Probably Stolen - Cyberpunk Shopkeeper Sim: Guide to Getting Started

Probably Stolen - Cyberpunk Shopkeeper Sim is a pixel-art shop management game from publisher tinyBuild and developer Questing Goose Studio, where you run a store on a dystopian space station and decide which questionable goods to buy, sell, craft or smuggle. It launched on PC via Steam on October 28, 2026, which is why it jumped straight into Steam’s top sellers this week.

Below is what the game actually is, what it costs, how the core loop works, and how early reviews compare, based on the store page, the publisher’s announcements and the first wave of coverage. All details are as of October 2026 and may shift with patches.

What Probably Stolen is

According to the Steam store page, you run a shop on a space station, crafting, trading and smuggling goods of questionable origin, navigating faction loyalties, and fighting a rampant AI by killing the people it controls. The tinyBuild announcement frames it around the crime and corruption of the station’s Lower Levels.

The long-term goal is economic pressure: the store page talks about earning enough to buy out your shop before rising rent forces your hand. Each product line has its own downside, and contraband brings raids.

If the name looks inconsistent, that’s because it is. Earlier store listings and retailer pages used the subtitle “Cyberpunk Pawnshop Simulator”, while the launch page uses “Cyberpunk Shopkeeper Sim”. It is the same game.

Release, price and platforms

Launch discounts are time-limited and regional prices differ, so treat the price as a snapshot and check the store for your region. Steam also lists bundle options, which change more often than the base price.

We did not find confirmed console versions, and our sources did not include system requirements or an official Steam Deck rating. Given it is a 2D pixel-art game it is unlikely to be demanding, but that is an assumption, not a spec. Check the requirements block on the Steam page before you buy.

How the shop loop works

Hands-on coverage gives a clearer picture than the store blurb. PC Gamer’s preview compares it to Papers, Please, and that comparison holds up across other coverage.

Every customer is a decision

Each sale comes down to a few options: approve it, refuse it, report the customer, or look the other way. Wanted people can walk into your shop, and you can report them for a reward, but some of them may be members of the resistance. That trade-off between short-term cash and longer-term consequences is the heart of the game.

Goods need checking

Coverage describes different inspection steps per product type:

• Cigarette packs need visual inspection.
• Water has to be tested and filtered.
• Weapons require permits and modifications.
• Rare pieces need appraisal.

This is why your choice of starting scenario matters: it largely decides which of these systems you deal with first.

Factions, raids and the rogue AI

Customers can belong to competing factions, and the store page says you navigate faction loyalties as you go. Selling contraband raises the risk of raids. On top of that, the station has a rogue AI problem, and part of your job is dealing with the people it controls. The exact rules for spotting them are best learned in game; community wikis exist, but they are not official and some still describe the pre-launch playtest.

Starting scenarios

The announcement and store text list several ways to begin: as a gunsmith, chemist, water merchant, fence, farmer, or from “absolute rock bottom.” The demo offers three of those plus a hardcore mode.

Here sources disagree. Some launch-era community pages list more scenarios at 1.0 (including separate farming variants and an apprentice start), while older pages list six. We could not verify the final count from an official source, so check the scenario screen in game or the Steam page.

Picking your first run

Some practical advice that follows from how the systems work:

1. Start with a scenario that has one main product line. Fewer inspection systems means you learn the customer decision loop without juggling everything at once.
2. Leave Rock Bottom and hardcore for later. Starting with nothing is clearly designed for players who already know which deals to turn down.
3. Watch the rent, not just the till. The buy-out goal and rising rent are the real clock, so a profitable day that sets up a raid can still hurt you.
4. Be deliberate about reporting. The reward is immediate; the faction fallout may not be.
5. Try the demo first if it is still up. It is the most reliable way to see whether the inspection loop clicks for you before paying.

What reviews and players say

Early reception is positive among players and more mixed among critics.

• Steam users: At the time of writing the store page showed around 96% positive across several hundred reviews. Launch-week scores move quickly, so check the current figure.
• DualShockers gave it 6.5/10, praising the controls and depth but finding the gameplay and dialogue too repetitive for most players (review).
• Interest was already high before launch: 80.lv reported, citing tinyBuild, that the demo drew more than 660,000 players, and that SteamDB logged more than 86,000 concurrent players on launch day.

The split makes sense. If you enjoy the slow, repeated judgement calls of Papers, Please or other shop sims, the repetition is the point. If you want a story-driven cyberpunk game with lots of variety, the DualShockers criticism is worth taking seriously.

Is it worth picking up?

Probably Stolen is a good fit if you like inspection and shop management games, moral trade-offs with delayed consequences, and replaying with different starts. It is a weaker fit if repetitive loops wear on you quickly.

Because the game is days old, expect patches and balance changes. Follow the official Steam news and community hub for updates rather than relying on older guides, many of which were written for the demo or playtest builds. And as always, buy it through Steam or another authorised store; cheap “key” listings and unofficial downloads are not worth the risk to your account.