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 846 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 807 positive reviews and 39 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $7.99 to play and can be played and ran on both Windows and Mac systems. At the moment, it is not possible to play or run Half-Life: Alyx - Final Hours on the Steam Deck.
| Steam Price | $7.99 |
| Release Date | 7/9/2020 |
| Developer | Geoff Keighley |
| Publisher | Geoff Keighley |
| Steam App Id | 1361700 |
3. Indie Game: The Movie
The emotional journey of four developers as they sacrifice money, health and sanity to realize their lifelong dreams of sharing their games with the world.
Indie Game: The Movie has achieved a Player Score of 88, placing it in the #3 spot for the best Documentary games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 1,824 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 1,686 positive reviews and 138 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $9.99 to play and can be played and ran on both Windows and Mac systems. At the moment, there is no confirmed information regarding Steam Deck support for this game.
| Steam Price | $9.99 |
| Release Date | 6/12/2012 |
| Developer | Blinkworks Media |
| Publisher | BlinkWorks Media |
| Steam App Id | 207080 |
4. The Book of Distance
In 1935, Yonezo Okita left his home in Japan and began a new life in Canada. Then war and state-sanctioned racism changed everything—he became the enemy. His grandson leads us on an interactive virtual pilgrimage through an emotional geography of immigration and family to recover what was lost.
The Book of Distance has achieved a Player Score of 87, placing it in the #4 spot for the best Documentary games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 169 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 165 positive reviews and 4 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It is completely free to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, there is no confirmed information regarding Steam Deck support for this game.
| Release Date | 10/8/2020 |
| Developer | National Film Board of Canada |
| Publishers | |
| Steam App Id | 1245640 |
5. The Making of Karateka
Play the history. Go behind the scenes of Jordan Mechner's landmark game Karateka in this interactive documentary from Digital Eclipse, with archival materials, video features, and more. Experience pixel-perfect versions of this legendary game, with all-new features.
The Making of Karateka has achieved a Player Score of 86, placing it in the #5 spot for the best Documentary games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 84 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 83 positive reviews and 1 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $19.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play The Making of Karateka on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Steam Price | $19.99 |
| Release Date | 8/29/2023 |
| Developer | Digital Eclipse |
| Publisher | Digital Eclipse |
| Steam App Id | 1163060 |
6. The Mind of Marlo
Uniquely presented as an hour long documentary film, The Mind of Marlo is a narrative driven adventure game focusing on love, loss and silly heads. Laugh and cry with Marlo as he gets to the bottom of his life changing condition, known as Spontaneous Silly Head Syndrome.
The Mind of Marlo has achieved a Player Score of 86, placing it in the #6 spot for the best Documentary games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 228 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 215 positive reviews and 13 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It is completely free to play and can be played and ran on both Windows and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play The Mind of Marlo on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Release Date | 10/19/2017 |
| Developer | Point Bleep Studios |
| Publisher | Baffled Crab |
| Steam App Id | 722870 |
7. That Dragon, Cancer
An immersive, narrative videogame that retells Joel Green’s 4-year fight against cancer through about two hours of poetic, imaginative gameplay that explores themes of faith, hope and love.
That Dragon, Cancer has achieved a Player Score of 86, placing it in the #7 spot for the best Documentary games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 1,400 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 1,262 positive reviews and 138 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $9.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. Valve has also verified it as playable on the Steam Deck and will run well.
| Steam Price | $9.99 |
| Release Date | 1/11/2016 |
| Developer | Numinous Games |
| Publisher | Numinous Games |
| Steam App Id | 419460 |
8. How To Cope With Boredom and Loneliness
Harold Fletcher has been grounded to his bedroom for over 30 years. Join award-winning journalist Nigel Wimble as he discovers how one man has coped with the boredom and loneliness in this one of a kind, FREE, documentary film simulator!
How To Cope With Boredom and Loneliness has achieved a Player Score of 85, placing it in the #8 spot for the best Documentary games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 556 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 509 positive reviews and 47 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It is completely free to play and can be played and ran on both Windows and Linux systems. At the moment, there is no confirmed information regarding Steam Deck support for this game.
| Release Date | 4/2/2018 |
| Developer | Point Bleep Studios |
| Publisher | Baffled Crab |
| Steam App Id | 797390 |
9. Guildford Castle VR
Guildford Castle is a free roaming, narrative VR experience with light interactivity.
Guildford Castle VR has achieved a Player Score of 85, placing it in the #9 spot for the best Documentary games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 83 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 81 positive reviews and 2 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It is completely free to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, there is no confirmed information regarding Steam Deck support for this game.
| Release Date | 3/24/2022 |
| Developer | Historic VR |
| Publisher | Historic VR |
| Steam App Id | 1862880 |
10. Brukel
A first-person exploration game based on the actual memories of a 92-year-old grandmother, told to players in her own voice. Take pictures of what remains of her abandoned childhood home to uncover the dark, traumatic events that she had to fight through as a teenage girl.
Brukel has achieved a Player Score of 82, placing it in the #10 spot for the best Documentary games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 219 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 196 positive reviews and 23 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It is priced at $4.99 to play and can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, there is no confirmed information regarding Steam Deck support for this game.
| Steam Price | $4.99 |
| Release Date | 11/3/2019 |
| Developer | Bob De Schutter |
| Publisher | Lifelong Games |
| Steam App Id | 1073900 |
More Documentary Games
Explore even more rankings for the 37 best Documentary games available on Steam.
| Image | Name | Actions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 2 | 3/19/2014 | 92 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 7/9/2020 | 89 | $7.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 6/12/2012 | 88 | $9.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 10/8/2020 | 87 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 8/29/2023 | 86 | $19.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 10/19/2017 | 86 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 1/11/2016 | 86 | $9.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 4/2/2018 | 85 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 3/24/2022 | 85 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 11/3/2019 | 82 | $4.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 5/28/2020 | 81 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 3/7/2013 | 81 | $1.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 9/26/2019 | 80 | $14.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 0 | 6/21/2021 | 79 | $5.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 5/11/2020 | 78 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 4/24/2018 | 78 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 0 | 11/15/2018 | 77 | $11.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 7/19/2018 | 76 | $4.99 | Steam Charts | |
 | 0 | 8/13/2021 | 75 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 1 | 5/17/2011 | 73 | $1.99 | Steam Charts |
Soures & References
Steambase has best-in-class data powered directly by Steam, our data partners, and in-house experts. Reviews and rankings are enriched, analyzed, and updated in real-time to ensure we surface the most up-to-date insights. Learn more about the Steambase approach to data collection and our review methodology.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 22). Steam Store. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 22). Free to Play on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, April 16). Half-Life: Alyx - Final Hours on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 22). Indie Game: The Movie on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, May 6). The Book of Distance on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 22). The Making of Karateka on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 2). The Mind of Marlo on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 20). That Dragon, Cancer on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, April 10). How To Cope With Boredom and Loneliness on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 22). Guildford Castle VR on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, March 22). Brukel on Steam. Steam Store.