Steam Winter Sale 1-2-13

Well, it looks like this is the end of the sale. Valve brought back some of the biggest sellers for the encore sale. Other titles aren't on sale anymore (i.e. non-feature titles like Gunpoint), though yesterday's titles are still active until 10 Pacific tomorrow morning, when everything goes away. Since I've already covered everything, and no prices have changed, I'll be a bit brief.

Main Sale

Garry's Mod - Sandbox game where you can mess around with Half-Life 2 and related games models and other art assets. Not something you'd really want under most gaming circumstances, since it's not really a game. $2.49.

XCOM  - I recommend this turn based strategy game with large strategy components, such as base building, air defense, and resource management by keeping countries happy. I've beaten this one, whihc took about 30 hours on a long playthrough, but haven't reviewed. $9.99 gets you the original, while $14.99 gets the expansion pack. Amazon still has both games bundled for less than Steam, coming in at $19.99.

Football Manager 2014 - Yeah, I haven't played this one, but it's $24.99 again today.

ARMA III - The latest in the high realism military sim is $35.99. Note that this game isn't required for DayZ, because that's getting a standalone game, which is also on Steam in early access.

The Stanley Parable - Expanded over the original mod, this recently released version is $8.99. The game does have a demo, and while it's worth trying out, I'm a fan of waiting for this game to hit a bit lower price in a future sale.

Borderlands 2 - While I greatly enjoyed the original, that one is not on sale today. Instead you can only find the second game, which comes in both the regular and incomplete GOTY editions for $7.49 and $29.99, respectively. While many of the DLCs not included are probably useless, such as skins, some things that actually add content to the game are also absent, such as any of the Headhunter DLCs. That's why I'm waiting for a better, more complete, pack in the future.

Bioshock Infinite - The base game is $9.99, while you can purchase the franchise sans DLCs for any game for $15.19. This is more than Amazon's deal, which will save you a bit. Also, you'd still have to shell out $19.99 for the Season Pass to save on some of the DLCs, though that pack doesn't include everything either. For these reasons I've yet to buy the game. Basically, it's in the same situation as Borderlands 2.

Total War Rome II - Previously you'd find other games in the series on sale, such as in a franchise pack. Today you'll instead find just this strategy game for $29.97.

Company of Heroes 2 - It's $13.59 for the base game and $27.19 for the Collector's edition. Unlike another strategy title, Total War Rome II, you'll actually find previous incarnations of this franchise on sale today. The original CoH, which is probably one of the best RTS games I've ever played, is only $3.39. The two expansion packs for it are $6.79 each.

Skyrim - As with some other games, only the featured game is on sale, not the franchise. That means you're just looking at the epic RPG for $7.49 for the base game, or $20.39 for the legendary Edition that includes all the DLCs. Even 2 years later the game is still too much for me to buy it, but maybe, just maybe, we'll see a more palpable price during the next sale. That, or Quakecon or what ever that even is where it seems like every Bethesda title is on sale for a bit.

Dark Souls - After 7 hours in this game, and now a couple of months away from it, I still recommend avoiding this poorly ported RPG. It is $5.99 if you choose to ignore my advice, but if that's the case, you should be prepared to download a couple of different mods to make changes to how it runs, such as allowing your resolution of choice, or not windowed mode. On top of that, spend a god amount of time on the wiki just trying to figure out what the heck is going on, because the game gives you little to no info about it.

Tomb Raider - For this one you can still pick up the regular edition for $9.99, the Survival Edition for $11.59, or the franchise pack for $13.99. If you're just looking at the regular edition however, Amazon once again beats Steam, as this time the game comes in at $7.99, which is still more than the $5 it was on Christmas Eve.

Counter Strike - If you fancy team based shooters that reward you between rounds with more money to buy gear, or punish you by making you spectate for the rest of the game, you'll find the entire franchise is 75% off. Source is $4.99, while the other 3 titles are all $3.74. There is also a pack for $7.49. Though, to be honest, I'm not sure how many people still play the earlier games now that Global Offensive is out, despite the previously large 1.6 vs. Source debate.

Dishonored - Like Dark Souls, this is a game that failed to live up to the hype. Supposedly a game where you can tackle any scenario in a number of ways, the game ends up being pretty narrow in scope, and filled with random bugs/glitches, such as nonexistent rats eating the knocked out enemies you had secreted away for a stealth run. An okay buy only if you can't find something better to occupy your time with. $7.49 for the base game or $13.59 for the GOTY.

Far Cry 3 - You're looking at just the latest title in the series, as both 1, 2, and Blood Dragon are all back to full price. It's $7.49 for the base version and $9.99 for the Deluxe.

Chivalry  - A hack and slash medieval warfare game that doesn't appeal to me because it strikes me as being too much 1 shot kill/CoD ish. It's regularly on sale, and has had a number of free weekends, where I've tried it out before. It's $6.24. You can also get the expansion DLC for $10.04, or get both together for $13.99.

Call of Duty Ghosts - Speaking of games you should avoid for being too CoD ish, this one is $40.19. Actually, if you really want this game, you might as well buy it now, because the chances of it ever dropping below $30 on Steam is a very slim one indeed.

Batman Arkham Origins - Unfortunately, the earlier games, which are the only ones I've played and or reviewed, are not on sale. Those would definitely be worth getting. Someone told me this game comes off as half assed and not really worth it, which would mean it's worth less than $24.99. Surprisingly, it's $23.49 on Amazon, while the first two games are also on sale, for $4.99 and $7.49 respectively, though a pack with both may offer greater discounts if it's restored.

Saints Row IV - Over the top game in the GTA sandbox genre. It's $19.99 today, which means I still won't be picking it up for some time.

Payday -The whole franchise is on sale in this coop bank robing sim. While a game that I briefly tired, I could see the potential in this one, but only if I had a group of friends I trusted to play with. Otherwise, the friendly AI in the first game wouldn't do things like take or protect hostages. The first game is $1.99, while the latest is $13.49. That one also comes with a demo to see if it's worth it.

Assassin's Creed - Another case where you're looking at only the latest title in a longer series being on sale, which means my reviews for the first two games are no good here. Also, this one is $44.99, which means you should check back with me in a year and a half or so.

Anno 2070 - Futuristic city building sim. It's $7.49.

Metro Last Light - Again, just this one and not the first game. Still too new for me at $13.59.

Age of Empires II - Another game that seems like it is always on sale. This time it's $4.99.


Flash Sales

Previously it was Delver for $3.99, Serious Sam 3 BFE for $9.99, ARMA II for $6.49, Slenter The Arrival for $4.99, Rogue legacy for $4.94, Track Mania for 42.49, Nether for $11.99, and Terraria for $2.49.


Community's Choice

The last two winners were Orcs Must Die! 2 for $3.74 and Far Cry 3 for $7.49.

***

Okay, that makes the sale. I picked up a total of 10 games, which is still pretty small compared to just two years ago when I dropped way too much money into this. Hopefully you found something on sale that you really liked. For me there just didn't seem to be that many great deals, which might be more of an issue with the games that came out this year more than anything else, as it seemed to be lacking in every category from AAA to indie.

In other news, I've got several reviews written up that are either awaiting finishing touches are a bit more gameplay in the case of one or two exceptions to the rules. Additionally, I took note of all the games that were on sale that I own but haven't gotten around to playing and/or finishing. I think I'll use that list to determine what I should play in the next couple of months, that way I'll have a bit more to tell you when some of the common games are on sale again, such as Metro, Deus Ex, Batman, Assassin's Creed, etc. Until then, please just check in regularly for reviews, or join the Steam group. See you out in the gaming world!