Dyer Expedition

About Dyer Expedition

Dyer Expedition is a first-person adventure game blending mystery and Lovecraftian horror. Developed by Monkeys With Jobs and released on September 19, 2025, it follows William Dyer, a scientist stranded in Antarctica in 1931 after his team vanishes. The game’s narrative draws from H.P. Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness, focusing on piecing together fragmented clues to uncover a cosmic threat. Played on PC and Linux, it leans into atmospheric exploration and puzzle-solving. You’ll trek through icy ruins, decode cryptic notes, and confront a creeping sense of dread as you figure out the fate of the expedition.

Gameplay

The core loop revolves around environmental investigation and logic puzzles. You navigate Antarctic caves, university camps, and derelict structures, interacting with objects to gather evidence and trigger story beats. Puzzles often require rearranging symbols, deciphering ancient texts, or manipulating machinery to progress. Multiplayer allows cooperative puzzle-solving, though the experience is largely single-player focused. Controls emphasize precision over action, with a slow, deliberate pace that matches the setting’s tension. While combat is absent, the absence of safe zones and eerie sound design create constant unease. Sessions typically last 1-3 hours, balancing exploration with narrative reveals.

What Players Think

Dyer Expedition holds a 4.2/5 critic rating and 4.0/5 community score on PlayPile. 65% of players complete it, with an average playtime of 8.5 hours. Community moods skew tense (72%) and curious (58%), though 30% find the pacing sluggish. Achievement completion sits at 45%, with 120+ unlocks tied to exploration and puzzle-solving. Review snippets praise its "masterclass in atmospheric storytelling" but note "overly obtuse puzzles in the second act." Linux users report occasional performance hiccups, while PC averages 90+ FPS on mid-tier hardware.

PlayPile's Take

This game works best for fans of slow-burn narratives and cerebral puzzles. At $39.99, it’s a mid-tier indie with strong replay value for completionists. The Lovecraftian themes feel underdeveloped compared to its atmospheric strengths, but the Antarctic setting is rendered with eerie precision. Skip if you crave action or fast pacing. For $40 and 8-10 hours of taut, cerebral exploration, it’s a solid choice for niche horror-adventure enthusiasts.

Storyline

It's 1931 and Antarctic continent is still a new scientific frontier. The Miskatonic University of Massachusetts has launched an expedition, led by William Dyer, to excavate fossils and find concrete evidence for scientific hypotheses about the land. The expedition arrived on an island in the Antarctic region but contact was soon lost as their supply ship returned to an all but abandoned base camp. You not only fear the worst for your colleagues but you also have an inexplicable sense of dread surrounding the expedition. Without support from the university anytime soon, you begin a rogue mission to find out what happened to the team. You make your way to Australia and find a fishing boat that is willing to drop you off and pick you back up after two days.