Order of the Sinking Star Comes To Switch 2 And PS5 In 2026
PLAYISM's pickup puts a decade-old, heavily layered puzzle project on Nintendo's new console and Sony's current one at the same time, ahead of the PC release already set for October 9.
Key Facts
- PLAYISM announced on September 10 that it will publish the Japanese console version of Order of the Sinking Star for Nintendo Switch 2 and PlayStation 5 within 2026.
- Order of the Sinking Star is developed by Thekla, Inc., the studio of Jonathan Blow, whose credits include Braid and The Witness.
- The game contains more than 1,000 puzzles, which the developer says were built over about 10 years after a prototype shown at Reboot Develop 2017.
- A playable demo of Order of the Sinking Star runs at the PLAYISM booth (07-C06) at Tokyo Game Show 2026 from September 17 to 21 at Makuhari Messe.
- The PC version of Order of the Sinking Star releases on October 9 through an overseas publisher.
Reporting from 2 sources: Denfaminicogamer, Automaton.
PLAYISM will publish the Japanese console version of Order of the Sinking Star, the puzzle adventure from Thekla, Inc., the studio of Jonathan Blow. The game is scheduled for release within 2026 on Nintendo Switch 2 and PlayStation 5. The project has been in the works for roughly a decade, first shown as a prototype at the Reboot Develop 2017 developer event, and now carries more than 1,000 puzzles. Players explore four worlds, each with its own mechanics, characters, and story, in any order they choose, and can resume each puzzle stage from where they stopped. The playable cast includes a queen, a thief, a warrior, a sorcerer, and a talking ship, with abilities that differ by character. A playable demo is set for the PLAYISM booth at Tokyo Game Show 2026, which runs September 17 to 21 at Makuhari Messe. The PC version arrives October 9 through an overseas publisher.
PLAYISM announced the Japanese console publishing deal on September 10. The product listing describes Order of the Sinking Star as a single player game with text and audio support for Japanese, English, French, Italian, German, Spanish (Spain), Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, and both Simplified and Traditional Chinese.
The puzzle stages mix solo hero play with multi-character stages where players switch freely between characters. A stage clears only when every character stands on a goal tile, which pushes the design toward Sokoban-style block and switch puzzles. The thief pulls blocks and other characters by turning their back and walking. The warrior pushes them. The sorcerer swaps positions by teleporting when facing a block or character head on. Some stages add mirrors that teleport a character to a spot reflected at a 90 degree angle, and monsters that attack adjacent or directly facing characters.
Jonathan Blow's studio is credited alongside the overseas publishing arrangement: Arc Games Inc. publishes outside Japan, while Active Gaming Media handles the Japanese release under the PLAYISM brand. The copyright line carries a 2026 Thekla date.
Demo visitors at the PLAYISM booth (07-C06, Hall 7) get a slide puzzle keychain while supplies last. Public days run September 19 to 21, with opening times listed as 9:30 to 17:00 and 9:30 to 16:00 on the final holiday.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 2 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.