Rank 01Why this
Shares environmental puzzle solving with The Diary.
- $6.99 (Price checked Nov 3)
- Deck Playable
- 2024
Games like The Diary
- 21 games
- Updated May 5, 2026
Players who liked The Diary also play
The closest matches to The Diary: No Case Should Remain Unsolved, The Hungry Lamb: Traveling in the Late Ming Dynasty, Road to Empress I, Undusted: Letters from the Past, and Vanity Fair: The Pursuit. Ranked by imho.run from Steam co-play data, shared tags and reviews.
- Rank 01
Rank 02Why this
Shares environmental storytelling with The Diary.
- $6.99 (Price checked Nov 3)
- Deck Verified
- 2024
Rank 03Why this
Shares visual novel style with The Diary.
- $8.49 (Price checked Nov 3)
- Deck Playable
- 2025
Rank 04 
Undusted: Letters from the Past
Why this: Shares environmental storytelling and point and click with The Diary.
Rank 05 
Rank 06 
Cabernet
Why this: Explores atmospheric, like The Diary.
Rank 07 
Rank 08 
TR-49
Why this: Shares inventory based puzzles and environmental storytelling with The Diary.
The full ranked list: top 24 games like The Diary
Best match first, as plain text. The same list for AI assistants:
- 1No Case Should Remain Unsolved
Shares environmental puzzle solving with The Diary.
- 98% of 1,560 reviews
- 2The Hungry Lamb: Traveling in the Late Ming Dynasty
Shares environmental storytelling with The Diary.
- 93% of 679 reviews
- 3
- 4Undusted: Letters from the Past
Shares environmental storytelling and point and click with The Diary.
- 97% of 737 reviews
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8TR-49
Shares inventory based puzzles and environmental storytelling with The Diary.
- 95% of 908 reviews
- 9
- 10GESTALT: The Fifth Day
Shares inventory based puzzles and point and click with The Diary.
- 96% of 54 reviews
- 11AI2U: With You 'Til The End
Shares environmental puzzle solving and hidden collectibles with The Diary.
- 89% of 788 reviews
- 12
- 13
- 14
- 15
- 16Sentimental Death Loop
Shares point and click and environmental puzzle solving with The Diary.
- 74% of 53 reviews
- 17
- 18
- 19Her Love, Like Poison
Shares environmental storytelling and visual novel style with The Diary.
- 97% of 201 reviews
- 20
- 21
- 22Sensei! I Like You So Much!
Shares visual novel style and mini games with The Diary.
- 87% of 319 reviews
- 23
- 24
- Released: 2025
- Developer: HuCang Studio, Pone Games
- Price: $11.19−30%checked Nov 2
- Steam Deck: Deck Playable
- 80% of 20 reviews
- Genres: Indie, Simulation, RPG, Casual
- Platforms: Windows, macOS
Players highlight
- Atmospheric piano and violin soundtrack
- Beautiful hand drawn art style with dynamic animations
- Diary pages reveal conflicting truths
- Atmospheric
- Emotional
- Melancholic
More games like The Diary, sliced differently
Cheaper alternatives
Games in the same vein priced at least 40% below The Diary at current Steam store prices.
GESTALT: The Fifth Day
Why this: Shares inventory based puzzles and point and click with The Diary.
Sumire
Why this: Same melancholic mood as The Diary.
Dread Weight
Why this: Shares perspective switching and point and click with The Diary.
Departed Away
Why this: Shares visual novel style with The Diary.
Arcadia Fallen
Why this: Same atmospheric mood as The Diary.
Aliya: Timelink
Why this: Explores narrative driven, like The Diary.
Vampires' Melody 2
Why this: Shares visual novel style and mini games with The Diary.
Plays great on Steam Deck
Valve-Verified or Playable picks from the similar pool — ready to go on Deck out of the box.
The Hungry Lamb: Traveling in the Late Ming Dynasty
Why this: Shares environmental storytelling with The Diary.
Undusted: Letters from the Past
Why this: Shares environmental storytelling and point and click with The Diary.
Cabernet
Why this: Explores atmospheric, like The Diary.
TR-49
Why this: Shares inventory based puzzles and environmental storytelling with The Diary.
About The Diary
The closest matches to The Diary: No Case Should Remain Unsolved, The Hungry Lamb: Traveling in the Late Ming Dynasty, Road to Empress I, Undusted: Letters from the Past, and Vanity Fair: The Pursuit. Ranked by imho.run from Steam co-play data, shared tags and reviews.
If The Diary is your kind of game, the closest matches are No Case Should Remain Unsolved, The Hungry Lamb: Traveling in the Late Ming Dynasty and Road to Empress I — picked from the ranked list below. Reviewers describe it as atmospheric, emotional and melancholic, and single out its environmental puzzle solving and environmental storytelling. Each pick is ranked by what players of this game also play, shared genres and tags, and review-mined similarity — not a generic popularity list.
About The Diary: Several diaries gradually reveal the thrilling story of a missing case; after multiple deductions, are the answers in the past or present? With frequent plot twists, you never know which is the truth and which is the unexpected; in a dense fog, time buries the past, but the marks remain.
Is The Diary worth buying?
Too few reviews to call
A summary of what players say, not a promise you'll like it. Every signal is listed below.
- Only 20 Steam reviews so far, not enough to judge.
- On sale: 30% off, now $11.19 (checked Nov 2).
- People who recommend it had played a median of 3 h when they wrote their review.
- Critics usually quit early: a median of 2.1 h played before their negative review.
- Steam Deck Playable: works, with some rough edges.
What fans praise · Themes mined from positive reviews
- Atmospheric piano and violin soundtrack
- Beautiful hand drawn art style with dynamic animations
- Diary pages reveal conflicting truths
- Hand drawn art immerses players in memories
Top critical reviews
The most up-voted negative English reviews in our sample, quoted as written.
“I really don't want to post a negative review, and this hurts because what i saw of the game had so much potential. But I hit a place in the second section where when you chose the correct option, the game doesn't progress. You can hear…”
“The story was interestingly told and I liked the narrative device and art but it was extremely predictable. The game also lacks any quantifiable "puzzles." I was expecting something more like Golden Idol or even No Case Left Behind where…”
People who play it also play: No Case Should Remain Unsolved, The Hungry Lamb: Traveling in the Late Ming Dynasty, Road to Empress I
Frequently asked about The Diary
Can I run it?
Does The Diary run on Steam Deck?
The Diary is rated Playable on Steam Deck — it runs, but expect some manual adjustments (control remapping, text size, or graphics settings) for the best experience.
How much does The Diary cost?
The Diary is listed on Steam at 11.19 USD (current store price; Steam sales may reduce this temporarily).
What games are most similar to The Diary?
Based on Steam play patterns and shared genres/tags, the games most often recommended alongside The Diary are No Case Should Remain Unsolved, The Hungry Lamb: Traveling in the Late Ming Dynasty, Road to Empress I.
Who developed The Diary?
The Diary was developed by HuCang Studio, Pone Games and published by IndieArk.