PC (Microsoft Windows)2021

Ara and the Empty Universe

A game where nothing is happening metaphorically. Let's say... you find yourself in a strange world where the trees and buildings all float 5 meters above ground level? That's no dream sequence, it's not metaphorical either, it's happening. Reality seems to be broken and you are going to have to face that. Game length: 70 - 100 minutes, depending on how much you explore.

Storyline

What does one do when everyone vanishes? How does one handle it? One might decide to start looking. Looking for what? Anything really. Survivors, the cause, something to busy oneself with. Maybe start a doll collection... No one, or very few, left to laugh at you for it. There's gotta be SOMETHING left...

Screenshots

Review History

Reviews

27 total

≥h

Steam User 7389STEAMRecommended

Great little game! I liked the characters and plot so far-- sad it's no longer available. Wishing the dev the best!

Apr 20, 2025·2h·Verified

Steam User 1127STEAMRecommended

Honestly, I loved every bit of this, and even went back a couple times hoping for alternate endings(you know why, you cruel person! He was so cool! Dx), but only managed to find the one secret plush I'd somehow missed. I wish this story could be expanded upon, but I also know one of a writer's greatest tools is the mystery, and the small bits and details in all the logs on the computers does help put something of a story together as to who He is and why He did This.

I'm definitely going to be playing your other stuff!(when I have the funds if they're required) :D

Oct 31, 2024·5h·Verified

Steam User 9437STEAMRecommended

Overall I liked the characters and writing. Honestly, the biggest problem I had with it was purely technical issues, which only got worse as the game went on. The screen would occasionally freeze making it impossible to know what I was doing. The only way I knew I was doing anything at all was because I could hear the sound effects and especially near the end I started having DRAMATIC frame rate issues. I'd say it's worth giving a shot, but until/unless the freezing/frame rate issues are fixed I'd recommend saving often to avoid having your progress reset if the screen freezes and you're forced to quit and reload.

Feb 5, 2024·3h·Verified

Steam User 4779STEAMRecommended

I love this game, it has great story and an even greater atmosphere for it engine limitations as well as its character duo chemistry, even with the few lines the characters have with each other, unfortunately the game is heavily weighed down in *My* opinion by its attempt at being mysterious and vague set environments and explanations.
The reason I believe this to be so is while yes this does feed into theory crafting, there are several moments where the protagonist either says nothing over an object interaction or out right lacks a good explanation for something that just happened, this yes leaves me wanting to know more but leaves me frustrated when it isn't ever expanded upon *properly* or hinted at further down the line leaving me very confused and wondering why I bothered exploring in the first place. Maybe this will all be explained in a future game or never at all.
My final punch in the gut is that in the credits there is a vague nod from the creator that feels like him saying "stay tuned for more" but to me with the pace the games came out felt like "I know whats happening and all this cool stuff just happened... later so KEEP UP!"
If I were to give any feed back aside from that to the dev is that they are making a great story that feels like Swiss cheese and I want to know more PLEASE PLEASE EXPLAIN THIS STUFF IN MORE DETAIL TO ME, as sometimes being too vague can leave the reader or player less mystified and more spun around or angry. P.S. If I got my hands on a script at all *ever* I would LOVE to work on it with you even if it looked like some spaghetti from hell script. Small edit: my brain just made a correlation to this and the "Why?" Scenario which is one of my favorite scenarios which made me more fascinated with this game and is a good example of setting up a mysterious story and giving a satisfying explanation to its end... if you can find it that is.

Jan 23, 2024·3h·1·Verified

Steam User 0277STEAMRecommended

You are all alone in a vacant world where there is only a talking gem to keep you company and your trusted G U N to give you comfort. You traverse through bizarre places with the occasional lump of flesh to greet you (or hunt you...), but you are determined to find the one responsible for this mess and give'em a good kick in the nuts.

Witty and clever writing with two enjoyable characters who bounce off of each other well, a fantastic female protagonist who legitimately made me belly laugh occasionally due to her (highly appropriate) reactions and the reversal of expectations in the narrative. It's a fun time and while there is not much to do outside of progressing the plot, there are some collectibles like plushies and different skins for the protag that you can find via exploring the maps, most of which are references to internet personalities or other video games. Speaking of references, the game has its fair share of them here and there and it's nice to spot them.

While the graphics and map design might not be the strong suite of the game, it makes up for it with its clever writing and keeps you entertained for a good couple of hours, depending on how much you explore. If you are a fan of indie and especially RPG Maker games, I'd say don't miss this one.

Jan 14, 2024·3h·1·Verified

Steam User 0468STEAMRecommended

I tried this because I played developer's other free game 'Our Way Down' which I liked it.This game picks up everything that was good about 'Our Way Down' and made it great. Wasn't sure if I would enjoy it when I was buying this because the core gameplay is walking exploration simulator but the story kept me engaged till the end.As others have said it,Ava is a relatable character and it's fun to see what are her interactions and thoughts in any enviroment.

Jan 5, 2024·8h·Verified

Steam User 5474STEAMRecommended

The store page doesn't lie. This game is a lot of walking and a really good story. The characters are fun and it builds of the first games ending with everyone gone. You don't need to play the first game to understand or enjoy this game.

Jan 3, 2024·2h·Verified

Steam User 8309STEAMRecommended

Very enjoyable journey, but prepare for a lot of unanswered questions

Dec 31, 2023·5h·3·Verified

Steam User 6297STEAMRecommended

Pretty good pretty cute pretty short, def worth a dollar, ending feels a bit quick and i wish Kesskin was explored a little more but other than that its nice and well written. Will 100% be buying We don't die here.

Dec 23, 2023·2h·2·Verified

Steam User 9558STEAMRecommended

Another amazing game by Basim Aziz although I think I should have played this one first before Our Way Down despite there release dates.

Dec 5, 2023·4h·1·Verified

Steam User 5461STEAMRecommended

Pretty good overall! A little confusing in places and it gets kind of repetitive but apart from that it was good. Check this one out if you like games like it, it’s only $1.

Nov 17, 2023·2h·Verified

Steam User 4938STEAMRecommended

Listen, I could go into an in depth review here. It's an RPG-Maker style game...and if you're looking at this game at all you probably know what that can mean. Sometimes great, sometimes terrible.

To compare it to other RPG Maker titles, this game is combatless but with a couple of "escape the things" levels which are more cinematic than a challenge. Honestly, an upside in my opinion...nothing is worse than redoing those "run away from the thing" levels over and over again in RPG Maker games because you have to memorize the path in order to get through it. You can save the game at any time.

The writing for the main character's dialogue here is the real draw. Ara is like-able and relatable. The game isn't really a horror or comedy game, but it does manage to touch on elements of both.

The story was interesting for me, but at the end I felt that I had TOO many unanswered questions. This seems to be the intent of the developer...I think there are other games in this same "world" that don't involve Ara that may or may not help answer those questions. I wish I had a little more closure from the game, personally...but I haven't tried the other games yet. Currently, one of the other games is free and the other is still in development. I've added both to my wishlist so I can remember to give them a go.

At the end of the day, we're talking about an enjoyable experience that will take roughly less than two hours for a dollar. You'd be supporting a very promising indie developer to boot.

For me, it's absolutely a recommendable game.

Nov 5, 2023·2h·2·Verified

Steam User 6947STEAMRecommended

A nice little game. all the characters are REALLY well written, and you find yourself quickly get attached to them. The story is quite engaging. Well worth it!

Sep 26, 2023·2h·1·Verified

Steam User 1283STEAMRecommended

[i]TL;DR in English below because what, just 13 reviews?! Dang shame![/i]

Дивні і прекрасні ігри в РПГ Мейкері, більше і знову! Якщо сумніваєтеся - більш детальний огляд в безкоштовній грі від цього ж девелопера (вони пов'язані) Our way down, а я просто хочу зазначити, що самі лише спрайти мають коштувати більше, ніж ця гра без знижки. А сюжет і атмосфера - безцінні.

[b]TL;DR[/b] If you're playing games for the story and characters just buy it. It's almost free as is.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3040209319

Sep 24, 2023·5h·9·Verified

Steam User 9766STEAMRecommended

Worth for the a dollar story

Jul 21, 2023·1h·3·Verified

Steam User 9523STEAMRecommended

worth it, truly a amazing game!!!!!!

Jun 23, 2023·3h·1·Verified

Steam User 8581STEAMRecommended

Great game. I love the story

May 31, 2023·64h·1·Verified

Steam User 6517STEAMRecommended

Neat little game about the end of the universe

May 28, 2023·1h·3·Verified

Steam User 3173STEAMRecommended

great game and really cool "post game room" :)

May 2, 2023·3h·Verified

Steam User 9598STEAMRecommended

love the story 10/10 ending left me wondering was going to happen to every body left and what happened to every body the went missing

Apr 24, 2023·2h·Verified

Steam User 0702STEAMRecommended

A fun and surprisingly engaging story whose main selling point is the protagonist who is relatable and likable, without resorting to cliche'd forced "quirkiness." There's a surprising lack of angst given the premise (many other reviewers have noted that the tone is somewhat unexpected for the subject matter), but don't mistake this for a lack of emotion. It's quite fun to explore around and examine things just to hear what Ara will have to say about them.

There's not much I can say about the story itself without spoiling anything. It's not complicated by any means, but there's enough open questions to keep you guessing, and you'll be in such good company that the ride is enjoyable and the emotional beats still land.

Apr 18, 2023·5h·20·Verified

Steam User 4421STEAMRecommended

I stumbled across this developer for the first time when I played their other game, 'Our way down,' and decided to hop over and check out 'Ara and the Empty Universe'. I have to hand it to the creator, the difference between their games and others in the same genre is that they are excellent at creating in-depth, realistic, and sarcastically witty characters. And this is not an easy task to accomplish in general with short games, but they pulled it off tenfold! The character Ara is incredibly lovable, and her companion equally so. I was rooting for the two of them the entire game. I get bored quite easily, yet I finished the entire thing in one sitting and wished there was more. I'm not going to lie, I am a bit confused by the endings to both games. I did notice the creator and reviewers referencing the SCP universe, so maybe my lack of knowledge on that topic is what caused this. That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed both games and would love to continue Ara's journey in the future!

Apr 2, 2023·2h·16·Verified

Steam User 5793STEAMRecommended

Expected an introspective take on the end of the world, staying hopeful, but slowly descending into depression. Got something completely different..!

The first half of the game had me very worried about where the story would go, but in the second half these fears were put to rest. Wasn't disappointed, can wholeheartedly recommend playing.

Mar 15, 2023·2h·8·Verified

Steam User 5641STEAMRecommended

a charming RPGmaker visual novel. for $0.99 i think its great

Mar 7, 2023·2h·Verified

Steam User 0049STEAMRecommended

This game is has cute art and entertaining characters. Story is short, but definitely good for the price.

Feb 17, 2023·3h·2·Verified

Steam User 2931STEAMRecommended

For only a dollar, I can't complain.
I've played far worse games for far more money, so if you feel like you'd enjoy a short, atmospheric, walking sim made in RPGMaker, then give this game a shot.

Feb 15, 2023·2h·3·Verified

Steam User 5535STEAMRecommended

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyoYDaAr8wcvClnBsfFVUtc8MLut0yEnM

Very lovely game! Interesting story, and nice graphics. A bit more atmospheric music would have been nice though, most of the game was silent, but for this price it was well worth the money spent. Check out the link above to see my (no commentary) gameplay.

Feb 5, 2023·3h·2·Verified