Every year, Steam has several sales, usually coinciding with the various holidays. Two days ago, Steam’s Winter sales started, bringing down the prices of over 10,000 different games.
Some people would say that 10,000 is a large number of games, and we would agree. We have combed through the sales, and picked out about 60 titles that we liked the most. We split the recommendations in bigger and smaller titles. Since there are so many games on sale, we only looked at games with discounts of 50% or more.
The Bigger Titles
AAA titles, new releases, games that are large in scope, and games that are large in size! Most of these will take a long time to finish, and most of them are universally well-reviewed! Enjoy!
The Witcher: $1.50 (normal price: $10.00).
The original Witcher. Combat is a bit clunky, but if you want to play the full series, the original game is very cheap.
The Witcher 2: $3.00 (normal price: $20.00).
The second in the series, and a great game in its own right.
The Witcher 3: $30.00 (normal price: $60.00).
Recently awarded “game of the year” by several reviewers, and very highly rated. Price is still kind of high, though.
The Witcher 3
Max Payne: $2.50 (normal price: $10.00).
The game that introduced bullet-time to a wider gaming audience. Enjoy Max’s iconic and incomprehensible facial expression (singular expression, not expressions) in this noire shooter.
Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne: $2.50 (normal price: $10.00).
Enjoy more of the noire writing that made Max Payne such a hit.
Max Payne 3: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Max Payne leaves his old life behind, to begin an ever worse chapter! Can this guy not catch a break?
Portal: $2.00 (normal price: $10.00).
An excellent puzzle game. Highly recommended!
Portal 2: $4.00 (normal price: $20.00).
The sequel to Portal.
Hitman: Absolution: $3.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Some people say that this is the best Hitman game. Some say otherwise. For $3, you can buy it and see for yourself.
Mount and Blade: Warband: $3.00 (normal price: $20.00).
This hugely popular medieval combat game can be yours. And if you do not like it, well… it was only $3.
Mount and Blade: Warband
Bastion: $3.75 (normal price: $15.00).
A beautiful hack-and-slash-and-shoot RPG. Excellent music and narration, and highly recommended for the price.
Transistor: $4.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Basically Bastion, in a more futuristic setting. Very well-reviewed.
Left 4 Dead 2: $4.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Multiplayer zombie shooting. “But-” NO! There is no “but”. Multiplayer. Zombie. Shooting.
Bioshock: $4.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow? ‘No!’ says the man in Washington, ‘It belongs to the poor.’ ‘No!’ says the man in the Vatican, ‘It belongs to God.’ ‘No!’ says the man in Moscow, ‘It belongs to everyone.’ I rejected those answers; instead, I chose something different. I chose the impossible. I chose… Rapture.
Bioshock 2: $4.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Because a quote like the one above deserves a second game.
Bioshock: Infinite: $7.50 (normal price: $30.00).
Praised as one of the best FPS games ever made, with a rich storyline and beautiful artwork.
Tomb Raider GOTY Edition: $4.50 (normal price: $30.00).
One of the best Tomb Raider games. Base game is just $3!
Metro 2033 Redux: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Post-apocalyptic FPS. Well reviewed!
Metro Last Light Redux: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Even more post-apocalyptic shooting. You can buy 2033 and LL together for another $2.50.
Metro: Last Light
Dishonored: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Stealth assassination, bloody murders, supernatural powers. What more could you possibly ask for?
Deus Ex: Human Revolution: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
I never asked for this. But here we are, in a future where you can get augmented, where you you can have a stealth/FPS/RPG with a great story.
Mass Effect: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
A sci-fi RPG in space. Extremely popular when released, and still a good game today.
Mass Effect 2: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
You can also buy the “Mass Effect Collection,” which is Mass Effect 1+2, for an even cheaper price.
Crysis: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Let us answer the question that has haunted gamers for years: Can your PC play Crysis?
Crysis Warhead: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
More Crysis. You can get both Crysis and Warhead in a bundle, for another $2.50.
Crysis 2: $7.50 (normal price: $30.00).
Crysis: Part 2.
Mirror’s Edge: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
One of the best rooftop-running (parkour) games.
L.A. Noire Complete Edition: $6.00 (normal price: $30.00).
It is a detective noire movie, in game format.
LA Noire
Fallout 3 Game of the Year Edition: $6.80 (normal price: $20.00).
Ah, Fallout. Post-nuclear RPGs are rarely this good. It is an old game, though, so you will need to tweak a couple of things if you are on Windows 7 or newer.
Fallout: New Vegas Ultimate Edition: $6.80 (normal price: $20.00).
Another Fallout, with roughly the same graphical quality as Fallout 3, but a vastly different story.
The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind: $6.80 (normal price: $20.00).
The youngest of the three, but extremely beloved by its fans. The graphics are very outdated, so get this only after you check some gameplay footage.
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion: $8.50 (normal price: $25.00).
Extremely popular, enormous RPG. Get this if you want to see what life was like, before Skyrim.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Legendary Edition): $10.00 (normal price: $40.00).
One of the biggest, most popular, most moddable, and most well-reviewed RPGs of all time.
Counter Strike: Global Offensive: $7.50 (normal price: $15.00).
Run, run. Shoot, shoot. Reload. Run, run. Shoot, shoot.
Alan Wake: $7.50 (normal price: $30.00).
Horror/thriller action.
Wolfenstein: The New Order: $9.00 (normal price: $60.00).
Ever wanted to play Wolfenstein with modern graphics? Well there you go.
XCOM: Enemy Unknown Complete Pack: $10.00 (normal price: $50.00).
An excellent turn-based squad strategy game. Not recommended for those with high-blood pressure, particularly the higher difficulties.
XCOM: Enemy Unknown
The Talos Principle: $10.00 (normal price: $40.00).
A beautiful puzzle game.
Tropico 4 Collector’s Bundle: $10.00 (normal price: $40.00).
Or $5 for the vanilla game without any DLC. Enjoy a lot of dictatorship and tongue-in-cheek humour with your city-building, El Presidente!
Tropico 5: $10.00 (normal price: $40.00).
The latest Tropico. Some people like this more than 4, some say that 4 is best.
Civilization V: Complete : $12.50 (normal price: $50.00).
The latest Civilization game. Vanilla is not that good, but the G&K and BNW expansions (included in this Complete edition) make it an excellent experience.
Alien: Isolation: $12.50 (normal price: $50.00).
If you missed the excellent Alien movie, then you can enjoy (roughly) the same experience, in game form!
Shadow of Mordor: $17.00 (normal price: $50.00).
Assassin’s Creed, set in Middle Earth.
DARK SOULS II: Scholar of the First Sin: $19.00 (normal price: $50.00).
It is the hack-and-slash game that hacks and slashes at your soul. Not recommended for the less dextrous and those who prefer easy games.
Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin
The Smaller Titles
Smaller titles, older releases, indie games, obscure games, and games that are short. The good news is that since these are small games, the prices after discount are extremely cheap! The bad news is that some of these games are quite niche: If you like them, you will love them, but if you dislike them, then you will not get more than a few minutes of playtime out of them. Be sure to watch some gameplay videos before purchase!
VVVVVV: $1.24 (normal price: $5.00).
The graphics are bad, and the story is worse. But the gameplay and music are extremely good!
Geometry Dash: $1.35 (normal price: $4.00).
It is just a simple jumping platformer. Why is it rated so high? We are very sure that this game is extremely simple and easy… should take just 10-15 minutes to finish all the levels. Kappa.
Geometry Dash
Super Meat Boy: $1.50 (normal price: $15.00).
Hugely popular indie platformer. Very difficult!
Trine Enchanted Edition: $2.24 (normal price: $15.00).
A gorgeously-drawn puzzle/platformer.
Trine 2: Complete Story: $3.00 (normal price: $20.00).
More Trine!
Grim Fandango: $3.00 (normal price: $15.00).
A remastered classic from 1998.
Shadowrun Returns: $3.00 (normal price: $15.00).
A futurist, isometric, turn based RPG. Yes, it is like XCOM.
Shadowrun Dragonfall: $3.00 (normal price: $15.00).
An expansion for Shadowrun.
Terraria: $3.40 (normal price: $10.00).
Minecraft, in 2D. Very popular!
Spelunky: $3.75 (normal price: $15.00).
An indie 2D platformer. Very popular for those who like the genre.
Spelunky
Castle Crashers: $3.75 (normal price: $15.00).
Co-op beat-em-up with fun gameplay and crude humour.
Mark of the Ninja: $3.75 (normal price: $15.00).
2D scrolling Ninja action. Hugely popular, but for fans of the genre!
Mark of the Ninja
Shadow Warrior: $4.00 (normal price: $40.00).
Slash with your sword. Many, many times. In fact, slash with your sword ALL the time!
Doorkickers: $4.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Top-down 2D SWAT action.
FTL: Faster Than Light: $4.00 (normal price: $10.00).
Graphics so simple, that you would expect this to be a 1995 title. Do not be fooled: This is a very difficult and very satisfying game.
Ys Oath in Felghana: $4.50 (normal price: $15.00).
As with all Ys games: Beautiful music and gameplay, low graphics and story. Watch some gameplay videos to see if you like it!
Ys Origins: $6.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Great music, fantastic hack-and-slash gameplay. Meh graphics, skippable story.
Banished: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
An indie town-building game, with a forest-y theme.
Banished
Recettear: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Capitalism, ho! Buy and sell items, explore dungeons, decorate your shop. Cute graphics!
The Banner Saga: $5.00 (normal price: $20.00).
Turn-based strategy/RPG, in a Viking setting.
Depth: $6.24 (normal price: $25.00).
People are diving for treasure. Are you the diver… or the shark?
Sunless Sea: $9.50 (normal price: $19.00).
An atmospheric ocean exploration and survival game. A bit pricey for an indie on sale, so check gameplay to make sure that you like it!
Sunless Sea
Conclusion
So that is that! Please let us know if you have found any good games (with good discounts!) that we may have missed.