The 39 Steps similar games & best alternatives

The 39 Steps - Trailer
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The 39 Steps

Linux, PC (Microsoft Windows), iOS, Mac • 2013

Should you play it?

Prepare to experience the original man-on-the-run thriller in a completely new way! There are secrets to be discovered, locations to be explored and - above all - an incredible tale to be told in this ground-breaking interactive novel.

What works

  • Faithful and engaging story adaptation
  • Beautiful hand-drawn artwork
  • Excellent voice acting and sound design
  • Immersive historical atmosphere
  • Easy achievements and short playtime

Things to keep in mind

  • Minimal gameplay and interactivity
  • Linear narrative with no player choice
  • Some awkward mouse gesture mechanics
  • Requires good english comprehension
  • Not suitable for players seeking traditional game mechanics

What to play next

Top picks

Games that feels the closest overall

  • Jendo: Origins

  • Dagon: by H. P. Lovecraft

  • Alfred Hitchcock - Vertigo

  • Caligo

  • Perceptions of the Dead

  • fault - milestone two side:above

More fantastical

Games that feels like The 39 Steps but with more imaginative fiction

  • Mhakna Gramura and Fairy Bell

  • Paratopic

  • Belladonna

  • Radiolight

  • Titan Station

  • Moons of Madness

More autonomous

Games that feels like The 39 Steps but with more freedom over how you play

  • Slender Threads

  • Sagebrush

  • The Descendant

  • [Chilla's Art] Missing Children | 行方不明

  • Detective Di: The Silk Rose Murders

  • Estranged: The Departure

More intimate

Games that feels like The 39 Steps but with more focus on close relationships

  • Lydia

  • Know by heart

  • The Lion's Song: Episode 1 - Silence

  • A Memoir Blue

  • The Unluckiest Man

  • Love at First Sight

Choose your own criteria ->

Similarity map

How to compare these games

Compare nearby games

Each card is a nearby game on the similarity map, compared with The 39 Steps. Swipe sideways to move between games. Titles already listed in What to play next are left out.

  • Cover and title: open that game’s page.
  • What works / keep in mind: the same highlights as the desktop comparison panel.
  • Bars: the main motivational differences versus this game.
How to use the graph

Similarity map

Each dot is a game placed from its motivation profile relative to this page’s game. Direction shows which motivation differs most; distance along that axis shows how large the gap is.

  • Purple star: this page’s game at the centre — everything is relative to it.
  • Direction: each axis is a main motivational difference vs this game (e.g. more / less competitive).
  • Distance on an axis: how large that difference is (ring scales show +/− points).
  • Coloured chips: click to highlight games that mainly differ on that motivation; click again to reset.
  • Dotted line: link between this page’s game and the one selected for comparison.
  • Hover a dot to preview that game in the panel on the right; click to keep that comparison.
  • Scroll or double-click the chart to zoom.

How to read the map This is a polar difference map: direction = which motivation differs, and distance = how much (same units as the sidebar deltas).

Swipe to compare nearby games with The 39 Steps. These titles are not in What to play next.

The 39 Steps: Broadly representative of its motivational profile, with a few distinct shifts. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Strategy, Experimenting, Competence, Survival. Here, the score leans higher than usual among comparable games on Thrill. It leans lower than usual among comparable games on Fantasy, Autonomy.

Last update: 21/08/2026