POSTAL
Hooks you almost right away
What the data shows
- In the first 2 hours 1 in 7 reviews are negative (14%); after 3h it's 1 in 25 (4%).
- Fully opens up by hour 3.
- The opening is criticised less than in 84% of games we track.
- 31% of players who start reach the ending.
- Most players drop off before “Oh, you press F1!” (Start the second level): only 60% of starters get there.
- Only 55% of owners have even the first achievement — the rest barely played.
When it gets good
Share of positive reviews by how many hours the reviewer had played when writing the review.
before it gets good opening up fully opened up
Based on all 14,748 Steam reviews in every language. Median playtime in a sample of 300 reviews: 3.3h for positive, 1.3h for negative. Almost every game is rated lower in the first 2–3 hours: that window includes refunds and quick first impressions. What matters is how deep the dip is and how fast the game recovers.
Where players quit
Share of players who started the game and reached each story milestone. 100% is the most common achievement (54.6% of owners), so people who bought the game and never launched it don't count.
- Started playing 100%
- Oh, you press F1! Start the second level. Most players quit here 60% −40
- Half-mast hard-on Complete level 10. 35% −25
- Get a girlfriend Complete the game. 31% −4
story milestone ending biggest drop-off
Story milestones were labeled by AI from achievement names and descriptions; mistakes are possible.
All achievements (27)
story milestone ending side
- And so it begins... Make your first kill. 100%
- Took a banger in the mouth Take a rocket to the face. 80%
- Forrest Gump Run for 5 minutes. 69%
- Patrick Bateman Make 100 kills. 62%
- Oh, you press F1! Start the second level. 60%
- I'm afraid I just blue myself! Commit suicide. 58%
- How Kevorkian! Perform your first execution. 51%
- Bad touch! Touch someone while burning. 42%
- Dirty knees Duck under a rocket. 39%
- Half-mast hard-on Complete level 10. 35%
- NOPE! Chuck Testa. Fight an ostrich. 34%
- From my cold, dead hands Complete a level with less than 10 health. 34%
- Dexter Make 1000 kills. 33%
- Get a girlfriend Complete the game. 31%
- The Hell's Fargo Wagon Firebomb the band. 28%
- Army of One Use every weapon in the game. 25%
- Z for Zachariah Complete the game having killed everything. 25%
- I swear, the AR is for hunting! Complete the game using only the M16. 23%
- Holes is holes Take 10,000 hits. 23%
- Boondock Saint Complete the game without letting any non-hostile NPCs die 23%
- Peter North would be proud Hit 100,000 targets. 22%
- Mickey and Mallory Make 10000 kills. 22%
- Bulletstorm Fire 1,000,000 bullets. 22%
- You want our autograph too? Watch all the credits. 15%
- Never nude-ist Kill a naked person. 13%
- Ballmer Baller Play the Mac or Linux version of the game. 12%
- Sissy Enable cheats. 12%