Some have only recently learned about the unusual quest.
In October, Return of the Obra Dinn became unusually popular. The project set a new online record on Steam 7 years after its release.
Recently, the online presence of Return of the Obra Dinn was at the level of ~70-100 players, and now it has exceeded the mark of 1300 users.
It is not clear what exactly caused the "surge": the game does not have Steam collectible cards, i.e. it is unlikely that a bot farm has connected. Perhaps some were attracted by the 50% discount, the largest in the last 2 years.
In Return of the Obra Dinn, players have to go to the ship and conduct an investigation:
...early in the morning, the Obra Dinn was brought by the current to Falmouth Harbor. The ship's sailing equipment is damaged, the crew is not visible. You, an insurance investigator for the London office of the East India Company, must immediately go to Falmouth, get on board the ship and assess the damage incurred.
