The Rise of the Golden Idol similar games & best alternatives

The Rise of the Golden Idol - Trailer
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The Rise of the Golden Idol

Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, Android, PC (Microsoft Windows), iOS, PlayStation 5, Mac, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch • 2024

Should you play it?

The Award-winning detective saga returns in this standalone sequel to The Case of the Golden Idol. Uncover the truth behind 20 strange cases of crime, death and depravity in the 1970s. The world has changed dramatically - the sins of humanity have not.

What works

  • Engaging and challenging puzzles
  • Deep and immersive narrative
  • Unique and stylized art
  • Quality-of-life ui improvements
  • Strong replay value and dlc support

Things to keep in mind

  • Story less cohesive than predecessor
  • Some puzzles require tedious backtracking
  • Ui can be clunky with overlapping windows
  • Final chapters and plot resolution weaker
  • Some players find difficulty spikes frustrating

What to play next

Top picks

Games that feels the closest overall

  • Tiny Room Stories: Town Mystery

  • Lucy Dreaming

  • The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark

  • The Samaritan Paradox

  • Cleo - a pirate's tale

  • Loco Motive

Less thrilling

Games that feels like The Rise of the Golden Idol but with less suspense and thrill

  • Elroy and the Aliens

  • Leisure Suit Larry - Wet Dreams Don't Dry

  • The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition

  • The Inner World

  • Dangeresque: The Roomisode Triungulate

  • Deponia Doomsday

More expressive

Games that feels like The Rise of the Golden Idol but with more self-expression and customization

  • Whispers of a Machine

  • Edna & Harvey: The Breakout - Anniversary Edition

  • Helheim Hassle

  • Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse

  • Chaos on Deponia

  • Edna & Harvey: The Breakout

Choose your own criteria ->

Similarity map

How to use the graph

Similarity map

Each dot is a game placed from its motivation profile relative to this page’s game. Direction shows which motivation differs most; distance along that axis shows how large the gap is.

  • Purple star: this page’s game at the centre — everything is relative to it.
  • Direction: each axis is a main motivational difference vs this game (e.g. more / less competitive).
  • Distance on an axis: how large that difference is (ring scales show +/− points).
  • Coloured chips: click to highlight games that mainly differ on that motivation; click again to reset.
  • Dotted line: link between this page’s game and the one selected for comparison.
  • Hover a dot to preview that game in the panel on the right; click to keep that comparison.
  • Scroll or double-click the chart to zoom.

How to read the map This is a polar difference map: direction = which motivation differs, and distance = how much (same units as the sidebar deltas).

The Rise of the Golden Idol: Broadly representative of its motivational profile, with a few distinct shifts. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Survival, Violence, Competition, Thrill. Here, the score leans higher than usual among comparable games on Thrill. It leans lower than usual among comparable games on Intimacy, Expression.

Last update: 04/08/2026