With the Steam Winter Sale finally upon us, gamers are spoiled for choice this year. Valve made the announcement earlier this year that they would be simplifying future sales by removing the “Flash Sales” component and offering all on-sale titles at the deepest discounts. I’m excited by this change as it makes it far more convenient to pick up games I’d enjoy.
With that out of the way, I’m going to clue you in on some of my personal picks that you should pick up in this sale. These games are an engaging mix from a variety of genres, both newer and classic titles that will appear to a whole host of gamers.
Big Pharma is an amazing simulation that charges the player with running a successful pharmaceutical company. The amount of depth and challenge built into the various puzzle-like mechanics makes this one worth picking up on replay value alone. Interested readers can also check out our review here.
Into The Stars is an interesting and complex Early Access game that places the player at the helm of the 13th Ark. This ship is the last hope of humanity while on the run from a violent alien species. The player faces a multitude of obstacles in an interesting mix of rogue-like and space resource management gameplay.
Rocket League is a fact-paced hybrid of racing and football. The addictive and challenging multi-player is enough to carry this title on it’s own. The satisfaction of out-maneuvering the other team for a clutch goal is second to none in the genre of casual action games of this sort.
The Long Dark is a survival game that turns many of the tropes on the genre on their heads. There are no monsters, zombies or mystical dangers. The player is alone with nothing more than the cold and deadly embrace of Mother Nature. Dodging vicious animals while hunting for food and water in a vain attempt to survive is surprisingly engaging.
Kerbal Space Program is a frustrating quest to live out the worst nightmares of SpaceX. And boy is it incredible. The task of building a bevy of space-faring vessels to reach increasingly difficult milestones can waste hours of your life. The game also has an impressive modding scene that has added near-infinite customization and new content to the game.
Space Engineers is a voxel-driven survival title that allows the player to use advanced technology to build a nearly endless string of spaceships. The active multi-player and modding community has added a huge amount of value to this title. The Early Access title also recently added planets that allow the player to explore and gather resources in a whole new way.
Euro Truck Simulator 2 – $4.59 USD
Travel across Europe as king of the road, a trucker who delivers important cargo across impressive distances! With dozens of cities to explore from the UK, Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and many more, your endurance, skill and speed will all be pushed to their limits. Sorry, no space trucking here folks.
If you wanted space trucking, piracy and broadside 3D combat, Rebel Galaxy is all you’ll need. The game features both free roam content and a set story. The visuals are impressive and the soundtrack is absolutely one of the best. The creators of this game are clearly Firefly fans, and it shows in this great game. You can check out our review and beginners guide as well.
Beginner’s Guide is an interesting and very personal journey through the mind of one game developer. The twists and turns that the player is taken on through the medium of independent game development makes for a deeply personal–and at times even uncomfortable–journey that will force them to consider the games they play a bit more carefully.
A space-based economic sim in which you help randomly generated territories survive and thrive after a galactic imperial collapse. VERY compelling for those looking for a challenge within space sims.
