Idle Research
Fair · Strategy · 2022 · Early Access
Steam Deck PlayableThe verdict
NO RUSH.
Free and middling. Worth a look if the genre is yours.
- Length
- 30.7h
- Price
- Free to play
- Reviews
- 84% positive
Minimum on the Steam store: 2 GB of memory, Integrated Graphics, 2 GB of storage. Runs on Windows, macOS, Linux.
Idle Research is an addictive, resource management, incremental game with both idle and active playstyles. Research and craft colorful Flasks and Tubes to earn as much Energy as possible! Big numbers guaranteed.
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
- Steam lists in-app purchases but we have no detail on them. Small caution applied.
The value story
Value puts it in the top 10 percent of the games it competes with. It is better reviewed than 86 percent of its genre. Among the games that feel like it, Mr.Mine (free, scores 77) beats it on value, while it beats Underworld Idle (free, scores 27).
66 players were online in it when we last checked, on Oct 1, 13:49 UTC.
The drop-off
94% start to 16% rarestNo achievement in this game marks the ending, so there is no finish rate. The curve runs from the most-unlocked achievement to the rarest, and its shape is where players stop. Steam global achievements
Players
66 players online when we last checked, on Oct 1, 13:49 UTC.
Player counts from the Steam Web API.
No data upstream: critic score (Metacritic).
Cite this score
Idle Research scores 57/100 on the BANG Score (fair value) as of Oct 2, 2026. The BANG Score rates what a game is worth for the money. Via Steam BANGERS. https://steambangers.com/game/1482860/idle-researchReviews set the ceiling, and the size of the player base moves the BANG Score inside it. How it works, and where it is weak → Steam reviews as of Sep 26.
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