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Game
Game2014
Moebius: Empire Rising
Developer Phoenix Online Studios
Moebius: Empire Rising is a graphic adventure video game developed by Pinkerton Road Studio and Phoenix Online Studios, and published by Phoenix Online Publishing. It is for Microsoft Windows, OS X and Linux. From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
302 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Lemmy, Mastodon) · newest Nov 2, 2026 · last updated Nov 3, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
72
Fresh
142 positive · 54 negative
95% range 66–78%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 142 | 54 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 5 | 1 | 94 |
| Lemmy * | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 1 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Mostly Positive
157 of 215 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
73% recommend · 144 yes, 54 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 198 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Mostly Positive (254 of 338 positive).
Players praise Jane Jensen's storytelling and the intriguing plot, despite technical flaws. [1][2][3] Many reviewers note poor animations and graphics as significant drawbacks. [4][5][6] Some players find the puzzles too easy or the game too short. [7][8][9]
Liked
Representative posts
- [6]
A game where pretty much everything went wrong. It's impossible to discuss Moebius without sounding cruel, but they say honesty is its own reward, so here we go. First of all, the game is hideous. Not just "not very pretty", not "outdated", but positively hideous. The kitschy 2D art is sort of acceptable if you close one eye; the poor 3D models and inexplicably terrible animations, however, are not. Either the …
- [1]
Moebius: Empire Rising is a (relatively) new adventure game by Jane Jensen. If you've played Jensen's previous games (e.g. Gabriel Knight, Gray Matter), then you might have certain (high) expectations. If you are a Jane Jensen fan, you probably won't be (too) disappointed. Her signature strengths are mostly here. The game has many flaws, but they will likely be tolerated by most. Additionally, if you are a Sherlock …
- [7]
7/10 Although the puzzles were all rather easy, the story was intriguing enough to play to the end. It’s not as bad as many of the reviewers make it sound. I want to address a few point I’ve seen in some reviews: -This is not as good as Gabriel Knight. Yes, we all love the GK series, but let’s not forget you had to put tape on a fence to get cat hairs to make into a moustache. Moebius is not GK, it’s different. Both …
- [2]
Jane Jensen is a master not just with intelligent plotlines (which sadly is rare in adventure games) but is also the master of storytelling and editing. Giving succinct but a lot of valuable information in various ways as to never be boring and, if you are like me, learn a lot while having a heap of fun at the same time. The storyline background was art history and the unfolding plot was about Moebius Theory (there …
- [3]
Moebius: Empire Rising is a point and click adventure game by Jane Jensen and published by Phoenix Online Studios. If you aren’t familiar with the name Jane Jensen, she is one of the big names in adventure games from back when adventure games were the showcase genre of the PC who are still working primarily in that genre. I don’t want to go all auteur theory, but Jensen’s is important because Moebius is recognizably …
Summarised from 34 of the 273 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 13, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Moebius: Empire Rising sits at 72% positive across 196 opinionated reactions from 4 sources. Fresh or rotten — where do you land?
Critics, per Wikipedia
Moebius: Empire Rising received mixed reviews from critics. Critical aggregator GameRankings calculated an average score of 60%, while Metacritic calculated a weighted score of 54/100. How well the game sold is not known precisely. In 2016, Jane Jensen announced that Pinkerton had no games currently under development and the website was closing. She wrote that Moebius and Gabriel Knight: 20th Anniversary Edition had not sold well enough to justify continued development. Robert Holmes said in a 2023 interview that he and Jensen had ultimately invested a lot of their own money to get their initial two projects to completion, but concluded that their existing model was not financially viable.
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 302 · most liked first80s Japanese game art clearly influenced by Moebius, Druillet, Corben, etc. slaps so hard. This is one of my favorite illustrations ever.
neutral · AI labelView post →A game where pretty much everything went wrong. It's impossible to discuss Moebius without sounding cruel, but they say honesty is its own reward, so here we go. First of all, the game is hideous. Not just "not very pretty", not "outdated", but positively hideous. The kitschy 2D art is sort of acceptable if you close one eye; the poor 3D models and inexplicably terrible animations, however, are not. Either the artists are aliens who never saw a real human being, or they are simply people…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's funny seeing people confused by a 1997 French Adventure game with Paulo Coelho & Moebius... We focus too much on GAMER stuff for millennials, so it's easy to miss how the 90s was full of Adventure games / Myst-likes made with TV channels, museums & famous authors to target then-adult audiences
neutral · AI labelView post →Regarding the illustration created by Moebius for Fade to Black: a 3DCG illustration had been commissioned by the game's producer, but neither EA, who produced the game, nor the developers liked it. So one of the devs - Thierry Perreau - went to see Moebius... youtu.be/dUAe0CvWSjk&... 1/3
neutral · AI labelView post →Moebius: Empire Rising is a (relatively) new adventure game by Jane Jensen. If you've played Jensen's previous games (e.g. Gabriel Knight, Gray Matter), then you might have certain (high) expectations. If you are a Jane Jensen fan, you probably won't be (too) disappointed. Her signature strengths are mostly here. The game has many flaws, but they will likely be tolerated by most. Additionally, if you are a Sherlock Holmes fan, you are even more likely to appreciate this, as there are numerous…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Moebius-style Rendering in Godot, from an indie game that's aimed to be a mix between Attack on Titan and Gundam. SIgn me up! www.youtube.com/watch?v=4F9C... #godot #madeingodot #gamedev #shader
neutral · AI labelView post →I consider myself a big fan of Jane Jensen's and classical adventure games in general (as you can probably tell by my choice of the Steam avatar), but I cannot in good conscience recommend this game. It rehashes all the adventure game tropes and clichés (not in a good way) and much of the puzzle design is flawed or illogical. Most crucially, though,I found myself getting bored with the plot and couldn't care enough to keep playing. I never got to finish the game as much as I wanted to because…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Firstly, I'll begin by stating that I am an avid Jane Jensen fan and was a backer for Moebius ER. As for my review, I'll begin from the positives: * The story is great. It’s mature and somewhat relevant to real global events and pulls you right in the mood for a grand mystery. * Malachi is a TERRIFIC main character! He’s well-written, multi-dimensional and evolving through the story… (I was hunting for all the hotspots just to hear what he had to say about them!) * Another thing about Malachi……
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Inspired by the thin lines and solid color fills of Moebius, Josan Gonzalez and BakaArts - “Castle Eisenstein” is my riff on Silas’ work and a way to imagine a similar game, made sometime in the (hopefully) brighter future.
neutral · AI labelView post →I think everyone here would enjoy playing Synergy it's a chill but adventurous city sim inspired by the Ligne-Claire style world of Moebius. You're nomadic refugees from another place who settle in the wastelands and build up a charming little town. #synergy #comics #game
neutral · AI labelView post →Chants of Sennaar is the most beautiful game I have ever played and the best puzzle game I have ever played. If you love translating languages mixed with puzzles set in a minimalist, Moebius aesthetic then run to play this.
neutral · AI labelView post →Do you like good games? Then this game is not for you. Do you like demented puzzles and being annoyed out of your pants? Then this game IS for you. Ironically, though, I have no doubt whether to recommend it or not - I enjoyed it, a lot. Guess it's a question of what you're looking for. If you're looking for Cesar Bittar, by jove you've found him. It is obviously a game developed solely by him without any involvement of that pesky Jane Jensen whatsoever. Or at least by Phoenix Online, and not…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →convinced if they made a mech game, almost identical to this, but Salvage instead of fishing, and in a cool science-fantasy "Moebius" like world - they'd sell THE HELL out of it!
neutral · AI labelView post →Jane Jensen is a master not just with intelligent plotlines (which sadly is rare in adventure games) but is also the master of storytelling and editing. Giving succinct but a lot of valuable information in various ways as to never be boring and, if you are like me, learn a lot while having a heap of fun at the same time. The storyline background was art history and the unfolding plot was about Moebius Theory (there are the same patterns throughout history, everything repeats itself) Your…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →According to Hubert Chardot, Moebius worked as art director on Seven Games of the Soul, a 1999 PC game produced by Cryo. He is not credited in the game though. youtu.be/Mgj13ZYQzgE&... www.mobygames.com/game/1393/se...
neutral · AI labelView post →This... thing is nowhere near the former Jane's masterpieces. Bland, unlikable characters. Sloppy design. Nonexistant puzzles. Sorry, I'm not proud of backing it.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →2 years ago, I realized I was running out of time before turning 30. So I stopped waiting, quit my job, and started building. With my brothers, we created our own indie game, inspired by Moebius: Maseylia – Echoes of the Past. Not perfect.. but 100% ours!
neutral · AI labelView post →[Space game releases] System Shock (the excellent 2023 remake is now available on Playstation 4|5, Xbox One & Series X|S. Synergy, the Moebius-like city builder on an alien planet is now in Early access on Steam.
neutral · AI labelView post →Things are going well. Been playing Rolledrome, yes it’s a Videodrome reference. This game ROCKS, synth-rock soundtrack ROCKS, Moebius shading ROCKS. That being said, it’s way too hard for me, but I’ll keep playing. I just don’t wanna work today.
neutral · AI labelView post →fountain pen sketch, inspired by Moebius and De Chirico. This may be a concept for a new game :) #indieDev #godot #sketch
neutral · AI labelView post →Thinking about the moment when you first drop into the Outer Wilds DLC area. Moebius are sick fucks, I hope they make another game
neutral · AI labelView post →One of the worst adventure games I've played. Terrible, terrible music. Bad sound effects. Unprofessional voice acting. Much too short. Final chapter revolves around clicking your way through 60 caves, all animated with the same 4 bad backgrounds. Did the budget run out? Do not get this game, even if it is on sale. Hurts to say this, considering I love Jane Jensen's work in general, and both Gabriel Knight and Gray Matter are favorites of mine.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →#RandomGameSaturday is cool and all, but what about #SegaSaturnday? The day we dedicate to the Sega Saturn Lmao, yeah sure. Fuck it, happy random game sega saturnday yall! Panzer Dragoon featuring Moebius cover art
neutral · AI labelView post →7/10 Although the puzzles were all rather easy, the story was intriguing enough to play to the end. It’s not as bad as many of the reviewers make it sound. I want to address a few point I’ve seen in some reviews: -This is not as good as Gabriel Knight. Yes, we all love the GK series, but let’s not forget you had to put tape on a fence to get cat hairs to make into a moustache. Moebius is not GK, it’s different. Both have good and bad points, but it’s unfair to compare a current game with your…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Is Moebius bad? Short anwser: Yes, and I wouldn't recommend it. Long answer, see below. There will be spoilers below. The game starts out fine, if a bit odd that Malachi would go investigate a murder victim when his specialty by all accounts is evaluating artifacts and antiques, but I'll go with it. The puzzles are fine for the most part (if we ignore the end of the game, more on that below), the only real gripe being a safe code that is the date a newspaper article was written about a…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you like cozy tabletop lonely fun, Moebius and the vid game Sable: put on lofi music, grab some paper, dice and pencils, then open your copy of Glide. ✏️ 🫖
neutral · AI labelView post →9 Sols is really damn pretty! Love the Moebius vibe and colors on the trees. I'm only in the very early game, but the story and world have got me really intrigued and hooked. Gameplay is tight af. If the tag "Sekiro-vania" interests you then, yes, give this a play! #Blutoid
neutral · AI labelView post →Industry veteran Jane Jensen joins forces with Phoenix Online to deliver a new adventure. The result? Contrived writing and formulaic characters (not exactly surprising if you've read that Jensen interview on Gamasutra...), mostly vapid ideas, some daft puzzles, but clearly the most eminent problem lies with the Holmes deduction process analogue mechanic: it probably sounded a great idea on paper, in practice the solution is either a) blatantly obvious, akin to compiling a simple form b) total…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The current version is extremely buggy and it is impossible to finish the game as it freezes at several points. The developer has released save games to get you past the broken parts but you will miss out on much of the story and there are bugs not covered by these saves. Don't buy this game until at least the next update!
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you're really into adventure games and enjoy pseudo-historical / metaphysical storylines, you MIGHT enjoy this game. Otherwise, and I'm sorry to say as a backer and fan of Ms. Jensen's past work, it's a train wreck. The graphics and gameplay are just atrocious. Everyone looks like a scary alien. 3D animations weren't this bad in the 90s. The puzzles are just dumb. At one point, you have to take a private jet from DC to NYC to buy a bottle of wine. Seriously, the whole thing is so badly done,…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →TL;DR the story has potential, but suffers from mediocre dialog, and flat characters. The animations and character graphics are bad. The puzzles are varied with some interesting mechanics, but not necessarily hard. It has a solid length. Recommended to people who really like adventures and people who can get past some bad dialog. Well backed the game on kickstarter, played through it.. The graphics are rather bad (or the characters are), and the animations are awful. That would be ok if…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I just finished this game and thouroughly enjoyed it! Yes i had to get past the usual stuff you have to get past with one of these games, graphics aren't that great, horrible animation and a bit buggy.. though its not as buggy as phoenix online previos game cognition, only a few glitches here and there like the mouse cursor disapearing for a moment or one such part of the game where i couldnt get it to leave a close up! The puzzles are fairly simplistic and its fairly linear with only 1…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A fascinating cocktail of historical mystery, conspiracy, and murder, held back by awkward animation and flat direction. It has the soul of a fine wine, unfortunately served in a plastic cup.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →do we have a name for this indie game art style yet? Jet Grind Radio-core with an optional sprinkling of Moebius? It feels more specific than just "cel shading"
neutral · AI labelView post →I bought this game right after finishing Cognition (highly recommended). Contrary to other reviewers, I quite liked the character of Malachi and his exaggerated British accent, and I found his relationship with David surprising - in a good way. I felt I learned a bit about genuine historical figures through his pattern-seeking puzzles which is a plus. It wasn't as challenging as Cognition and it only took me 9 hours to complete. I also wasn't a huge fan of the short chapter format but all in…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I backed this game on Kickstarter because I used to love Jan Jensen's games but I must admit that I'm pretty disappointed by the result: the story itself is not bad at all, but the graphics are going from quite nice to awful, animations are extremely poor for a game released in 2014 and some "required actions" are simply illogical and the whole game is way too linear. Im a big fan of adventure games and loved the Gabriel Knight series, but I cannot seriously recommend this game :-( If you're…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Maseylia: Echoes of the Past, a 3D metroidvania inspired by the French artist Moebius, is out today on PC (consoles on the way). >Explore a fully interconnected 3D world where every new ability dramatically expands your freedom. A true non-linear Metroidvania with breathtaking movement, atmospheric sci-fi beauty, and deep environmental storytelling. 🎮 [Steam](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2938870/Maseylia__Echoes_of_the_Past/) ✅ - [Metroidvania…
neutral · AI labelView post →Looking for an artist for my board game. It has a Baron Munchausen vibe. Think outlandish pre-industrial travelogue. I’m envisioning a cross between Moebius and Alphonse Mucha if that makes sense.
neutral · AI labelView post →I still think about the first time I played Gravity Rush on my vita and how I realized the backgrounds were dynamically shaded in such a vibrant and colorful way and how the entire game was designed to resemble Moebius comics
neutral · AI labelView post →My new indie tactics #deckbulider game Scorchwalkers is heating up!!! Very excited about getting the new art assets in and finalizing the features for the demo! Also you can control multiple units now!! #indiedev #moebius #kaiju #godzilla #mecha
neutral · AI labelView post →i’m not even done with Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and i would give anything to hear the Moebius theme for the first time again. i immediately kicked into FEAR the moment it started playing lol. it has been an insane and wild ride so far. this game is peak incarnate.
neutral · AI labelView post →Moebius: Empire Rising is a point and click adventure game by Jane Jensen and published by Phoenix Online Studios. If you aren’t familiar with the name Jane Jensen, she is one of the big names in adventure games from back when adventure games were the showcase genre of the PC who are still working primarily in that genre. I don’t want to go all auteur theory, but Jensen’s is important because Moebius is recognizably the kind of game she’s been making for the last couple decades. There’s a…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Moebius has a gripping story that takes you all over the world searching for the perfect match for someone in the past. This someone is important to the future of the global economy and different factions are trying to get their hands on her. And only one man, Malachi Rector, can decipher the clues as to her identity. In true Jane Jensen fashion (famous for the Gabriel Knight series and Gray Matter), this is a game that holds true to her style. Intrigue, danger, a mystery that spans centuries,…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The story, music and puzzles are what hold this game together - it's just a shame about the poor animations and low resolution graphics. If you can overlook the graphical flaws you've got a pretty good mystery adventure game on your hands. And with Jane Jensen at the helm, why wouldn't it be?
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Someone said my game looks like Adventure Time.. It's actually inspired by Moebius! #sologame #adventure #platformer
neutral · AI labelView post →There’s a bit of a Moebius vibe to some of the awesome artwork of the first game, especially the image on back #retrogaming
neutral · AI labelView post →Man I miss the days when you could get some beloved artist to do the cover art for a random video game. (Fairly certain this one's by Moebius. If not: point still stands.)
neutral · AI labelView post →TL,DR I didn't even get a chance to finish Moebius, due to a very annoying game-breaking bug I ran into during one of the final chapters (Dominique's condo, for the record). I really wasn't motivated enough to go back to a previous save, as the mere thought of having to go through what felt like a very long, uninteresting, muddy slog all over again wasn't exactly appealing. The main issue with this game is not the ugly graphics (I really don't care much about how a game looks in terms of…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I enjoyed this game despite it's failings. For me I want an adventure to make me feel like I'm living through the interesting detailed story it's telling me and Moebius does this quite well. Now the plot itself is a tad bit laughable but I expect adventures to have B Movie plots. The plots of the much loved Gabriel Knight 1 and 2 were also laughable and somewhat offensive. IE in GB1 the fear of a large black murderous voodoo cult where every black person in the story is involved taps into…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Would have loved being able to recommend this game. The plot is interesting(though not stellar). The puzzles are acceptable. I can overlook the early 2000 animations. I can overlook some of the control issues. But playing for a bit and then encountering a game breaking bug (the same one described in: http://steamcommunity.com/app/264520/discussions/0/617321352093942871/ Sorry, that is simply not acceptable. This game has been out for months. Having a bug that pretty much ends your playthrough…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →good point and click adventure, still some graphic bug and i got stuck at some point. so save often and enkoy this great game. wish there were more like this
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Maseylia: Echoes of the Past, a 3D metroidvania inspired by the French artist Moebius, has announced a release date for June 19, 2026 on PC. >Explore a fully interconnected 3D world where every new ability dramatically expands your freedom. A true non-linear Metroidvania with breathtaking movement, atmospheric sci-fi beauty, and deep environmental storytelling. 🌐 [Steam](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2938870/Maseylia__Echoes_of_the_Past/)
neutral · AI labelView post →There's a thin line between "homage" and "rip off" and I think this design from the "Star Wars: Jedi Survivor" game might just overstep it. I wonder what the Moebius Estate make of it?
neutral · AI labelView post →Not as enjoyable to me as Cognition (a similar adventure game by same devs). The characters are much less likable, the story is less enjoyable, and the ending was lackluster (I was expecting some epic time and space interdimensional showdown, not "ok hostages rescued good jorb."). And one gameplay mechanism really irked me: you're not allowed to pick up anything until you've interacted with the puzzle that requires it. e.g.: See an oil can in the middle of the road, try to pick it up, "I have…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I received Moebius: Empire Rising for backing the Pinkerton Road Kickstarter and just finally got around to finishing it. It wasn't a terrible way to spend my time, but I wouldn't describe it as a good game and I wouldn't recommend it unless you really have nothing else you'd like to be playing. The feel of the game overall was very unpolished, and while I could forgive the aesthetics not being perfect, things like the animations were not only stiff and unrealistic, but they were very slow and…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I was dissapointed with the graphics in this game, but the game itself was a solid Jane Jensen affair. Was it one of her better games? No. I would have likes to see the themes in this game fleshed out a bit morel. It did feel like there should have been more to it. It was enjoyable for me though.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Excellent game if you can get over the poor animations (and you should). This is a very small team that managed to duplicate the quality of GK3 (warts and all) with about 1/5th the budget. The story is fantastic and Malachi's voice actor was brilliant. I am supporting this game because I want this studio to succeed and Jane Jensen to continue making new adventure games - the quality will improve as evidenced in the GK 2.0 trailers where walking has been fixed. It would be nice if they spent the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Long story short, a fun and interesting game. (MAY HAVE SPOILERS) the good: - fun gameplay - nice art - detailed settings and characters - nice dialogue - decent gameplay pacing - fun story to unravel - user-friendly - parts of the gameplay can be pretty comical, like how obviously stupid the NPC's can be :P - original "analysis" game mechanic is pretty cool the bad: - buggy at times (maybe they'll do some patches?) - the 3D animation and meshes are a bit wonky - to me, this game doesn't top…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Moebius: Empire Rising is a new Adventure game created by Jane Jensen (Gabriel Knight series and Gray Matter) and Phoenix Online Studios, best known for Cognition: An Erica Reed Thriller and a never-finished fan-made game entitled The Silver Lining, which was based on the King's Quest series. So it's a decent pedigree (at least as far as the writing is concerned), but is it actually a good game? In my not-so-humble opinion, no, it's not. I wish it was, but unfortunately, the game barely…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →i was pitching DIMPScember as a streaming month to oomf and i learned that their not-good PS2 game Seven Samurai 20XX had character designs by Moebius and an OST by Ryuichi Sakamoto, for some reason
neutral · AI labelView post →
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