Tandem: A Tale of Shadows
Fair · Action · 2021
Steam Deck PlayableThe verdict
NO RUSH.
Fair at $9.99. Buy it if you want it.
- Length
- 4.9h 6.2h to 100%
- Value
- $2.04/hr
- Reviews
- 92% of 228 positive
Watch this gameOne alert at $8.38 or less.
Buy now or wait
Discounted in 4 of its last 8 seasonal sales. Last cut ended 287 days ago.
- Next sale
- Winter Sale, Dec 17 to Jan 4
Sources: IsThereAnyDeal, Valve.
What drives the score
How to read this
Grades run S to D, read from the buyer's side. ▲ marks a lift, ▼ a drag or a dock, ? an input we do not have, • a fact this genre's score does not use. How the grades work
About the game
Tandem : A Tale of Shadows redefines the puzzle platformer genre with a unique gameplay and exceptional aesthetics. Help Emma and the teddy bear Fenton solve the mystery of the disappearance of the famous magician Thomas Kane.
Minimum specs
Minimum on the Steam store: 6 GB of memory, Nvidia GTX 670, 2 GB or equivalent, 6 GB of storage. Runs on Windows, Linux.
The value story
Across all 29 discounts in the 5 years tracked, the median cut is 50 percent, about 6 weeks apart. Today it is at full price, and its last discount ended about 41 weeks ago.
On value it sits in the top 4 percent of its genre. It is pricier than 70 percent of its genre, and better reviewed than 94 percent. Among the games that feel like it, La-Mulana 2 ($24.99, scores 71) beats it on value, while it beats Iconoclasts ($19.99, scores 59).
More about Tandem: A Tale of Shadows
The press gave it 73; the people who bought it give it 92 percent. A 19-point gap in the buyer's favour.
Steam's global achievement data puts 24 percent of players at this game's ending achievement. The median game this site can measure sits at 15.
The drop-off
88% start to 24% finishSteam counts a larger share of its players at the ending achievement than it does for most games this site can measure. Steam global achievements
What players say
A decent game considering the asking price. The graphics are nice and I love the idea of a top-down camera for Emma, while the teddy bear plays side-scroller style. The puzzles are interesting, mainly because of the 2 camera setups, but you rarely find yourself having to really think hard to find the solution. The worst thing about this game is that I encountered a lot of glitches where Emma gets stuck all of a...
2 more reviews, 1 not recommended
I groaned when I started and realized this is a game played in three dimensions but as I progressed and got the hang of it, I had a lot of fun. Colorful, creative graphics and an interesting storyline. The bad guys are really cool too. The only bummer is the morbid ending. A nicely thought out game.
The TL:DR of this review: good puzzles, AWFUL story, VERY off putting ending. Some gamers might retort: "meh, puzzle games don't need a STORY…do they?" Honestly...no, puzzle games do NOT need a story, though if you DO attempt one, make sure it's a good story, with NO plot holes (where did the "shadow teddy bear" come from, and WHY), and a great, rewarding ending. Play Tandem for the puzzles, NOT the story. The...
Steam reviews, mixed to its ratio and rotated daily. Opinions are theirs.
Cite this score
Tandem: A Tale of Shadows scores 65/100 on the BANG Score (fair value) as of Oct 19, 2026. The BANG Score rates what a game is worth for the money. Via Steam BANGERS. https://steambangers.com/game/1436920/tandem-a-tale-of-shadowsReviews set the ceiling, and price against real length moves the BANG Score inside it. How it works, and where it is weak → Steam reviews as of Sep 27, price as of Oct 18. A number here look wrong? Tell me and I will check the inputs.