Some have only just discovered this peculiar mystery.
In October, Return of the Obra Dinn saw a sudden surge in popularity. The title set a new concurrent-player record on Steam seven years after its release.
Until recently, the game’s active player count hovered around 70–100, but it has now climbed past 1,300 simultaneous users.
What triggered the spike remains uncertain: the game does not have Steam trading cards, so a bot farm is unlikely. It’s possible the 50% sale — the largest discount in two years — attracted many players.
In Return of the Obra Dinn, players must board the vessel and conduct an investigation:
…early one morning the Obra Dinn was carried by the tide into Falmouth harbour. The ship’s rigging was damaged and there was no sign of the crew. You, an insurance investigator for the London office of the East India Company, must immediately travel to Falmouth, board the vessel, and assess the extent of the loss.
Source: iXBT.games