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Colossal Cave

in library

4.1/5

( 11 Reviews )

4.1

11 Reviews

English & 12 more
24.9924.99
Why buy on GOG.COM?
DRM FREE. No activation or online connection required to play.
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Colossal Cave
Description
Colossal Cave DEMO is available here This product contains both the WIN/MAC and VR versions of Colossal Cave   Colossal Cave is a classic, cozy 3D Adventure; slow down, explore a massive magical, labyrinthine cave system, all while solving clever, sprawling puzzles at your own pace. Aut...
Critics reviews
53 %
Recommend
User reviews

4.1/5

( 11 Reviews )

4.1

11 Reviews

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Product details
2023, Cygnus Entertainment, ...
System requirements
Windows 10, Intel Core2 Duo E8400, 3.0GHz or AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+, 3.0GHz or higher, 4 GB RAM, Gef...
FAQ
Description


Colossal Cave DEMO is available here



This product contains both the WIN/MAC and VR versions of Colossal Cave


 

Colossal Cave is a classic, cozy 3D Adventure; slow down, explore a massive magical, labyrinthine cave system, all while solving clever, sprawling puzzles at your own pace. Auto-magic maps, limited inventory, all the fantastic creatures and a deep mystery at the heart of the experience.

You may hear its heart beating while approaching the volcano.

 

 

First-person POV with classic point-&-click controls: walk, look, interact, pick things up, and test your theories. Limited inventory requires clever management in its own right. A magical series of maps quietly track where you’ve been, marking where you’ve dropped items.

Simply focus on solving puzzles instead of wrestling with navigation.


 


 

This is not a frantic action game; no frenetic timers shouting at you, no combo meters to maintain—just you, your lamp, and a series of intertwined, sprawling, twisty corridors full of brainy, logic-driven challenges. 

Take your time:

 

  • Try weird solutions. Trial and error can be your friend.
  • Double back to old rooms with new ideas and unlock potential new discoveries.
  • Follow that “what if I…?” inclination and see what the cave passes back.

 

 

The cave is quiet, but not without your footsteps. 

You’ll bump into:

 

  • Mischievous dwarves with sharp daggers and sharper tempers.
  • A grumpy, red bridge guarding troll.
  • A noticeably absent giant.  You see that?
  • Flickering hinkypunks and other odd cave-dwellers. A handsome pirate, perhaps?
  • Hidden treasures, strange artifacts, and places that feel just a little too magical to be natural.

 


Some encounters are charming, whilst others are just dangerous enough to keep you on your toes—but it all stays firmly in “casual mystical adventure,” not horror. Just fantasy with a slice of mystery.

 

That said, all good Adventures suggest one should save early, save often.

 

 

Colossal Cave 3D leans into that old-school adventure game atmosphere: colorful environments, shadowy silhouettes, bats, and a focus on exploring the world for clues rather than being led by the nose.

 

 

No lack of customization allows dialing the game to match your vibe with a variety of options, including comfort tweaks and settings.  Snap turns, or nuke the narrator.  It's all there. Play exactly how you like—curled up with a controller, a mouse, a headset, or a keyboard, slowly dawdling through the cave one cavern at a time.

 

 

  • Relaxed, point-&-click exploration in a massive cave
  • Limited inventory that makes item choices and puzzle routes matter
  • Handy auto-map that shows where you’ve been and where you dropped items
  • A cast of dwarves, elves, hinkypunks, and other quirky cave creatures
  • Dozens of logic-driven puzzles with satisfying “aha!” moments
  • Retro-cool adventure vibes inspired by classic games
  • Flexible customization options so you can make the adventure as meditative and away as you want
  • The mythic, mellow cavecation!

 

Venture down into Colossal Cave, follow your curiosity, and see how far your lamp — and your wits — can take you.

System requirements
Minimum system requirements:
VR compatibility chart available here
VR compatibility chart available here
Why buy on GOG.COM?
DRM FREE. No activation or online connection required to play.
Safety and satisfaction . Stellar support and full refunds up to 30 days.
Game details
Works on:
Windows, Mac OS X
Release date:
{{'2023-01-19T00:00:00+01:00' | date: 'longDate' : ' +0200 ' }}

Game features

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Deutsch
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español
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français
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italiano
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polski
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português
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ไทย
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中文(简体)
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日本語
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한국어
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FAQ

What operating systems is Colossal Cave compatible with?

Colossal Cave is officially supported on Windows, macOS.

Does Colossal Cave have DRM?

No! GOG games have no DRM and can be played without an internet connection, totally offline. Some bonus content might require an internet connection to download, but we do our best to limit that need. Read more about DRM.

Do you need GOG Galaxy to play Colossal Cave?

No! You do not need GOG Galaxy to play Colossal Cave. GOG gives you the option to download a fully offline installer and install Colossal Cave that way, without using GOG Galaxy. GOG Galaxy is used for synchronization of achievements and cloud saves, but its usage is totally optional. Read more about GOG Galaxy.

What are the system requirements for Colossal Cave?

Minimum: System: Windows 10, Processor: Intel Core2 Duo E8400, 3.0GHz or AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+, 3.0GHz or higher, Memory: 4 GB RAM, Graphics: Geforce 9600 GT or AMD HD 3870 512MB or higher, DirectX: Version 11, Storage: 12 GB available space, Other: Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system For Oculus headsets it’s recommended to remain in the Oculus OpenXR runtime. Also note, Colossal Cave currently does not support older Vive controllers (and a few older Windows headsets) with limited buttons.. Recommended: System: Windows 10, Processor: Intel Core i5-9600/AMD RYZEN 5 3600X equivalent or better, Memory: 16 GB RAM, Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070, Other: Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system For Oculus headsets it’s recommended to remain in the Oculus OpenXR runtime. Also note, Colossal Cave currently does not support older Vive controllers (and a few older Windows headsets) with limited buttons..

Critics reviews
64
Top Critic Average
53 %
Critics Recommend
OpenCritic Rating

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Overall most helpful review

Posted on: February 23, 2023

BroBones82

Verified owner

Games: 8 Reviews: 1

An Adventurous Adaptation

This game is a remake of the original adventure game - the only that started it all, Colossal Cave Adventure (or ADVENT) - this is the game that inspired Roberta Williams to make her own games and now she has used her team to make it hopefully explorable 3-D adventure. It is faithful to the original game (to a fault some might say) but all the old locations and items have been preserved just as if you had been playing it on a teletype in the late 70s. Definitely worth your time & obviously lovingly done.


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Posted on: February 24, 2023

FallingBright

Verified owner

Games: 1153 Reviews: 72

Unbiased?? Never.

It wasn't until a year or two ago that I learned who crafted my childhood memories. Roberta Heuer, even if countless artists and creators aided her way. This oil painting depicting my profile most likely exists only because my Mother, an artist, and Roberta Heuer. Which is hilarious to say in a review. As soon as I delved into this game the same magic was there. I always prefer the pixel graphics of old, but somehow, for perhaps the first time, I see some magic in this 3d world. This is not a review. This is respect to a great creator who helped forge the digital world we know. All is eventually forgotten, but for as long as I can, I shall remember.


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Posted on: March 2, 2023

caspianstrider

Verified owner

Games: 39 Reviews: 1

Amazing family game!

As a dad who loves gaming I am always excited about ways to bond with my kids (3, 10 and 11 year olds) around gaming. There are so many games that are just too filled with guts and gore - it's actually very few games that are not. The wonderful things about Colossal Cave is that it's clean, deep and magical. It's probably the best investment I have ever made in family entertainment from a pure return on investment point of view. Also - with a bit of tweaking you can get it working on an older machine as well. The kids have a 2012 iMac which is too old for most games but I got decent performance by changing a few easy settings. I cannot recommend this game high enough!


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Edited on: August 26, 2025

Posted on: February 26, 2023

mdqp

Verified owner

Games: 2070 Reviews: 80

I Am Glad I Got To Experience This

Having never played the text adventure this is based on, while also having some familiarity with text adventures, I wasn't sure what to expect. I am happy to say the game was fun for me, and I am grateful the Williams brought it to us in this form. It's a bit silly and goofy at times (partly because of the low budget, but mostly because of the game itself with its humour). At the same time, unless you are aiming for full points, it's also fairly accessible, and the age of its original version doesn't bring excessive baggage with it. The conversion to 3D works well (I would recommend that anyone who's fine with WASD controls uses the keyboard to move, however, as the mouse-only controls aren't great). The presentation is fine, if low budget. The visuals probably suffer the most. Some texturing and modeling aren't up to the task, and some animations as well, although those aren't very common in general. My personal highlight is the narrator (I could imagine him getting annoying if you don't appreciate that kind of stuff). Edit: It's worth noting, that the game did get a visual upgrade after I originally wrote this review. While it's not going to stun any modern gamer with its visuals, it's a bit nicer to look at now. The game doesn't have a lot of dialogues or interactions, and this works in the game's favour, reducing the number of possible red herrings (which, given how labyrinthine the cave is, it's probably a good thing). The puzzles that are there are mostly clever and intuitive, and I am sure most people will be able to see the ending with a bit of effort. The auto-map is GREATLY appreciated, although the two mazes in the game are still a bit painful, especially if you are like me and you want to check all the exits, just in case (spoilers: it's not worth it at all, you should only ever go through the mazes if you HAVE to). The only thing I dislike besides the mazes, is that the game is "kind of" timed, and I feel it's the only design decision I disapprove of (be it here or in the original text adventure). If the presentation doesn't bother you, a charming underground adventure with clever puzzles and humour (and only some jank) awaits for you here.


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Posted on: March 12, 2023

joelandsonja

Verified owner

Games: 533 Reviews: 131

Love Letter To The Classics

I was so excited when I heard that Ken and Roberta Williams would be making a new game, especially a remake or retelling of one of the classic adventure games from the past. Ken and Roberta are two of the most iconic game developers from my childhood (and they seem like really awesome people), so I bought this game just to support them. I heard a number of reviews that complained about the visuals, but I can safely say that those complaints were completely meaningless once you started playing the game. While the graphics aren't quite to the spec of modern PC titles, they are still very well done, and the visual style is actually quite charming. It actually makes sense to remake Colossal Cave using graphics from the PS3 era of gaming because it gives it a really charming look and feel. That being said, I have to admit that I am not usually a fan of first person perspective in gaming, but the controls were one of the best that I've ever played in this perspective. Normally I would get nauseous from playing these kinds of games within the first 30 minutes, but I played this for well over and hour and felt fine. I will say that this game plays much more like an FPP, rather than a point and click adventure, but I guess you could say that it is a mixture of both. The atmosphere is really well done, and I think Ken and Roberta were very careful to make sure that the game stayed true to the original text adventure. Naturally that would mean that there are a lot of unusual puzzles and mazes to navigate, but it's still a lot of fun to play through. Well worth picking up! * On a side note, I really hope Ken and Roberta will continue making more games in the future, because it would be amazing to see what they come up with in regards to bringing classic stories to life with new technology. Ken and Roberta will always have my deepest respect.


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