Postal is Running With Scissors’ 1997 top-down shooter, and it remains one of the most controversial games ever released, a reputation the developer has leaned into rather than shied away from ever since. Playing as the unnamed “Postal Dude,” a man who has snapped after losing his job and home, and who believes he alone is unaffected by poison gas spreading through his town, you work through each level with a blunt objective: eliminate a set number of armed targets before moving on.
The game drew heavy criticism and media attention on release over its violence and tone, and that controversy has followed the franchise through every sequel since. It’s also, notably, one of the few games from this era whose original engine code was later released to the public, though as covered below, that’s a narrower thing than it might sound.
The current, actively sold version is Postal Redux, a 2016 remaster that modernized the original’s visuals and controls while keeping the core game intact.
Is Postal Free?
No, and this is worth clearing up directly, since it trips people up. In December 2016, Running With Scissors released the original 1997 Postal’s engine source code to the public under the GPLv2, first on Bitbucket and later migrated to GitHub. That’s a genuine, complete open-source release of the code that makes the game run.
What that release never included was the actual finished game, the levels, art, sound, and packaged content that make up the commercial product. That distinction matters: it’s the same situation as id Software’s Doom or 3D Realms’ Duke Nukem 3D, both of which also open-sourced their engines while keeping the shippable game a paid product. Postal Redux, the current version Running With Scissors sells, remains commercial. There’s no official free download of the playable game.
Gameplay & Features
Postal Redux plays out across 17 levels viewed from a top-down perspective, tasking players with clearing a set percentage of armed enemies from each map using an arsenal that includes pistols, machine guns, and more improvised weaponry. It’s fast, blunt, and unapologetic about what it is, closer in spirit to a twin-stick shooter than a modern tactical game.
The remaster brings genuine quality-of-life and visual upgrades over the 1997 original: updated lighting and environments, modernized controls built around twin-stick or mouse-and-keyboard play, and technical fixes that make it run cleanly on current systems, something the source-based fan builds can’t offer since they lack the official game content.
- 17 top-down levels built around a straightforward “clear the map” objective
- Modernized twin-stick or mouse-and-keyboard controls over the 1997 original
- Updated visuals and lighting while preserving the original’s tone and level design
- Available on Windows and Linux, with earlier releases also covering Mac and Android
- A franchise that’s continued well beyond this entry, including Postal 2, Postal III, and 2022’s Postal 4: No Regerts
If you’re curious about the open-source history behind this release, our earlier coverage of Postal going open source covers exactly what that announcement did and didn’t include.
PC System Requirements
Postal Redux is a lightweight remaster, so it runs comfortably on modest, even fairly old, hardware.
| Component | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| Operating System | Windows Vista, 7, 8, or 10 (64-bit) | Windows Vista, 7, 8, or 10 (64-bit) |
| Processor | 2.0 GHz dual-core | 2.5 GHz multi-core |
| Memory | 4 GB RAM | 8 GB RAM |
| Graphics | DirectX 10 compatible, 512 MB VRAM | DirectX 10 compatible, 1 GB VRAM |
| Storage | 4 GB available | 4 GB available |
A 64-bit operating system is required at every tier. The Linux version, also available through Steam, uses the same specs on SteamOS or Ubuntu 16.04 and newer.
How to Buy & Play Postal
Postal Redux typically lists at $8.99 on Steam, though it goes on sale often, sometimes dropping to around $2. It also appears in various Postal franchise bundles alongside the sequels at a further discount.
- Buy Postal Redux on Steam, for Windows and Linux.
- Also available directly through Running With Scissors’ own store.
After purchase, install through Steam and you’re set, no additional configuration needed. If you’re interested in the technical side instead, the original open-source engine code is freely browsable on GitHub, though it requires the commercial game’s data files to actually run.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Postal free?
No. The original 1997 engine’s source code was released publicly in 2016, but the actual game content remains commercial. Postal Redux, the current version, is a paid purchase.
What’s the difference between Postal and Postal Redux?
Postal is the original 1997 release. Postal Redux, released in 2016, is a remaster with updated visuals, modernized controls, and technical fixes for current systems, built on the same core game.
Can I download the open-source version for free?
You can freely access the engine’s source code on GitHub, but it requires the official game’s data files, which are not part of the open-source release, to actually run. It’s a resource for developers, not a way to get the playable game for free.
Is Postal connected to Postal 4: No Regerts?
Yes, it’s the first entry in the same franchise. Postal 4, released in 2022, is a separate, much later mainline sequel, following Postal 2 (2003) and Postal III (2011).
Does Postal Redux run on Mac?
Not currently through Steam, official support there covers Windows and Linux. Earlier versions of the game did ship on Mac and Android in the past.
Who made Postal?
Running With Scissors, an independent studio, released the original in 1997 and has continued developing the franchise, including the 2016 Redux remaster, ever since.
