The Deer

About

The Deer is a single player open world puzzle game with horror, anime, violence and erotic themes. It was developed by Giulia Airoldi and was released on March 28, 2016. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

The Deer is an educational inter-ac-tive expe-ri-ence for children. You'll be an ancient Deer during the Pleistocene epoch and you'll discover everything about this marvelous era. Unfortunately there were no T-Rex during this age since they were already extinct millions of years before.

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63%

Audience ScoreBased on 904 reviews

graphics51 positive mentions

replayability5 negative mentions

Cute and charming art style with smooth animations and a relaxing soundtrack.
Educational content about the Pleistocene (Ice Age) epoch, suitable for very young children.
Simple and accessible gameplay with a few mini-games that are easy for kids to understand.

Extremely short gameplay lasting approximately 3 to 10 minutes with very limited content and replay value.
Poor controls with occasional unresponsiveness and wonky mechanics making movement frustrating.
Text is sometimes hard to read, overly complex for the target young audience, and lacking engaging delivery.

graphics
105 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
47%
4%
The game's graphics are generally praised for their cute, charming, and well-executed art style, which appeals especially to children and fans of educational content. However, there are frequent remarks about the simplicity, low budget feel, and occasionally rough animations, with some critics noting the visuals can't justify the full price given the game's very short length. Overall, the visuals are considered a strong point, though not without limitations in detail and realism.
- “The graphics are one of the best I've ever seen and I will totally recommend this game to everyone who wants to have a good time!”
- “Now to get a good idea of what the graphics are like (because the screen shots are wildly inaccurate) think The Witcher 3 meets MGS V, but even that doesn't do it justice.”
- “The graphics are so smooth, much like that of a Disney title but without that hefty price tag.”
- “Rough visuals and stiff animations that highlight its low budget.”
- “It is three puzzles, poor graphics, and some interesting facts.”
- “Graphics cut off the edge of the screen no matter which resolution.”
gameplay
66 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
76%
6%
The gameplay is overwhelmingly criticized for its extreme simplicity, short duration (often under 10 minutes), and lack of meaningful interaction or progression, with many describing it as little more than brief minigames or interactive information. While a few reviews praise occasional combat mechanics or educational elements, most find the experience unengaging, repetitive, and not worth the price, especially since the entire game is shown in its promotional video. Overall, the gameplay is minimal, clunky at times, and primarily targeted at very young children.
- “Simple, accessible gameplay that requires zero learning.”
- “The combat itself is fantastic, fast paced combat with blocking, parrying, and dodging away from enemy attacks, it just makes the overall gameplay loop that much more enjoyable.”
- “The gameplay is tactical and exciting, the combat is quick and responsive.”
- “There are no objectives, no meaningful interactions, no progression, and very little gameplay structure.”
- “The only gameplay there is (pressing a & d to walk left & right) is clunky - it takes several presses to switch direction, and the deer will often continue walking in the previous direction for a while, even when the opposite button is used.”
- “♦ poorly executed game (game has potential to be massive and highly educational, except it's short, has minimal educational facts and little to no fun gameplay).”
music
59 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
47%
48%
5%
The music in the game is widely praised for being relaxing, peaceful, and well-suited to the game's calming atmosphere and visuals. Many users highlight the soundtrack as a standout feature, with some considering it a primary reason to experience or even purchase the game. While some note the soundtrack can be repetitive or less effective outside the game context, overall it is appreciated as soothing, enjoyable, and complementary to the educational and artistic aspects.
- “Conclusion is, I'd honestly buy the game just for the soundtrack, nothing else.”
- “This game has stunning visual effects, and a soundtrack that I listen to on a daily basis because it touches me so much.”
- “The illustrations and music are so calming and sweet, and the information throughout the game was perfect for small children as an introduction to the Pleistocene era and prehistory in general.”
- “There's also a soundtrack pack, but they are a bunch of midi files rendered to mp3 and I don't recognize any tune I heard in-game.”
- “Midi soundtrack given by DLC barely relates to the pleasant in-game music... I'm speechless.”
- “- one track song that keeps on repeating.”
story
54 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
39%
48%
13%
The story aspect receives mixed reviews, with some praising it as an emotional, heartwarming, and engaging tale suitable for children, while others criticize it for being extremely short, lacking depth, or nearly non-existent. Overall, it is often described as a brief, educational, interactive storybook with potential for more content in future updates or DLC.
- “It's undeniably the best game ever made, it has great game mechanics alongside the best storytelling in existence, I'm grateful for finding this game, it truly saved my life.”
- “Truly a heartwarming adventure filled with laughter, thrills, and tears; Telltale's best story so far, can't wait for the next season.”
- “Btw best game ever played, took me 12 hours to complete, puzzles are extremely difficult, engaging story, amazing graphics.”
- “- No story whatsoever and the game seems to cut off immediately after a few minutes, no ending or conclusion.”
- “The story is only 3 minutes long (it took longer to get this Steam key).”
- “Although the way of telling story isn't bad, the game itself is just too short and that's why I think about this title as unexploited potential.”
humor
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
92%
8%
The game's humor is widely praised for its goofy and charming concept of controlling a clumsy, sliding deer, delivering consistent laughs through its quirky physics and amusing mechanics. While some find it genuinely funny and enjoyable for lighthearted fun, a few feel the humor falls flat. Overall, it is celebrated as a brief but entertaining comedic experience.
- “The game’s humor is its biggest draw.”
- “There’s something inherently funny about controlling a huge, derpy deer sliding around streets, bumping into objects, and generally behaving like a clumsy kaiju with antlers.”
- “Genuinely funny concept with charmingly goofy physics.”
replayability
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
39%
38%
Replayability opinions for this game are mixed, with some praising its lasting appeal and engaging puzzles, while others criticize its short length, limited content, and repetitive gameplay. Overall, the game lacks significant replay value, especially for older players or those seeking more depth beyond the three mini-games.
- “Very good game with a lot of replayability.”
- “Outstanding replay value.”
- “First time I played this, beat it in 2 minutes. Massive replayability, you can play the 3 puzzles as much as you want, and it doesn't get repetitive. I rate it 9/11.”
- “Extremely short, barely any content or replay value.”
- “♦ No replayability (once you play it once, there is no reason to go back).”
- “There are 3 mini games, only 3, that have no replay value. Every game is just played and finished without any feedback; when you finish it, you need to press the back button to return.”
emotional
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game delivers a deeply emotional and heartfelt experience, evoking tears and strong feelings through its story and characters. While most players feel a powerful connection and describe it as a touching adventure, a few noted moments where emotional engagement with the protagonist waned. Overall, it is praised as a moving, story-driven game that resonates strongly with players.
- “Tears welled up in his eyes when he realized what exactly was at stake.”
- “An emotional rollercoaster that will leave you breathless.”
- “Truly a heartwarming adventure filled with laughter, thrills, and tears; Telltale's best story so far - can't wait for the next season.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The game is highly optimized, delivering smooth performance with around 90% GPU usage and approximately 1000 FPS. It runs efficiently on most computers, consistently maintaining over 60 FPS, outperforming titles like COD: Black Ops 3 in terms of optimization.
- “Really well optimized, 90% GPU usage with around 1000 FPS.”
- “Runs smoothly.”
- “Can run on almost all computers, maintaining over 60 FPS unlike other games with poor optimization.”
- “Can run on almost all computers, over 60 fps unlike the COD: Black Ops 3 bullshit optimization.”
atmosphere
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's atmosphere is generally praised for its pleasant and classic guitar background music, which enhances the overall experience. While not outstanding, the art style and music together create a notably atmospheric and enjoyable environment.
- “The classic guitar tunes in the background give the game a pleasant atmosphere.”
- “The music and art style contribute to a good and pleasant atmosphere.”
- “Very atmospheric.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is mixed, with some users experiencing smooth gameplay without bugs or control issues, while others report noticeable bugs that affect the overall sense of completeness.
- “Still buggy.”
- “The game is a bit buggy and gives me kind of a feeling of being incomplete.”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's monetization is criticized for offering little value, as the entire gameplay is available for free through the store page video, and the short playtime makes purchasing it for $1 seem unjustified.
- “No point purchasing the game. The gameplay advertisement video on the store page literally shows the whole game. Why buy something when you can see it unlimited times for free?”
- “The whole game took me 4 minutes to complete, and you can watch the entire game for free on their Steam page via their advertisement gameplay video. I wouldn't recommend wasting $1 on this game as you'll be highly disappointed.”
- “”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game involves some card farming which can feel repetitive, but the short and simple gameplay helps keep grinding brief. However, the complexity of the text may detract from the experience, especially for younger players.
- “Yes, the other time spent was in farming the cards!”
- “Normally when cash farming cards, I will play until I unlock them, but you can't do that here because you can run through the whole thing in about 5 minutes, consisting of some text, some scenery, and 3 or 4 mini puzzles.”
- “Although a game this cute, short, and simplistic would be geared towards young children, I still can't recommend it as half of the text consists of information that would fly right over a child's head, using words that I'm sure some of their slower parents would have trouble pronouncing.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users praise the game for its impressive and well-executed character development.