Brink

 So with today's game, Brink, I find myself in a bit of a predicament. First, it's really a multiplayer game, with the "singleplayer campaign" being nothing more than a series of maps tied together loosely with a story explaining the struggle occurring on the Ark from each of the two faction's perspectives. The other issue I have is that I never played it after buying it, but I'll explain that in the conclusion.

There are three core parts of Brink, each of which add or detract from the game to create the final experience. Those would be customization, parkour, and objective oriented gameplay.

Weapon attachments - the hats of Brink.

The customization aspect was supposed to be one of Brink's major selling points, and it is seen in two different ways. The first has to do with weapons, which you can alter with different scopes, various magazines, etc. While at first glance it appears that there are essentially millions of combinations betweens all the weapons and then the attachments and their respective level of bonuses/penalties, in reality there's not much there. For example, I prefer SMGs for their generally larger clips and high rate of fire, trade offs for the lower damage compared to some of the big boys. Yet despite there being seven different SMGs in game, and 8 different stats they could differ across (i.e. accuracy, rate of fire, clip size), they are nearly all the same. Furthermore, once you select a weapon, in the case of SMGs, you can only change four aspects of it - muzzle flare/silencer, scope, magazine, and bayonet/foregrip/speed sling. Most of the changes on the front of the gun, or the scope, are really just cosmetic, and so even though there are multiple red dot scopes, they are not functionally different from one another, though equipping one versus leaving the slot empty does change your weapon's stats. Honestly, the call of duty games have a greater degree of weapon customization.

The other thing you can customize is your character, and much more than just visually. You see, there are four classes in Brink - Soldier, Engineer, Medic, and Operative (think assassin/rogue). Additionally, there are three body types, which change things like what weapons you can wield, how fast you are, and so forth. Now what is really cool is that you can combine the two any way you like, meaning you could have a medic with the large body type, who is thus, while slow, able to wield things like the chain gun or machine gun. Furthermore, you can customize each class, in that as you level up, you can choose which abilities you want to unlock, buffs to increase the power of, etc. The result is that not all characters are equal, so just because you know the other team has a medic, doesn't mean you can write him off as easy pickings, which adds some variety to the game.

At least the levels are pretty...well, at least the ones that don't take place in a dump.

Like the customization portion of the game, the parkour is a mixed bag. While it's great being able to constantly climb up things, slide under openings or out of an enemy's line of fire, I've never seen this used for much more than seeing if there is someone down a corridor, where someone just slides past the bottom of the doorway, presenting as little a target as possible. All those places to climb, and cool paths to get behind someone, while there, aren't always obvious, so people either don't notice them, or just follow the main path. There is a whole psychology to map design, and if you've ever spent time working on one (I did some TF2 stuff for a while), or just listening to feedback, it's surprising how basic human instincts, things like follow the path of least resistance or turn right when faced with a choice, are so prominent in gaming. That being said, it's a nice feature, but not used.

Brink, at it's heart, is all about objective oriented gameplay. This isn't just a free-for-all frag fest. If you want to win, you need to, essentially, capture the flag, escort the VIP, or get that control point. There are plenty of other games that do this, TF2 being an extremely popular example (and a game I've already mentioned once, so it's on my mind). However, what Brink does is combine multiple objectives into a single overarching mission. Maybe, for round 1, you need to spend time attacking a pillar that needs to be blown up, courtesy of the soldier's explosive charge. Succeed in that, and the next round you'll be escorting a VIP. Then the final round could be attacking a control point by hacking it, or trying to capture some information that VIP gave you access to by returning it to the level's exit. The mix of objectives both keeps things refreshing, and keeps you on your toes, since you can't get into that mode of just spending thirty minutes guarding the flag.

A great function, now if people would just use it.

There are other aspects to Brink as well, such as side objectives that can help your time/hinder the enemy, the rock-paper-scissors aspect of the game where one class plant's an explosive charge, but another disarms it, and then a third comes in and hacks the panel you just gained access to, a nifty UI that lets you determine which objective you want to assist in, and highlights things accordingly, or just a different way of doing things like grenades or passing out weapon's upgrade kits/med kits/ammo to friends (they all consume supplies, and regenerate over time rather than having a fix ammo). Just like everything else, some are hits, and the others are misses.

Now onto the part about how I haven't played this game since I bought it. You see, Brink has been a free weekend item at least twice on Steam, where I downloaded it the first time, and then played it all weekend the second, about 11 hours worth. Did both the single player campaign, which, as I said earlier, just take's the game's 10 or so maps and tries to make up a story, and played online multiplayer. Overall, nothing about the game really stood out as a positive experience, though it isn't something that I felt I was worse for having playing. Rather, the whole thing was just kind of "meh." I actually debated with myself for a while if I even wanted to buy this game, especially since I felt I was already done with it, even at $6.25, and the fact that I was really hesitant to do so, and now, somewhat regret doing it, probably says more about the game than anything else.

Like with zombies, a double tap to the head is recommend, especially when medics can revive themselves.

If you really want to give the game a try, I wouldn't spend more that $5 on it, and skip all the extras, because Fallout and Doom themed items aren't worth it. I would say the game is one of those ideas that had a lot of potential, but failed in the execution, due to the disappointment surrounding some of those core concepts, or just the fact that people don't think to look up and jump on ledges to access secret paths. At best the game breaks even, not making you feel excited for playing it, but also not leaving you wondering if gouging your eyes out with a rusty spoon would be a better use of your time, like some other games out there door. Probably just best to pass all together - 5 out of 10.

So, the final breakdown:

Score: 5/10

Suggested Price: $5, if you want to really play it

Magicka

**Be sure to check out the video review!** 

I generally try and mix up the kinds of games I play, so that one genre doesn't get worn out. It helps that I'm also up to try games that would normally be outside my niche of action/shooters. Sometimes I just pick something up because I've seen friends play it, or it's a top seller, or its under $2, and the results can be anything from mind blowing to regret. Such was the way I came to pick up today's game, Magicka.

Magicka is really an odd game, and does not fit in with anything I've ever played before. According to the Steam store page, Magicka is an RPG/Action game, and I guess that is as good of a classification for this as anything, though even that isn't totally accurate.

You see, Magicka is a game about, surprise, magic. Specifically, there are 8 different elements, and the game is all about how you combine different ones together to forge your way though the game's levels. Fire by it self does a nice little jet of damage in front of you, but mix it with the earthen boulder, and maybe charge it up a bit, and you've got a fireball. Mix in some additional earth, since you can combine up to 5 elements into one cast, and you create a flaming boulder that will bounce through several enemies. Or maybe you'd rather soak an enemy using a water ball (earth + water), followed by electrocuting them with lighting. Enemies got your health bar down? Well, you could just cast a heal on yourself, but if you would rather be creative, mix life with shield, do an AoE cast, and watch as you create tiny landmines that heal anyone who steps on it. Replace life with arcane, and that's landmines that definitely do not heal you.

Meteor Shower Death - an all too common sight in my playthrough.

There is much more to the game than simply mixing up spells, though it's no simple matter to learn all the various combinations of elements, which elements cancel each other out, which produce additional elements - such as combining fire and water to make steam, and finally learning how your method of casting (self, AoE, in front of you) can make a huge difference in what you get. There are certain combinations that, after you have discovered the spell by uncovering a special book, allow the execution of magicks. Normally mixing lighting, arcane, and lighting together would make for a nice bit of damange, but if you have learned that magick, and cast it as such, you're suddenly teleporting around the screen. Or maybe you summon down a meteor shower, or a phoenix to revive a dead teammate, or death it self to take care of some of the nastier badies.

So you set out on an adventure across 12 levels, which are named in parody of popular movies, such as "Raiders of the Lost Ruins" or "A Fancy Menace," and which are pretty indicative of the kind of humor you'll encounter during the game,  to journey to the ends of the earth to uncover what is going on with some evil wizard that is supposed to be locked up. Along the way you face classic fantasy enemies, such as orcs, goblins, and trolls, as well as plenty of special bosses, usually due to your inability to communicate that you're actually a friend in need of help, since you seem to be mute.

The first 6 levels are all Star Wars. That gained it a couple of points.

Now the key to getting through this game, besides being able to quickly hammer out A-S-A-Space (teleport, and a life saver when you're doing this solo), is the rpg elements of this game, specifically, learning what combinations of damage works best against the foes you're currently fighting. Fire, and by extension fireballs, do wonders against goblins, but are pretty ineffectual when face with tougher opponents like armored orcs. In that case, you might want to whittle away their armor with boulders, using the physics of a charged up shot to knock their steel away until they are vulnerable to other attacks. Still other enemies, more ethereal ones you encounter later in the game, can only really be damaged by a single element, and you don't find out what that is until you wake them up. Or, since every game has zombies now, you might consider what's the better course there - fire, or life? All things to ponder as you are running around casting spells, desperately trying to avoid getting overwhelmed, attempting to make sure everything dies - but you.

I spent 12 hours or so on the basic adventure, though there are a couple of DLCs out now that add additional story content, while most others focus on survival or add new playable characters. However, if you're better about not teleporting off a cliff, or getting blown to bits by your own meteor shower, or dodging enemy wizards who combine their beam attacks into a potent insta-death ray, you should finish the game faster. Near the end of my campaign, they added a Navi (from Zelda OoT) like fairy that does two things: annoy you with useless information, hence Navi, and revive you if you die once per checkpoint, a very nice feature since I look any kind of friend to bring me back to life when I die. Still, there is plenty of difficulty in the game, but you can usually figure out a cheesy way to beat even the hardest bosses, such as tricking death into one shotting him, or kiting him around the room while you drop landmines behind you.

They actually mixed a 300 reference with Star Trek.

Back in June 2011, I was able to get the Magicka complete pack for $7. Since then they've added a lot more content, specifically two DLCs that add campaigns rather than just new robes that make fun/pay tribute of things like Star Trek, Day of the Tentacle, or Warhammer 40k. So what you'll want to do is make sure to get the complete pack, and even then you'll still need to keep an eye out for any one of the 14 DLCs you might have missed. Even so, Magicka was a really fun experience, though there were more than a few times I wanted to break something as I managed to get a huge wave of enemies down to the last one or two guys, only to kill myself but not realizing I was soaking wet while trying to cast an electrical attack, making my health bar for from 100 to 0 in 3 casts flat. The periodic humor helps take the edge off though, so I'll score it well - 9 out of 10

So, the final breakdown.

Score: 9/10

Suggested Price: $10

Summer Sale 7-14

A little observation today that might give those of you who have missed out on a game you want that was up during a Flash Sale or didn't get voted for the rotating 8 hour sale, a bit of a relief - games are starting to appear in more than one spot. For example, Half-Life 2 was part of the Flash Sale yesterday, but then was also a choice earlier today (it lost out to Left 4 Dead). Alan Wake is in pretty much the same boat, going from flash sale last night/this morning to one of the current choices, and for exactly the same discount. Conversely, the Witcher 2, which lost out to Saint's Row 3 on Thursday, is 60% as of this writing. So there is hope that a game you missed will still come around at that great price, though I buy into the conspiracy that these time games Valve is playing is all just evilness to get you to download their mobile app. Thankfully I bought a smart phone a few months ago, and this sale is definitely keeping me logged into steam, so maybe this vile plan is working after all.

Okay, the games!

Buy:

Orcs Must Die! - A MUST have. You can see both my video and written reviews for this one. Do make sure to pick up the game of the year edition, which is $5.

Borderlands - It's pretty much a classic at this point, but if you don't already have it, it is a combination of rpg elements, notably a gratuitous loot system, and fps. Spent over 100 hours in it, including the DLCs, which you should get. The game of the year edition is only $7.49, more than worth it.

Frozen Synapse - I've heard it described as in the same vein as as the old XCOM games, or some other tactical games, and I've generally heard really good things about it. An important thing to note is that it is actually cheaper than the $5 price tag would lead you to believe, mostly because you get two copies of the game, so find someone to strike a deal with.

Pass:

Skyrim - Right now you're thinking I'm crazy, but I've got a good reason, or several. First, the game is still nearly $30 after discount, which is a lot. Second, there is at least one DLC on the way, and considering how the last 2 fallout games have gone, Bethesda has probably got a couple more planned. Third, there will be a game of the year edition that will package all that stuff up for less than you could get it for now. And fourth, if you're missing any other recent Bethesda games, just buy the Bethesda collection instead, which includes Fallout New Vegas and all it's DLCs, Brink, and Hunted, for only $50.

Unknown:

Two Worlds II - $7.49 This one I'm debating picking up, because looking over my list of recently played games, I notice it has been a long time since I've enjoyed a serious RPG.

Dirt Showdown - $24.99

Dead Island - $10.19 or $16.98. Personally, I'm a little burned out on zombies right now, so even though I'm interested in this one, I'm hanging off until this winter when I have less of a backlog of games I'd like to get through, and the price is even lower.

Tropicco 4 - $7.49 for just the game, or $16.22 for the bundle with DLCs.

Indie Bundle III (Braid, BIT.TRIP BEAT, Runespell: Overture, Bunch of Heroes, Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet) - I've actually played Braid, a bit of Bit, and Bunch of Heroes. Braid is excellent, Bunch of Heroes isn't, and Bit is a bit different. Shadow Planet looks good, and has been added to my wishlist, but Runespell seems like its a stretch to combine odd game elements (in this case, an rpg and poker). It worked for Gyromancer (bejeweled meets pokemen, square style), but I'm not so sure here. Overall, the pack is a toss up at $10, especially since if you've been following the humble indie bundles, or purchased any other indie bundle off of steam in the past, you're likely to already have one or two titles, as has so far been my case with all of these packs.

Limited Sales

Left 4 Dead - This actually beat out Portal and Half-Life to be the current community choice. It is a great game to play with friends, and I logged plenty of hours (115 in 1, 15 in 2, yet I paid full price for both :-( ) under that scenario. Not as good if you're doing it solo, and going online with randoms is always a gamble. Still $7.49 for the series isn't bad.

Renegade Ops - $3.74 (You will really want to play this with some kind of controller. I did it with a 360 controller, and couldn't imagine doing it without.)
Sam and Max - $12.49
Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic - $2.49
The Witcher 2 - $15.99

Currently, you're choices for the next community choice discount are Amnesia, Alan Wake, and L.A. Noire. They are, respectively, and from my experience and what I've heard, a scary ass game where I've left my character hiding behind a pig carcass for the last few months, a port of an older game that is supposed to still be very good, and a supposedly poor port of another good game. It'll be interesting to see what wins this round, though my money is on Amnesia.

Summer Sale 7-13

Another day, another round of throwing my wallet at my computer and asking when it will ever be enough.

Buy

Space Marine - Got this a while back at $12.50, and it was a pretty good game, a 7ish. Took about 8 hours to beat the single player. Generally good times, but, and this is surprising, after a while endlessly hacking and slashing away at hordes of orks gets a little tiring.

PayDay - In the same vein as Left 4 Dead, but you're robbing banks, taking hostages, and fending of SWAT squads. Also, it's only $5.

Pass

The Binding of Isaac - Even though it's $1.24, if I knew more about this game, I would probably have passed on it during Christmas. It's a rogue like game, with rpg elements, randomly generated worlds and no second chances. Difficult if it's outside your niche, as was the case with me, so I haven't touched it since I got the necessary steam achievement for the holiday contest.

Unknown

Anno 2070 - Something to keep in mind with this one, is that the DRM is pretty harsh. PC Gamer found out the hard way that 3 hardware changes, in their case, switching out graphics cards to see how it ran in different setups, locked them out of the game. Still, $24.99 if you want to risk it.
Max Payne 3 - At $29.99, you may want to hold of, because this game was just released, and it's already 50% off. Wonder what it will be down to come Thanksgiving or Christmas.
Tribes Ascend Starter Pack - $4.99
Sonic Generations - $10.19
From Dust - It's $3.74, which is half of what I paid last Christmas, and I haven't even gotten around to playing it yet. Just another reason I should follow my own advice and wait longer.
Indie Bundle II - Includes Botanicula, E.Y.E: Divine Cybermancy, Oil Rush, Splice, and Universe Sandbox for $9.99, which comes out as a wash for me, since I already have some of the games. Botanicula and Splice could be promissing though, maybe I'll keep an eye out for them as a daily deal later.


Special Deals

Assassin's Creed Revelations - $13.59
Bejeweled 3 - $4.99
Lara Croft - $3.74
Toy Soldiers - $2.49

Half-Life 2 - The only reason you might want to consider skipping this, is if you're getting the Valve pack instead. Oh, and make sure to get episodes 1 and 2, so you can finally understand what the rest of us have been waiting for with episode 3.

In case you missed the last couple of choice deals, Trine 2 won over night, and then Ghost Recon 2 was up earlier today.

Also worth noting, yesterday's deals are still valid for a few more hours.

Orcs Must Die!

**Be sure to check out the video review!**  

I picked up Orcs Must Die! when it was a daily deal in December 2011. It was under $4, and I'm usually a sucker for cheap games. I was going to buy it, until I heard it was a tower defense game, at which point I went "Ewww" and moved on. Later that morning, my roommate wandered in to ask what the daily deal was, and to watch the video for that. We agreed it looked better than what the description sounded like, and he encouraged me to pick it up. And I am glad he did, because OMD! is one hell of a game.

OMD crit my expectations!

You're a war mage, or at least an apprentice war mage, who gets a field promotion when your master slips in a puddle of kobold blood and dies. As a war mage, you're tasked with defending the rifts from an onslaught of orcs, ogres, hellbats, and other baddies that want nothing more than to step through the rifts in their world, and cross over into yours.

To those ends, you're gifted with a variety of traps and special weapons. You are, however, limited in the number that you can carry throughout any one level, up to a max of 10 slots. The first always contains your trusty crossbow, which is great for taking out enemies at range or stunning them with the secondary function before they can take that final step through the rift. After that, its up to you to pick what best fits your play style, and the available paths in the map, and there are plenty of traps and weapons make your slaughtering possible.

Actually, my favorite weapon is the Alchemist's Satchel, mostly because it blows up and sprays acid everywhere /innuendo.

Got a narrow bridge that funnels enemies to you, with a pit of lava on each side? Maybe some spring traps to fling them into the pools. Don't like traps, well then maybe you should use your wind belt tool, and knock them off the edge, that is, as long as you've got the manna for it. Or it could be that enemies are moving too fast for your wall traps, like axe blades or arrow traps, to catch, so you could lay down some tar traps to slow 'em down or freeze them in place with the Frost Amulet weapon. Fliers becoming an issue? Use your crossbow, or archers, or ceiling traps to fry them out of the air. There are a total of 26 traps, weapons, and other useful items in the game, unless you pick up one of this game's two DLCs, in which case you get two more weapons and two more traps, which are all worth it.

Each trap can be upgraded by spending orc skulls, which are acquired by doing well in a level. Some upgrades are pretty basic, such as decreasing the cost of buying archers, while others offer special effects like increasing the range the traps reach or infecting enemies with a slowing poison. It is important to note that upgrades are permanent, as you actually unlock the upgraded unit outside of the campaign by buying it, and then it is always available. And since skulls are going to be in short supply, especially when you're just starting out, you'll want to make sure to choose very carefully.

Scantily clad women that augment my damage dealing ability?!? Why can't I have all three?

Another form of tweaking your character and your traps comes in the form of weavers, which unlock later in the game. Each level you are allowed to pick one weaver, each of which has a series of special bonuses arranged in a tree like fashion, where you must have bought the prerequisite to advance down the tree. I've always been fond of the Steel weaver, which improves my traps and guardians. Archers firing fire arrows are always great whenever there are fliers about, while turning up your physics traps so that they fling ogres, the biggest bad guys in the game, right into the pit of lava or acid with all the other guys, is well worth the investment. If you're not a fan of buffing your traps, you can choose another weaver that improves your weapons, or an eventual third that focus on your special magical weapons and abilities, like the flame gantlets. While it's costly to advance all the way down to the bottom, those bonuses always seem to pay off.

There are 24 levels in the base game, and 5 more in the game's second DLC, which range in difficulty by design from the incredibly simple, to the massively complex "holy crap how am I ever going to defend this??!?" If you manage to get through them all on this game's normal difficulty, you can always try your hand at nightmare mode, which amps ups the enemies and gives you only a handful of seconds between waves. Plus, you can always try and go back and get that perfect 5 skull score, so there is plenty you can play through again here.

Death corridors are so much fun.

All in all, OMD! is a great game. For $6 I got the game and both DLCs, yet that gave me 17 hours of game time just getting through everything on normal, since I'm not insane enough to try nightmare. There are some issues with it, mostly related to running an SLI configuration (even if you're running a single card, like my GTX295), but disabling SLI lets you bypass all of that. Worth picking up, at anywhere between $10 and full price, and you should have a good time defending rifts, killing orcs, and laughing at the level intro/outro humor of this game, as well as little comments by your character, like "making orc salsa!" or "this will hurt me more than it will hurt you...no, wait, other way around." So jump on this one the next time it's on sale - it's 9 out of 10.

So, the final breakdown:

Score: 9/10

Suggested Price: $10+ (with DLCs)

Portal 2

I would hate to be a game designer, especially when you're making a sequel. How much of the original do you keep, how much do you add to make it better, or fix up issues with the first one, and how much tinkering can you do before you start in infringe upon the integrity of the original, particularly when the original was a ground breaking game. That's something you should consider through today's review, which is for Portal 2.

The original Portal was fantastic. Period, end of sentence. Yes, it could have been improved upon, mostly in that it only took an hour or so to get through it. Sure there were challenges, like trying to beat a level without taking more than 30 steps, but I've never been one for branching out beyond the core single player game. So how do you go about creating a sequel to that new first person puzzler that Portal established?

Spelunking around in the bowels of Aperture, I still couldn't find the cake.

 

One of the things that's immediately obvious is that this game has a lot more depth, and story, to it than the previous. It is no longer a battle of wills between GLaDOS and our silent protagonist. The introduction of the "helpful" Wheatly, or recordings of Aperture's founder, Cave Johnson, all add humor, a sense of story, and background information on Aperture, to the game. So pay attention to what other characters are saying, to you or each other, because all of that is pretty funny, and helps break up the puzzling portions of the game.

Speaking of puzzles, and since that's the heart of the game,  you probably want to know how they are. Well, they are definitely more difficult than the first game, but that is more because the solutions seem to be so specific, rather than the more open ended feel of the original. I got the impression that there was really only ever one way to solve any given room, and it was more a matter of execution than creativity, with many rooms having few surfaces that you can even use the portal gun on. While it's great that I got 6 hours of play time out of the main game, the whole time the puzzles didn't feel like they were on par with what the first game had to offer.

Making a mess, for science!

While the puzzles were disappointing, Valve did add some really cool new mechanics. Three types of gels make for even more ways to interact with your environment. These include:  propulsion gel, that makes you move faster as you run across it; repulsion gel, which allows you or objects to bounce off it; and a white gel that allows you to make portals on otherwise non-portal surfaces. It will be interesting to see where the community takes these new mechanics, and just what kind of crazy things you'll be able to do in the custom maps that always follow Valve's games.

 

There are other additions to the game as well, such as co-op mode and the return of challenge mode. Now co-op mode is supposed to be a big part of the game, in that it's this huge deal. I'm sure it can be pretty fun, given the right partner, but honestly, I'm not one who wants to try and solve puzzles with others, who I have to depend on to execute things perfectly, in order for us both to succeed. So if you've got someone you can trust, let me know how this part of the game is, because it is a place I will never venture.

Characters that add depth to the game include a potato.

Overall, Portal 2 is pretty fun. The puzzles are more frustrating, more "man, I need to look at an FAQ" than the previous, but still worth the investment. The story, or the humor that passes for it, is really good, and it's probably worth picking up just for that. I got it in November 2011 for $11 or so, but I've seen it for $10 or less since then. If you're not planning on going beyond the single player story, which took me about 6 hours, I wouldn't pay anymore than that. Still, a good game, at 7 out of 10.

So, the final breakdown:

Score: 7/10

Suggested Price: $10

Steam Summer Sale Begins!

I would say, "Hell, it's about time." but I think when DNF was actually released, it killed that for me.

Anyways, as the title says, the summer sale has started, running now until the 22nd, meaning there are 11 days that I get to watch my bank account dwindle rapidly.

Now if you've read through some of my past reviews, you'll notice I usually cite steam sale prices for the games I buy, and I generally stock up during the big sales like this, during thanksgiving, and the Christmas sale. So I figured to add a little life to this blog, since "real life" has been stealing what time I've generally had to write, edit, and publish reviews, I'd cover some steam news around this sale, pointing out bargains to keep an eye out for, or things to jump on right away, or even those you should avoid like the plague.

I should note that this sale includes some special elements, specifically the option to vote over an 8 hour period for which one of three different games should be on sale, and flash sales, that last for only a few hours. As such, I won't be able to cover 100% of it, but will try and include those extra deals as much as possible.

So, here's what's up today:

Buy:

Terraria - an upcoming review for this one will reveal that the open-world-build-what-you-want-rpg-esc game gets at 10/10 from me, soaking up 50 hours for only $2.50. Though I would advise if you're not a fan of a game where you have to decide what the point in playing is, you should probably pass this one over.

Portal/Portal 2 - I've got some reservations about 2, which isn't nearly as good as 1 from a puzzle perspective, but none the less is a pretty enjoyable experience. At $6.24 for both, it's a must buy. (I will post the portal 2 review a little later tonight, it's been in editing for a while now)

Pass:

Modern Warfare 3 - I've covered this one already, but you may want to consider it only if you're interested despite what I have to say, because I don't think I've ever seen a COD game go for less than this in the last two years.

Unknown:

Lots of games here I haven't played yet, so you'll just have to take a risk.

Total War Shogun 2 - $7.50 
Ridge Racer Unbound - $24.99
Might and Magic Heroes VI - $24.99
Legend of Grimrock - $5.99
Indie Bundle 1 - $9.99
Crusader Kings II - $9.99

I would take a hard look at Legend of Grimrock, a rogue like dungeon crawler that I've heard good things about, and the Indie Bundle 1, which includes Anomaly: Warzone Earth, Cave Story+, EDGE, Lone Survivor, and The Baconing. Oddly enough, I've already got everything in that bundle but The Baconing, but haven't played anything but Anomaly.

Special Sales

Saints Row 3 at $12.49 is the voted deal for the next few hours, one I'm debating picking up, after it beat out The Witcher 2 and Batman Arkham City earlier today. Don't forget to vote for the next deal, a choice between Limbo, Trine 2, and Magicka. Between you and me, I went with Trine 2, because it's the only one of those I haven't picked up already, and Magicka is always on sale.

Back to the Future The Game, Spacechem, Warlock Master of the Arcane, and Rayman Origins are the flash sales as of this posting, though not for much longer in most cases. I've completed Spacechem, an incredible puzzle game that, when I get around to it, I'll give a 10 and point out that 33 hours of fun/struggle is a hell of a deal for $2.49.

Well, that wraps it up for now. Keep an eye on this, because there are going to be a lot of good deals this week.