Is What Never Was free?

Yes — What Never Was is free to play, so you can install and play it without buying anything.

Is What Never Was Steam Deck verified?

Yes. Valve has tested What Never Was and rates it Verified: it runs well on Steam Deck out of the box, with default controls and readable text.

Can I play What Never Was on Mac?

Yes. What Never Was has a native macOS version on Steam.

Is What Never Was multiplayer?

No — Steam lists What Never Was as single-player only.

Is What Never Was on PC Game Pass?

No — What Never Was is not on PC Game Pass right now.

What Never Was

Name: What Never Was
Brand: Acke Hallgren
Availability: InStock

Acke Hallgren · January 11, 2019 · Free to Play, Adventure, Puzzle, Indie, Story Rich

What Never Was is free to play — no purchase needed. We track it so you know if that ever changes.

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Very Positive95% · 5,1143playing now

Best price

Free

Get it free on Steam

This game is free to play. Get it on Steam →

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What Never Was price

What Never Was is free to play — there is no purchase price, on Steam or anywhere else we track. We keep watching it, so if it ever stops being free the price history on this page will show when that happened and what it changed to.

About What Never Was

✦ AI summary

Explore your late grandfather's mysterious attic as Sarah, solving environmental puzzles and uncovering supernatural secrets woven through his collected artifacts and journals. This atmospheric first-person adventure blends classic point-and-click puzzle design with modern exploration, drawing inspiration from folklore, Norse mythology, and cosmic horror to craft an intimate mystery about legacy and the impossible.

Sometime in the late 2000s, Howard James Wright - an old but kind man - perishes. Leaving behind him many adventures, relics he's collected over the years as well as books authored, he is also leaving Sarah, his granddaughter behind.

Having to shoulder the arduous task of clearing out her grandfathers attic, she is soon to find that not everything about her grandfathers attic is what it seems.

What Never Was is a short, story-driven first-person game focused on exploration and puzzle-solving.

You play as Sarah Elizabeth Wright, exploring through your grandfathers attic, solving small puzzles and uncovering the story through gameplay. What Never Was aims to combine the gameplay of classic point-and-click games with the control schemes of modern adventure and walking sim games.

It is inspired by the likes of Myst, Indiana Jones and The Longest Journey and borrows themes from folklore, Norse mythology, and works from authors like H.P. Lovecraft.

The game is the first solo game and passion project of game developer Acke Hallgren with the support of a handful of supportive creatives.

What Never Was — game info

Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux / SteamOS
Steam Deck: Verified
Player modes: Single-player
Controller: Partial controller support
PC Game Pass: Not included

More games like this:Steam Deck verified games Mac games Linux games

What Steam players say

Recent verbatim reviews from Steam — separate from playze.io community reviews below.

✦ AI summary

What Never Was is a short puzzle game that players praise for its beautiful visuals, thoughtful sound design, and well-crafted puzzles that make clever use of the game's mechanics and interactivity. While the brief playtime of 15-30 minutes leaves some wishing for more content, reviewers generally feel the experience is polished and touching enough to warrant playing, especially as a palate cleanser between longer games or during a short break.

Recommended Oct 3, 2026

Short story with puzzle elements

Recommended Sep 23, 2026

I NEED MORE CHAPTERS!

Recommended Sep 17, 2026

nawt bad less than 1hr of gameplay and v easy :P

Recommended Sep 11, 2026

really great, short but beautiful puzzle game!!! excited for chapter 2! i loved the visuals!

Recommended Sep 6, 2026

Although it is a 30-minute game, it has a lot of effort and care from the devs. The story has some depth, and the puzzles aren't boring at all for a game this short. It's a good game for a small session after a long day or just to take a break from other games.

Recommended Sep 6, 2026

Meh

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