TL;DR: The Tally is a PS2-style dark-comedy life sim from solo dev Olivia Gonsher. You live one small life in Corvid City, about 90 minutes long, then the game hands you an itemized receipt that decides your afterlife. The free Windows demo is on Steam now, and the full game launches November 5, 2026 for US$4.99.
Most life sims want you to stay forever. The Sims, Stardew Valley, Animal Crossing: they’re all built around “isa pang araw,” one more day, one more season, one more paycheck. The Tally goes the other way. It gives you one small life, and then it ends. Then comes the bill.
One life, one city, one receipt
The Tally drops you into Corvid City, a mid-sized town built in chunky, low-poly PS2-era graphics. You find a job, pay the rent, meet the regulars, maybe buy a home and pet a dog. Normal adulting stuff. There are eight jobs to try, a phone full of apps, a camera, and even a skateboard for getting around town.
The catch: everything you do is being counted, and the game never tells you how. Walang meter na nagsasabing mabait ka o hindi. No morality bar, no tutorial nagging you. You just live, and it’s all written down.
When your time is up, you get The Receipt: every kindness, every shortcut, every held door and small lie, added up and handed back to you. That total decides where you end up.
It’s dark comedy, pero may tama. Anyone who has stared at a long grocery receipt and wondered “saan napunta lahat ‘yon?” will get the joke right away.
One dev, with AI as the assistant
The Tally is a solo project. According to the game’s own AI disclosure, Olivia worked closely with an AI assistant on the code and written content, with everything under her direction and review. The 3D models and music were made by human artists who are credited in-game, the textures come from procedural scripts, and nothing is generated by AI while you play.
That’s the kind of setup that lets one person ship a complete game with an actual ending. Instead of getting stuck for months on code, a solo dev can spend that time on what makes the game special: the city, the writing, and that receipt. We’ve asked Olivia how AI helped her build The Tally, and we’ll update this story when she replies.
What you get
- A full life, start to finish, in around 90 minutes
- A hand-built PS2-era city with jobs, shops, weather, and regulars who remember you
- Eight jobs, a phone full of apps, a camera, and a skateboard
- A real ending, plus whatever waits on the other side of The Receipt
At 90 minutes per life, it’s a perfect one-sitting game for a weeknight after work or class. And since the receipt depends on how you play, expect to go back for a second life just to see what a “bad” run looks like. Aminin, gagawin mo rin ‘yan.
Free demo now, full game November 5
The free Windows demo is live on Steam right now, and it was part of the October Steam Next Fest lineup. The full game launches November 5, 2026 at US$4.99, in English. Steam will show the regional peso price once it goes live.
- The Tally Demo on Steam (free)
- The Tally on Steam (wishlist and trailer)
Short games with one strong idea are having a moment, and The Tally has one of the cleanest hooks we saw from Next Fest. Try the demo, then tell us: anong lalabas sa receipt mo?
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