An observant gamer can save a lot of money by frequently visiting digital download sites to check for new special offers. Sometimes these are special weekend deals and other times these may be pre-order arrangements that include a small discount or even additional free games, but in any case these are special deals that quickly lead to a very (un)healthy gaming collection at surprisingly low cost.
But it can be tiresome to constantly browse through enormous lists of sales for the best deals, so that’s what I’ll be doing for you in this weekly feature! I’ll cover the most interesting titles on sale and provide short descriptions and recommendations for each game. Should the currency used on the service not be in euro (Good Old Games), then I’ll also convert the pricing at the current exchange rate.
It’s a crazy week as both GamersGate and Get Games have launched massive new summer sales with a wealth of interesting games. Awesome co-op FPS gameplay with Borderlands, intense and tough tactical strategy with Commandos Complete, over-the-top turn-based strategy in a fantasy setting with King’s Bounty and Armored Princess, incredibly varied space exploration gameplay with Space Rangers and Space Rangers 2, and lots lots more is up for sale this week. There’s also a nice fast-paced sidescrolling multiplayer platform shooter by the name of Booster Trooper that’s having a free weekend over at Steam right now. And in celebration of QuakeCon, Steam is also offering incredible daily discounts on id Software and Bethesda Softworks games!
There’s a huge amount of games to choose from and they’re all going for ridiculously low prices, so be sure to have a look below and see if there’s anything in there for you! Also subscribe to GameDrone for weekly coverage of the best digital download discounts with concise game descriptions!
Deals of the Week
- Batman: Arkham Asylum Game of the Year Edition on GamersGate - Save 60% Weekend Deal – 19,98 EUR
Normally games based on comics or movies are mediocre at best, but Batman: Arkham Asylum surprisingly managed to break the mold and offer outstanding third-person action gameplay with a captivating storyline and perfectly casted characters. It has Batman atmosphere in spades and is an absolute must-have for any fan of the franchise, but also a very good game in its own right. - Borderlands on GamersGate - Save 66% Weekend Deal – 10,18 EUR
Combine the random loot and leveling system of Diablo with the frantic action of co-op Serious Sam and you get the first person shooter that is Borderlands. A huge world, thousands of randomly assembled weapons and four great characters make for a lot of fun. It has a few console touches, such as a poorly developed multiplayer browser, but it’s worth it nonetheless. - Commandos Complete in Get Games - Save 50% Weekend Deal - 7,49 EUR
This package includes all Commandos games, from the excellent and ridiculously difficult squad-based strategy games of Behind Enemy Lines & Commandos 2, to the sub-par shooter Strike Force. An awesome bundle at a great price – definitely worth a look. - King’s Bounty: Armored Princess on Get Games - Save 80% Weekend Deal – 4,99 EUR
This stand-alone expansion pack offers an even better take on King’s Bounty’s excellent turn-based strategy gameplay, with the introduction of flight, a dragon pet, new hero abilities, etc. Be sure to get this if you’re into fantasy turn-based strategy games with heavy RPG influences similar to Heroes of Might and Magic. The deal for The Legend is better this weekend, but at this price there is no reason not to get Armored Princess right along with it. - Painkiller: Black Edition on GamersGate - Save 50% Weekend Deal – 4,97 EUR
Go all-guns-blazing in this excellent fast-paced first person shooter with a grim mythical setting that puts you in the role of a demonic ass kicking mercenary. Crazy weapons, crazy enemies, crazy powers and a crazily fast pace make for one heck of a ride. And multiplayer offers solid competitive arena-based hardcore FPS play that’s unfortunately quite empty nowadays due to the free excellence that is Quake Live. This Black Edition also includes the Battle Out of Hell expansion pack, which was the last decent Painkiller game. - Space Rangers 2: Reboot on Get Games - Save 85% Weekend Deal - 3,24 EUR
Space Rangers 2 improves upon the original in ever regard. It’s a hugely varied game, which makes it a tad hard to describe, but its over-the-top yet in-depth space exploration mixture makes for an awesome experience. This reboot version also includes an expansion that adds new game modes, missions, equipment, etc. - Star Wolves 3: Civil War on Get Games - Save 75% Weekend Deal – 6,25 EUR
This game hearkens back to the original Star Wolves with similarly awesome and addictive RPG/RTS gameplay, no DRM and poor voice-acting. It’s nowhere near as buggy as Star Wolves 2 and while the interface takes a bit of getting used to it’s definitely a fun game to play. - Trine on Impulse - Save 50% Weekend Deal – 9,99 EUR
A great indie platform game featuring singleplayer and local (same computer) co-op modes. Read my first impressions for an indication of what the game plays like and why you should get it. They’ve recently added a free new map in an update.
Steam
- Booster Trooper on Steam – FREE Weekend and Save 50% – 4,49 EUR
Booster Trooper is a sidescrolling multiplayer platform shooter with lots of blood, jetpacks and some sweet weapons. It doesn’t really do anything different from other games in its genre, like Soldat, but does have a fair few multiplayer modes, 15 maps, leaderboards, achievements and 12-player multiplayer with dedicated server support which should keep you busy. There certainly are worse deals to be had and you can give it a go for free this weekend! - Global Agenda – Save 25% Patch Deal – 22,49 EUR
Global Agenda is a persistent online third person shooter with solid gameplay. It includes MMORPG-style character creation, player classes and player progressions with lots of levels and equipment. The actual gameplay mostly comes down to small-scale PvE engagements and up to 10 vs 10 PvP skirmishes. It has seen a lot of patches lately which have added a lot of new content and handled additional gameplay issues. The game no longer requires a monthly fee which makes this deal a lot more attractive. - Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days – Save 10% Pre-order Deal – 44,99 EUR
An upcoming third person shooter featuring two twisted criminals on the run. It includes a singleplayer campaign, co-op and multiplayer game modes. The original game was considered to be fairly mediocre, so I wouldn’t expect too much from this sequel. It’s also less expensive to pre-order this at your average webshop. - QuakeCon 2010 Pack – Save 75% Weekend Deal – 69,99 EUR
QuakeCon started yesterday and in celebration of this annual event the entire Steam catalogues for id Software and Bethesda Softworks have been combined into one fairly priced package. The 75% that Steam indicates may be a bit of an exaggeration compared to retail pricing, but it’s still a package with definite value. It includes the entire Doom and Hexen series, all Quake games save for Quake 4 and all Wolfenstein games save for Wolfenstein 2009. Also included are Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and Fallout 3 GOTY editions. Add in a few other interesting older games like Commander Keen and Call of Cthulhu and you could definitely do worse than grab this QuakeCon pack. - Worms Reloaded – Save 10% Pre-order Deal – 17,99 EUR
It’s an all new 2D Worms game set to release in August, a decade after the excellent Worms: Armaggedon. It’s essentially a turn-based warfare game with small squads of worms that is absolutely hilarous in single- and multiplayer alike. This new version includes up-to-date 2D graphics, four player multiplayer, achievements, leaderboards, a map editor, etc. It looks set to be a great new entry in a long dead franchise and comes with Steam integration!
GamersGate
- Amnesia: The Dark Descent – Save 10% Pre-order Deal – 13,45 EUR
An upcoming first person survival horror game. - Aquanox – Save 50% Weekend Deal - 2,49 EUR
Aquanox can best be described as FreeSpace 2 underwater. In the 27th century humanity has moved underwater and you’re the leader of a mercenary company trying to earn a living. So you hire yourself out to the highest bidder and blow stuff up in your souped up submarine craft. Great straight-up action gameplay, albeit entirely linear and accompanied by poor voice acting. - Aquanox 2: Revelation – Save 50% Weekend Deal - 2,49 EUR
Read the above and think more of the same with a better graphics engine… that pretty much sums up Aquanox 2. In other words: a great underwater action game that you’ll definitely want to play. - ArmA: Gold Edition – Save 50% Weekend Deal – 9,97 EUR
This package combines the original ArmA: Armed Assault with its expansion pack Queen’s Gambit. It’s not quite as expansive or beautiful as the sequel, but still a very worthwhile purchase for fans of hyper-realistic military simulators like the original Operation Flashpoint game. Do keep in mind that it’s still mildly buggy and the A.I. isn’t all that great. - ArmA 2 – Save 50% Weekend Deal – 14,97 EUR
A hyper-realistic modern warfare simulator that presents a fictional near-future conflict in which United States marines battle Russian soldiers for control over the former soviet country Chernarus. With 81 weapons, 120 vehicles and a 225 square kilometer game world to explore and 50-player multiplayer this simulation/first person shooter has a lot to offer. It does require a fairly hefty system to run comfortably, but otherwise is an excellent game for anyone who digs military hardware now that most of the bugs have been patched out. - Chaser – Save 50% Weekend Deal – 2,49 EUR
A fairly generic futuristic first person shooter with a decent story and unusually large environments. Nothing too special, but certainly a decent shooter at this price. - Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena – Save 75% Weekend Deal – 4,98 EUR
Strangely these games are much better than the movie they were based on. Assault on Dark Athena also includes the original Escape From Butcher Bay, which makes this a pretty good deal. Both games are known for good action gameplay with a decent singleplayer campaign. Do keep in mind that the original is generally considered to be better than Dark Athena. - Dark Sector – Save 60% Weekend Deal – 3,97 EUR
A decent third-person action game with a cover system and mediocre plot. - Faces of War - Save 70% Weekend Deal – 1,49 EUR
Small scale real-time strategy gameplay with heavy unit micromanagement similar to Soldiers: Heroes of World War 2. Also similarly difficult, but with an even more impressive graphics engine. - Frontlines: Fuel of War – Save 75% Weekend Deal - 2,48 EUR
A decent multiplayer-oriented near-future first person shooter with a lot of weapons and vehicles and numerous different player classes similar to Battlefield: Bad Company 2 or Joint Operations. It offers solid gameplay and is certainly good fun to play with some friends, but has a rather small following. Also included is a mediocre singleplayer campaign. - NecroVisioN – Save 75% Weekend Deal – 2,48 EUR
This decent first person shooter mixes World War One with zombies, strange creature and even stranger weaponry. In essence it’s a no-nonsense all-guns-blazing shooter with a grim setting much like Painkiller. - NecroVisioN: Lost Company – Save 75% Weekend Deal – 6,23 EUR
More of the above. - Red Faction: Guerrilla – Save 75% Weekend Deal - 9,98 EUR
An excellent free-roaming third person shooter which offers full environmental destruction in a highly futuristic guerrilla war on Mars. Take charge of the local rebels and drive those earthlings back to their planet as you demolish buildings, blow up bridges and generally wreak havoc any way you can. A decent story, good graphics and a wide variety of weapons and vehicles makes this one first person shooter that’s well worth playing. - Saints Row 2 – Save 75% Weekend Deal – 4,98 EUR
A rather mediocre free-roaming action game that tries to emulate the Grand Theft Auto and Just Cause franchises, but never manages to reach that level of excellence. A decent game if you’re into the genre, but easily missed if you’d rather play something more substantial. - Section 8 – Save 66% Weekend Deal - 10,19 EUR
This futuristic first person shooter focuses around special exoskeleton armors that allows marines to be dropped in from orbit, jetpack around the environment and take a whole lot of punishment. There’s a short, mediocre, singleplayer campaign that lasts for about 4 hours, but it mostly focuses around large-scale multiplayer battles that are mildly reminiscent of Tribes. But it never manages to reach the excellence of the Tribes franchise, not even the latest iteration Tribes: Vengeance. It’s nowhere near as action-packed, hardcore and fast-paced, with players capable of withstanding way too much punishment. And it isn’t anywhere near as varied or tactically challenging. Still, a fair game for a fair price and considering how Tribes 1 & 2 can’t be played in multiplayer and Vengeance is all but abandoned, there really isn’t much of an alternative. - THQ Complete Collection – Save 50% – 49,99 EUR
It’s not an actual complete collection of all THQ PC games, but this package does include some great games. The entire Company of Heroes series of World War 2-era real-time strategy games and the excellent Warhammer 40.000: Dawn of War and all of it’s expansion packs make for a great RTS bundle. Also included is the excellent action RPG of Titan Quest and it’s Immortal Throne expansion pack. The entire Red Faction series is also included, along with the excellent free-roaming singleplayer FPS S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, racing game Juiced 2, mediocre multiplayer FPS Frontlines: Fuel of War, mediocre action game Saints Row 2 and mediocre zoo-simulator World of Zoo. - Unreal Complete Pack – Save 50% Weekend Deal - 28,97 EUR
This bundle contains the very epitome of hardcore shooters: Unreal Tournament. Granted, there may be some discussion as to whether Quake 3 Arena is better, but it’s certain that nothing since has rivaled it and it’s still a very popular multiplayer game to date with thousands of players every night. Also included is the excellent singleplayer FPS Unreal that offers an engaging science-fiction tale and similarly excellent first person shooter gameplay. Add in the very decent singleplayer FPS Unreal 2, modding favorite but somewhat poor on the out-of-the-box gameplay front Unreal Tournament 2004 and excellent multiplayer shooter held back by terrible menu systems and design decisions Unreal Tournament 3 and you get one heck of a deal. These games are all extremely popular amongst modders so they offer countless hours of fun in single- and multiplayer. The only Unreal game not included is Unreal Tournament 2003, which isn’t much of a surprise considering the fact that it was so bad that even Epic themselves no longer count it as part of the Unreal Tournament franchise! It should be noted that web shops tend to offer a better deal than this if you purchase the Unreal Anthology and Unreal Tournament 3 separately! - Velvet Assassin – Save 66% Weekend Deal – 6,79 EUR
A World War 2-themed stealth action game with a heavy emphasis on the stealth. It’s nowhere near as good as more renown stealth action games like Splinter Cell, Thief or even Saboteur, but it does offer enjoyable stealth gameplay with a fair singleplayer campaign focusing on the adventures of British intelligence agent Voilette Summers.
- Air Aces: Pacific – Save 35% Weekend Deal – 29,90 EUR
An arcade flight simulator set in the Pacific arena of World War 2 with variable reality-mode setting for different flight experiences. - Devil May Cry 4 – Save 50% Weekend Deal – 11,49 EUR
A fast-paced action game with a decent story and excellent gameplay. But you’ll probably want to play this with a gamepad rather than keyboard and mouse. - Disciples 3: Renaissance – Save 25% Weekend Deal - 29,99 EUR
The Disciples series is a classic and celebrated franchise of gothic fantasy turn-based strategy games with strategic RPG gameplay similar to a Heroes of Might & Magic or King’s Bounty. This latest installment isn’t quite as good as its predecessors with numerous bugs and poor AI. It makes up for this by a story that miraculously doesn’t quite suck and solid, addictive, strategic battles. A good game to play after you’ve had your fun with Heroes of Might & Magic V and King’s Bounty, but you’ll definitely want to get those games first. - Gratuitous Space Battles Complete – Save 35% Weekend Deal – 20,18 EUR
An excellent indie strategy game that puts you in command of a space fleet. Design your own ships and set up your armadas before each battle, then watch as they tear into the opposing fleets. There is no direct unit control in this game, but it really doesn’t matter given the gratuitous space battles and excellent pre-battle planning systems. This package also includes all three race expansions (The Order, The Swarm and The Tribe). It should be noted that the package comes in at similar price at the official website, which is of course more supportive of the developer. - THQ Ultimate Bundle – Save 80% – 65,49 EUR
This is a bundle of some of THQ’s best PC games. It includes the entire Company of Heroes series of World War 2-era real-time strategy games, along with Warhammer 40.000: Dawn of War and Supreme Commander and their respective expansion packs. Proper first person shooters are also included in the form of the entire Red Faction franchise and both Full Spectrum Warrior games. The excellent Action RPG Titan Quest and its Immortal Throne expansion are also included, along with the superb free-roaming singleplayer FPS S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. The racing game Juiced 2 and zoo simulator World of Zoo round out the package. - World War 2: Time of Wrath – Save 40% – 16,19 EUR
A decent turn-based grand strategy game set in World War 2.
Direct2Drive
- Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway – Save 50% Weekend Deal – 7,50 EUR
A squad-based World War 2 shooter with excellent graphics, an engaging story and solid gameplay. It’s easily the best in the series. You may be able to find a better deal for this in web shops or retail. - Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter Bundle – Save 50% Weekend Deal – 7,95 EUR
This bundle contains both Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter games, which are near-future squad-based tactical shooters with semi-realistic gameplay. They’re not actual warfare simulations like ArmA or Operation Flashpoint, but they’re definitely more serious than the likes of Battlefield, Counter Strike or Modern Warfare 2. Both games suffer from weak storytelling, as is common in Tom Clancy games, but make up for it with well executed gameplay mechanics. The AI can leave something to be desired however. - Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Vegas Bundle – Save 50% Weekend Deal - 7,95 EUR
A bundle that contains both Rainbow Six: Vegas squad-based tactical shooters. These first person shooters put you in command of a counter terrorist team operating in Las Vegas.
Get Games
- Aliens vs Predator – Save 50% Weekend Deal – 17,49 EUR
Become a marine, alien or predator in this futuristic first person shooter. It’s a solid shooter with three enjoyable singleplayer campaigns, a very intense atmosphere and a decent, but not outstanding, three-way multiplayer component. - Cryostasis: Sleep of Reason – Save 75% Weekend Deal – 2,49 EUR
A first person survival horror game set on an old nuclear icebreaker on the North Pole. - Fantasy Wars – Save 75% Weekend Deal – 3,74 EUR
Turn-based strategy gameplay in a fantasy setting. This is the prequel to Elven Legacy so the gameplay is nearly identical with constant grid-based turn-based warfare. It’s actually a lot of fun to play despite the low production values. - King’s Bounty: The Legend – Save 75% Weekend Deal – 2,49 EUR
An excellent fantasy turn-based strategy game with RPG influences that’s similar, but superior, to Heroes of Might & Magic. This is about as good as the genre gets and you definitely don’t want to miss out on it at this price. - Men of War: Gold Edition – Save 75% Weekend Deal - 7,49 EUR
A highly realistic take on tactical real-time strategy gameplay in a World War 2 setting. Units have their own inventories and you can take direct control over units. Similar to the excellent Soldiers: Heroes of World War 2, but at slightly larger scale. It’s also similarly difficult (insane) and features similarly excellent co-op multiplayer. Definitely worth a look. - Napoleon: Total War – Save 50% Weekend Deal – 19,99 EUR
The most recent game in the Total War series, which features the Napoleonic era. It’s an improved version of Empire: Total War, with slightly less features and a smaller theatre of war, but superior execution. - Space Rangers – Save 75% Weekend Deal – 2,49 EUR
This is a difficult game to describe. It’s part RPG, part RTS, part Sim. You’re a space pilot and you can do whatever you want: trade, fight, follow the storyline, accept missions, become a pirate, etc. However it also features strategic ground battles and all sorts of quirky encounters. It’s a very unusual game in the way that the King’s Bounty games are over-the-top weird… and like those games, Space Rangers is one game you can’t afford to miss out on. - Star Wolves – Save 75% Weekend Deal - 2,49 EUR
You control a mothership and a set of pilots in their own fighter craft through an extensive singleplayer campaign. The voice-acting is very sub-par and the graphics are merely decent, but the gameplay is very addictive and fun. The universe just sucks you in after a few hours of play. - UFO: Aftershock – Save 75% Weekend Deal - 2,49 EUR
Humanity has fled from Earth after it became uninhabitable, but now they’re trying to reconquer it from the unknown lifeforms that have taken up resources. Naturally you’re placed in charge in this small-scale tactical strategy game. - UFO: Afterlight – Save 75% Weekend Deal - 3,74 EUR
Afterlight places the focus on a small human colony on Mars that has to thrive in the face of constant alien invasions. It’s a much better game than Aftershock and a solid mixture of global strategy and small-scale tactical combat. - XIII Century Gold Edition – Save 75% Weekend Deal - 6,25 EUR
Two excellent real-time strategy games with large scale battles (thousands of soldiers) in realistic medieval conflicts. It recreates the actual conditions of numerous historical battles, taking into account both the weather and terrain. It may have the grand scale in battles of a Total War game, but it lacks the grand strategy turn-based over map gameplay as it’s more of a medieval battle simulator.
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