The Book of Unwritten Tales Collection

The Book of Unwritten Tales Collection is a PC bundle of three humorous fantasy point-and-click adventure games from KING Art, published by THQ Nordic. Steam currently uses this collection name and lists six included items: the three playable adventures plus three digital-extras packages. There is no verified storefront rebrand replacing the collection with another current title.

A fantasy adventure built around switching heroes

The collection follows the classic adventure-game loop: explore a location, inspect objects, question unusual characters, collect items, combine solutions, and unlock the next story beat. Its perspective is a traditional third-person point-and-click view, with movement and interaction centered on mouse-led commands rather than combat or reflex challenges.

The original The Book of Unwritten Tales introduces the world of Aventasia through four playable heroes: gremlin archaeologist Mortimer MacGuffin, Wilbur Weathervane, Ivo, and the Critter. You switch between characters as their separate objectives overlap, using each hero's situation and available inventory to solve connected problems.

The character-swapping structure is more than a cosmetic change. A puzzle may require Wilbur's magical knowledge, Ivo's particular position in the story, Nate's practical abilities, or the Critter's unusual physical traits. Players who enjoy multi-character puzzle design can also compare it with story-driven point-and-click adventures like Broken Age, although The Book of Unwritten Tales leans harder into fantasy parody and inventory combinations.

Three connected adventures, not one oversized campaign

The bundle contains The Book of Unwritten Tales, The Book of Unwritten Tales: The Critter Chronicles, and The Book of Unwritten Tales 2. They share Aventasia, recurring characters, and the series' comedy-forward writing, but each game is presented as its own complete single-player adventure.

The first game centers on a war between the Alliance and the Army of Shadows, with Mortimer MacGuffin's knowledge of a powerful artifact drawing the four heroes into the crisis. Its story moves through a broad fantasy world populated by deliberately absurd figures, including two-headed ogres, vegetarian dragons, and good-natured zombies.

The Critter Chronicles works as a prequel to the original adventure. It focuses on how adventurer Nate Bonnett first meets his hairy companion Critter, giving the pair a more direct spotlight before their later appearance alongside Wilbur and Ivo.

The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 reunites Wilbur, Ivo, Nate, and Critter for another linear fantasy mystery. A strange magical force transforms powerful creatures into fluffy toys and castles into oversized dollhouses, providing the sequel with a distinct visual premise while preserving the established cast and parody-driven tone.

Puzzles, inventory work, and comic world-building

The original adventure advertises more than 150 puzzles and over 300 usable items, including objects that can be combined in inventory. That scale explains the collection's main appeal: progress comes from observing details, remembering dialogue, testing item relationships, and recognizing which character can advance a situation.

The puzzle design is generally embedded in the world rather than separated into abstract challenge rooms. A blocked route, suspicious machine, strange ritual, or stubborn NPC becomes the reason to search nearby scenes and revisit earlier information. Expect classic adventure-game logic, including some solutions that depend on comic context rather than obvious real-world utility.

Humor is part of the interaction design. The games parody familiar fantasy and role-playing conventions, but the jokes are delivered through conversations, item descriptions, visual gags, and side situations rather than through a separate comedy mode. The result is an adventure where reading dialogue carefully can be as useful as examining the scenery.

The sequel adds optional side quests alongside its main puzzle chains. Completing them can unlock extra outfits and achievements, giving completion-focused players more to investigate without changing the collection into an open-world or role-playing game.

What the Steam Collection includes

Steam lists the collection as six items. The playable content is the original game, The Critter Chronicles, and The Book of Unwritten Tales 2. The remaining entries are digital extras connected to the original game, The Critter Chronicles, and the sequel's Almanac Edition.

The extras are supplementary rather than additional campaigns. They include material such as soundtracks, making-of content, voice-over features, and the sequel's Almanac Edition extras. Players buying the collection for gameplay should treat these as archival bonuses surrounding the three main adventures.

There is no free-to-play structure, seasonal progression, competitive service, or character-shop model attached to the collection. It is a conventional premium bundle of standalone narrative adventures, with the paid value concentrated in the three full games and optional bonus material.

Who should play it on PC?

This collection suits players who want single-player fantasy storytelling, recurring characters, voiced conversations, and a substantial sequence of environmental puzzles. It is especially well matched to people who prefer investigating a scene at their own pace instead of managing combat, timers, or fail states.

The three games are also a good fit for fans of satirical fantasy. The writing constantly plays with familiar ideas from quests, magic, monsters, bureaucracy, and heroic destiny, while still maintaining a continuing cast and a coherent setting.

It is less suitable for players looking for action, branching role-playing systems, online co-op, or a modern cinematic adventure built around dialogue choices. The structure is deliberately traditional: explore, talk, inspect, combine, solve, and continue.

PC features, input, and localization

The collection is distributed through Steam, with the individual games presented as single-player experiences. The original game lists Remote Play on Tablet and Family Sharing, while The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 adds Steam Cloud, Steam Achievements, Steam Trading Cards, Remote Play on TV, and Family Sharing.

Input is fundamentally mouse-oriented. The sequel's Steam listing includes full controller support, but the collection as a whole remains best understood as a mouse-led point-and-click bundle; controller behavior can differ between the included games.

Language support varies by entry. The original game provides English and German interface, audio, and subtitles, with French, Spanish from Spain, and Korean subtitles. The sequel lists English and German full audio, with interface and subtitle support for French, Italian, Spanish from Spain, Korean, and Polish. The Critter Chronicles lists English and German interface, audio, and subtitles.

Because localization is not identical across all three games, players who need a specific subtitle or voice language should check the individual title rather than assume that the collection has one unified language configuration.

Similar point-and-click games on PC

The closest comparison is not an action game but another character-led adventure with puzzle progression. Hand-crafted puzzle adventures such as Machinarium Definitive Edition share the emphasis on examining environments, interpreting visual clues, and solving problems without combat, though Machinarium is more restrained and largely wordless.

For players who want a larger fantasy setting and a more serious narrative counterpoint, long-form point-and-click fantasy journeys like The Longest Journey offer a stronger focus on world-building and dialogue. The Book of Unwritten Tales Collection is the lighter, more openly comic option.

These comparisons also clarify the collection's niche. It sits between old-school inventory adventures and accessible modern story games, retaining the genre's item logic and backtracking while presenting its world through fully voiced, character-focused scenes.

The Book of Unwritten Tales Collection FAQ

The main questions about this PC bundle concern its contents, play order, input options, and the differences between its three adventures.

What is the current name of the collection on Steam?

Steam currently lists it as The Book of Unwritten Tales Collection. No verified current rebrand or replacement collection name was found in the storefront information checked for this guide.

Which games are included?

The playable games are The Book of Unwritten Tales, The Book of Unwritten Tales: The Critter Chronicles, and The Book of Unwritten Tales 2. Steam also includes three digital-extras items tied to those releases.

What order should I play the collection in?

For the clearest introduction to the main cast, start with The Book of Unwritten Tales, then play The Critter Chronicles as a prequel, and finish with The Book of Unwritten Tales 2. Players who prefer chronological character history can begin with The Critter Chronicles, but the original game provides the stronger first introduction to Aventasia's central conflict.

Does the collection have multiplayer or co-op?

No. The included adventures are designed for single-player play. Steam's Remote Play features allow supported streaming or remote access functionality, but they do not turn the collection into a co-op adventure.

Does it support a controller?

The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 lists full controller support on Steam. The collection's overall design remains mouse-first, so a traditional mouse and keyboard setup is the safest choice for all three games.

Is the collection a good fit for players who dislike difficult puzzles?

It depends on the type of difficulty you dislike. The games do not focus on twitch skill, but they can require careful observation, repeated conversations, inventory experimentation, and returning to earlier locations. Players comfortable with classic adventure-game logic will find the structure familiar, while newcomers may occasionally need to reassess what an item or character can do.