The Red Pearls Of Borneo

The Red Pearls Of Borneo

Released Mar 2026

A detective noir puzzle deduction game. Explore a non-linear timeline as a clairvoyant investigator in 1941 Borneo. Jump between time and locations to uncover motives and discover what truly happened in the Goodwill tobacco plantation that fateful night on the eve of the WW2 Japanese invasion.

95% positive · 4,620 reviews
Done
All announced content has been released
High confidence
Done
All announced content has been released
High confidence

Where to get it

Free on Steam

Evaluation

The Red Pearls of Borneo launched on March 27, 2026 as a free-to-play deduction mystery game. It is a self-contained narrative experience — a single mystery set on one night in 1941 Borneo — with no DLC, season pass, or announced future content for the game itself. Following launch, the developer shipped a steady stream of quality-of-life improvements, bug fixes, a new hint system, and localization updates through April and May 2026. These were all polish and accessibility improvements rather than new story content. On May 15, 2026, Bushmonkey Games announced a sequel, *The Green Mist over Portland*, set in the same universe. A playable demo for the sequel launched on June 9, 2026, and by June 18, 2026, it had surpassed 20,000 wishlists. The developer's own language in the sequel news posts reinforces that The Red Pearls of Borneo is a finished, standalone work — they describe the sequel as "continuing the story" and note that players "coming straight from the ending of The Red Pearls of Borneo" should expect the sequel to deliver the next chapter. This framing treats the original game as complete. No additional content has been announced for The Red Pearls of Borneo itself. The system has determined the game is now outside the recently-launched window (180 days from its March 27, 2026 release date would be September 23, 2026, and today is September 24, 2026). With no outstanding content commitments, no unreleased DLC, no sustained post-launch content cadence (only maintenance and QoL patches), and a sequel now in active pre-release development, the original game is complete as shipped.
Evidence
Developer describes sequel as 'twice the size' of The Red Pearls of Borneo and explicitly addresses players coming from the ending of the original, treating it as a complete, prior work.
news post · Jun 18, 2026 source development ending
high
Developer announces sequel 'The Green Mist of Portland' as a new, separate game in the same universe — framing The Red Pearls of Borneo as a finished chapter whose story continues in the sequel.
news post · May 15, 2026 source development ending
high

Media

Details

Publisher
Bushmonkey Games
Achievements
31
Platform
Windows, macOS
Controller
—
Steam Deck
Not rated
Players
Single-player

About this game

A Colonial Noir Mystery

The Red Pearls of Borneo is an atmospheric deduction game inspired by Return of the Obra Dinn, The Case of the Golden Idol and Type Help. You are a clairvoyant investigator in 1948 London, exploring the psychic echoes of a tragedy that occurred seven years prior on a remote plantation in Borneo.

Your tools are simple: a box of old photographs, a map of the plantation and your unique ability to step into the past.

London, 1948

Jeremiah Goodwill's tobacco plantation was supposed to be a paradise. But on the night of December 16th, 1941, as the Japanese Imperial Navy loomed on the horizon, the estate fell into chaos.

Sort through the lies. Reveal the faces of the strangers. Discover what truly happened in the Goodwill plantation that fateful night.

Key Features:

  • Echoes of the Past: Explore a non-linear timeline. Jump between witness perspectives and moments in time to uncover motives, secret meetings and fatal mistakes.

  • The "Mind's Eye": Use a unique node-based deduction system to visualise the movement of guests across the island. Connect the dots to prove who was where, and when.

  • Make notes of everything everywhere: You can keep notes on all aspects of the game. From characters and locations to items and snippets of text from clues.

  • Learn about the rarely told history of Borneo on the eve of WW2 through the interactive glossary you will unlock as you go.

Can you piece together the truth before the memories fade? Identify the guests, determine their fates and solve the mystery of the Red Pearls!

Last evaluated Sep 24, 2026
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