Steam is having a large summer sale! There are tons of really amazing games at some pretty low prices — much like our article on itch.io Summer Sale games (their sale is still going on) — we’d like to recommend a few games for you to check out.
Frostpunk — 15% off at £21.24
Frostpunk is a harsh survival game where you must rule the last city on Earth — keeping track of everything that goes on in the tiny, remaining pocket of civilization. Your goal is to keep your society alive and help it thrive, however this is no easy task.
We reviewed Frostpunk earlier this year:
Morality aside, the game paints a breathtakingly beautiful scene of hopelessness and desperation, where heat means everything. Your city becomes a skyline of billowing fire, thick plumes of smoke and roofs of ice. Your citizens shuffle between their places of work and homes, bracing against the arctic winds whilst pushing their way through the fresh drifts of snow. As night descends on your crater, a column of lanterns weaves its way to the elevator built into the wall as hunters prepare for a night of gathering whatever fauna remains alive beyond.
Subnautica — 20% off at £15.59
Going deep under the surface of the water, Subnautica takes you into an alien-infested world. You must drive submarines, craft various equipment, and try to survive in a world full of lush coral reefs, cave systems, and the deadly dangers which luck under the surface.
We reviewed Subnautica earlier this year:
Crafting was simple but vast, survival mechanics were there but not demanding. It’s all very balanced and defines the genre perfectly. You get plenty of bang for your buck and I cannot recommend it enough. Again, I admit I’m not the greatest fan of the genre but I still think anyone could enjoy this game. Just pick a direction, explore, and relax.
Northgard — 33% off at £15.93
Northgard is a strategy game that has you take on the role of the head of a clan of Vikings, looking to chase down the person who killed your father. These Vikings are hoping to take control of a new continent — one that you feel destined to become king of.
We accepted the challenge of Northgard and reviewed it in May:
All in all though, I really enjoyed my time playing Northgard. The game is suitably complex and deep in most areas, and is so without feeling convoluted or overbearing. The way it plays is fluid and really easy to pick up, and the presentation is flawless. I’ve spent 17 hours playing Northgard so far, and I don’t regret a minute of it. Great game.
Bud Spencer & Terence Hill — Slaps And Beans – 30% off at £10.84
Bud Spencer & Terence Hill – Slaps And Beans is a scrolling beat’ em up with loads of references to the titular duo’s movies. There are various platforming elements and mini-games for you to complete in within this well polished game.
We reviewed the full game previously:
Any kind of tribute game needs to be not only something fans can eat up, but also a good game overall. Slaps and Beans manages to hit both those marks. Sure, it’s not a totally perfect game, but it is a perfect way to spend several hours of your time. While I wasn’t familiar with the work of Bud Spencer and Terrence Hill previously, looking at just the synopses of their movies I can see that a lot of material from them that made it into the game, which should make fans happy as well.
Beckett — 50% off at £3.59
Beckett is a creepy, slightly horrific game about an investigator who is hired to find a man suffering from a very interesting illness. Not quite completely a game — this experience is beyond unique and at half off, not one to be overlooked.
We reviewed Beckett earlier this year:
But puzzles are not what Beckett is about. It is about accompanying Beckett on his way, about learning more of his past, which in turn makes it clear how he approaches things. This involves quite a bit of reading. Apart from a small number of cutscenes — often using old film reel footage — Beckett is not voiced, and the clues and hints the game presents the player with can be quite text-heavy.
Solo — 34% off at £7.51
Solo is a wonderful puzzle game full of adorable graphics — one that makes you look at your relationships and feelings around love. Following your own adventure through various islands, you are able to really reflect on who you are as a person and how you feel about those you love.
We reviewed Solo a few weeks back:
When I started playing, I was faced with the option of starting down the game’s predetermined route, just hanging out, swimming into an endless ocean or playing guitar. These are the games I want to play the most — ones that are beautiful and imperfect, just like life. I am excited to continue to explore this island, as well as ideas about my own relationship, and let this little game encourage me the whole way.
Scrap Galaxy – 55% off at £2.60
Scrap Galaxy is a local multiplayer where you can build your own ships and use them to destroy others! You are able to fly and shoot your ship around a galactic junkyard — trying to survive against up to three of your friends while avoiding the pull of gravity.
After seeing the game at Sweden Game Conference 2017, we reviewed it:
As it stands, Scrap Galaxy is an outstanding local multiplayer with many more options than standard arena-shooters. Its options and combinations do mean that the game has a slight learning curve hiding deeper techniques, but AI opponents, plenty of rule customisations and a few mode choices give Scrap Galaxy more than enough content to be accessible.
Phantom Halls — 30% off at £6.99
Phantom Halls sees you playing a various teenagers who are looking to make it through a procedurally generated haunted house. Through searching around, you can find an interesting mix of weapons to take on the monsters that lurk in the dark. Depending on who you play as, each character has their own goals and adventures to take on.
We reviewed Phantom Halls:
Never before has the experience of exploring a haunted house been one so fun to do! The various missions are super funny — it is just like teenagers to risk their lives for prom dresses and better respect from their coach. If you don’t want to manage the entire party yourself, you can even grab another controller and play with a friend — just to double your chances to stay alive.
Candleman — 25% off at £8.54
Candleman is a beautiful platformer that has you trying to find your way through the darkness to find more light. With only a few seconds of your own light, finding anything in this world can be a challenge.
We reviewed Candleman after seeing it at PC Gamer Weekender:
From the innards of a ship to staircases made of books, to the blooming spikes of beautiful but deadly illuminated flowers, to giant cogs and colourful fireworks, each level of Candleman can only be described as dazzling in its own way. The game’s strength is in its evocative atmosphere which — combined with twinkling musical notes and well-timed sound effects (the little candle’s brass feet tap-tap-tapping as it runs on certain surfaces in particular) — just feels magical.
Deep Sky Derelicts — 20% off at £9.91
Deep Sky Derelicts is a turn-based strategy RPG with a unique graphic style. You are in a dystopian future, attempting to survive on the scraps of derelict alien stations as well as on the ships that roam around outer space. You wish to be a privileged citizen, but that will take a lot of survival first…
We reviewed this early access game:
Unlike a lot of Early Access games though, Snowhound have a fully laid out road map for the game’s upcoming patches meaning you can pick this up in its current state confident that you know what will be coming up. If you want to hold off though, the game is due for full release in September. But, as it stands, there’s a lot of fun content to be had here. This is an Early Access title that’s certainly worth keeping an eye on if you’re after something challenging. Just be prepared to die a lot along the way.
RPGolf — 75% off at £0.72
RPGolf is a unique game where you must both play golf and defeat monsters. Playing as a young girl called Leigh, you will have to whack your way through this world and its courses.
We reviewed RPGolf earlier this year:
While it is far apart from GOTY candidate Golf Story, RPGolf is a very fun game to play through. It can get a bit samey, but the core game loop is fun enough that you will not mind the bit of grinding you will have to do here and there — and if you are a fan of old school JRPG’s you will be used to this anyway.
Lake Ridden — 30% off at £10.49
Lake Ridden is a story-drive puzzle game where you play a 13 year old girl trying to find your sister. She has run into the woods after an argument — and it seems like there were more things in the woods then you once thought.
We took on this adventure earlier this year:
Faithful to the genre, Lake Ridden’s pacing breaks down into a series of puzzles that must be solved to progress. For the most part, it weaves these hard stops gracefully into the story, occasionally prompting an eye roll when simple tasks like opening a door require unlocking at least three intricate mechanisms. But each puzzle’s multiple tiers manage to keep your interest despite their thin premises for existence. Each one challenges you to think at a higher level when you think you’ve solved it, because usually that means you’ve only cracked the first layer.
The Swords of Ditto — 25% off at £11.24
The Swords of Ditto is an action roguelite that has you taking on an unique, rolling adventure — each time you die you restart with a new hero. This game is heavily time based, as you can only fight and upgrade for so long before the boss comes. Complete with some lovely graphics, it is not a game to overlook.
We reviewed The Swords of Ditto previously:
The kicker in all that is that players can’t help but level. The scaling of the enemies is nice as it does allow you to defeat Mormo on the very first actual run through the game. The drawback to all of it though is that it can make it all seem rather monotonous. You’re never ahead, which will make you wonder why you’re even bothering trying to level at all if it makes few, if any tangible differences. Except of course you have to in order to open certain doors around the map.
FOX n FORESTS — 25% off at £11.61
FOX n FORESTS is an action platformer where you can switch between various seasons and play as an adorable fox! Through the various seasons, you can gain different abilities and learn how to dominate the forest.
We reviewed the game earlier this month:
As a result of this, Fox n Forests’ first season feels like the deepest and most fulfilling of the four. Its lofty platformed secrets clearly indicate a reason to return, while also showing that there’s plenty to find even if you don’t currently have the talent. Returning to those worlds with a stronger attack, extra ammo and the ability to ground-stomp through weak stone platforms, was interesting. Compare that to later stages, where you have almost all of the abilities, and there is a stark difference.
Basingstoke — 34% off at £15.70
Basingstoke is a creepy roguelike with stealth and arcade elements. You are exploring a world that is overrun by alien monsters and the reanimated undead. Your goal is simple, find a way to escape. You need to survive, scavenge parts, and make equipment to keep you alive.
We took on the world of Basingstoke:
Despite making me jump at every sound in my house for the entirety of my play through, Basingstoke is an absolutely superb horror title which perfectly meshes zombies with the charm of modern British culture. Just don’t expect me to throw any of those delicious sausage rolls away.
MachiaVillain — 20% off at £11.99
MachiaVillain is a spooky mansion management and strategy game where you must kill humans and harvest them to keep your monsters alive. Starting from nothing, you need to build an epic mansion, take care of your monsters, set traps, and follow the rules of killing your victims.
We reviewed MachiaVillain at its launch, earlier this year:
Machiavillain is an enjoyable colony sim, let down only by a strange pace around the mid-game point. It is a fantastic management experience and one that launches feeling feature and content complete, unlike many of its contemporaries. If you’re looking for a fun, horror-themed colony sim, you don’t need to look any further.
The Low Road — 75% off at £2.74
The Low Road is a 1970s themed point and click adventure game that has you playing a rookie spy — trying to make it as an agent. The entire game has loads of dark comedy all revolving around espionage.
We were delighted to review The Low Road earlier this year:
The Low Road for me is definitely a success, as it has broken my 15+ year streak of not playing point-and-click adventure games, and now unquestionably has dragged my attention back to the genre as a whole. As a result I shall be looking out for other, similar games in the future.
Empires Apart — 34% off at £15.17
Empires Apart is a medieval RTS game where you must gather resources, create an army, and lead your civilization to victory. Between building, exploring, and trying to survive epic battles — this game has a bit of everything.
Having played Empires Apart at PC Gamer Weekender, we wrote about the experience:
My consecutive attempts were faster, more efficient efforts. Duels were quickly brought to a close within 30 minutes, primarily by racing to cavalry technology and picking off their confused and squishy villagers before they managed to retreat within the town centre. The French faction’s knight charge is well suited for such sabotage missions.
Deep Rock Galactic — 25% off at £14.24
Deep Rock Galactic is a 1 to 4 player, co-op FPS featuring loads of awesome space Dwarves — each with their own skills and tasks. Working together to make your way through procedurally generated caves fighting alien monsters, you must collect resources and make it out of these caves alive.
We took on the challenge and reviewed the game:
30 seconds flashed, a panic on our screens, as we burst into the chamber with the pod. We’ll make it! We were 10 feet below the pod entrance, and I flung platforms into existence at the rocky outcrops to get us a footing, and stumbled into the sweet warm embrace of machine-forged steel. A behemoth burst out of the passage we just carved and swiped off most of Maggie’s health as the smaller critters surrounded and picked at the last of her life.
Blockships — 10% off at £4.49
Blockships is a local multiplayer where you must build your ship by running into ship parts floating around the screen. All while being shot at by up to three of your friends, this game really makes you think on your toes and try to defeat all who oppose you.
After seeing Blockships at loads of events, we wrote up our thoughts:
With so many different blocks and strategies, Blockships is a super-fun party game which can be played over and over again. It is extremely easy to learn to play but hard to master, especially when you play against talented friends.
There are tons of other awesome Steam games that you can pick up with new daily deals each day. If you are interested in seeing what we think of various games on Steam, you can follow our Curation page!
