An independent guide
Order of the Sinking Star The Witness Connection
Order of the Sinking Star and The Witness share Thekla and director Jonathan Blow, and Blow has described how his interest in combining The Witness's puzzle rules led toward the new game's design. That is a documented creative connection. The official descriptions and interview discussed here do not establish a shared story or a requirement to finish The Witness first. Choose by the kind of puzzle you want: The Witness centers on line-panel rules and island exploration, while Order of the Sinking Star combines grid-based character abilities across different worlds.
- Comparison basis
- Official descriptions and original developer interviews; this is a source-based format comparison, not a review from personal play.
- Spoilers
- Design and presentation only. No ending explanation or claim that every possible hidden reference has been ruled out.
The documented studio and director connection
The Witness's official Steam listing identifies Thekla as developer. Order of the Sinking Star's description names the same studio and introduces Jonathan Blow through Braid and The Witness. Its official history describes development following The Witness.
The new project also credits foundational games by Alan Hazelden, Sean Barrett and Jonah Ostroff, alongside further design contributions. That makes its history broader than a director returning to the same puzzle format. The developer and design-history reference identifies those roles.
Sources: Steam — official Order of the Sinking Star description · Official game website — setting and development-history FAQ · Steam — The Witness's official description
What carried over: combining learned rules
In Meg Pelliccio's original interview, Blow explains that The Witness's symbols were designed to become interesting when combined. After that game, he wanted to investigate that interaction further.
For Order of the Sinking Star, the starting units became fuller puzzle systems. Its official description presents worlds with distinct rules and characters that later meet. The connection is this interest in what happens when learned systems interact; it does not mean the new game asks you to draw the same panel paths.
Sources: TheGamer — Meg Pelliccio's original interview with Jonathan Blow · Steam — official Order of the Sinking Star description
Does it continue The Witness's story?
No story continuation is established by the official descriptions or the developer interview used here. The new description introduces its own realm and characters, and Blow explains that a new design idea determines the format rather than beginning with a sequel to a previous game.
Those sources also give no prior-game completion requirement. You can make your starting choice on puzzle format without treating The Witness as required preparation. This is a statement about the documented connection; it does not rule out an undiscovered reference or turn a community theory into confirmed story continuity.
Sources: TheGamer — Meg Pelliccio's original interview with Jonathan Blow · Official game website — setting and development-history FAQ · Steam — official Order of the Sinking Star description
The differences that matter when choosing
Format differences grounded in the official descriptions and Blow's original preview interview. These are comparison criteria, not scores or a claim that one game is easier.
Scroll across to read every column.
| What you want to compare | The Witness | Order of the Sinking Star |
|---|---|---|
| Main puzzle action | Work with symbols and draw paths through panel mazes, as Blow describes it. | Move characters and objects on grids under different ability rules, then combine those systems. |
| View and exploration | First-person island exploration around the puzzles, as described in the original interview and store setting. | A top-down puzzle structure linking separate worlds and character abilities. |
| Character role | The official premise places you alone on an unfamiliar island. | The official description introduces multiple heroes with complementary abilities that eventually meet. |
| Story delivery | Blow describes its quieter presentation and audio-log structure. | The preview interview describes characters speaking around puzzle play; the PS demo report observes more immediately explicit dialogue. |
| How rules expand | Panel symbols are designed to produce new problems in combination. | Initially distinct puzzle systems become combined challenges across worlds. |
Sources: TheGamer — Meg Pelliccio's original interview with Jonathan Blow · Steam — official Order of the Sinking Star description · Steam — The Witness's official description · PlayStation Blog — July 21, 2026 original demo report
Choose the format you want now
- Start with The Witness if first-person exploration and discovering how line-panel rules work together appeal to you.
- Start with Order of the Sinking Star if you want to manipulate a cast of characters on grids and see their abilities interact.
- If you have already played The Witness, expect the design interest in combining rules to be familiar, while the actual actions and viewpoint change.
These are preference-based suggestions drawn from the documented formats. They are not a difficulty ranking, a completion-time comparison or a required play order. To see the new game's basic actions and ways to undo or leave a puzzle, use the getting-started guide.
Sources: TheGamer — Meg Pelliccio's original interview with Jonathan Blow · Steam — official Order of the Sinking Star description · Steam — The Witness's official description
Sources and scope
- Steam — official Order of the Sinking Star description
Studio/director introduction, foundation credits and combining worlds; publisher description.
Research checked
- Official game website — setting and development-history FAQ
Creative history and the new game's own setting; not a shared-universe declaration.
Research checked
- Steam — The Witness's official description
Thekla developer credit and island-exploration premise. User-defined tags are not the basis of the mechanics comparison.
Research checked
- TheGamer — Meg Pelliccio's original interview with Jonathan Blow
December 11, 2025 preview: One Game Leads To Another, A Change Of Perspective and narrative-delivery discussion; developer explanations rather than launch-version testing by this site.
Research checked
- PlayStation Blog — July 21, 2026 original demo report
Corey Brotherson's pre-release observation of explicit character dialogue and grid puzzles; retained as a demo-scoped presentation observation.
Research checked