Everyone else is giving recommendations on what to pick up from the Steam Summer Sale, so I won’t waste too much time, let’s talk about games.

Door Kickers 2: Task Force North – 10% Discount, $22.49

I’ve played KillHouse Games’ early access title for something like 350-400 hours, somehow. With that, I had to include this small, simple tactical title set in “MadeUpIstan,” as I called it in my preview a few months ago. Sadly there have been no actual updates since I wrote that preview, though with the addition of Steam achievements now showing up in the last few months there may be a significant update on the horizon.

As I said in the preview, Door Kickers (the series) is simply about drawing lines and lines of vision, though the addition of Workshop support and more complex levels make it more complicated. With a community of some creative and evil masterminds, there are hundreds of hours on offer.

Duck Detective: The Secret Salami – 10% Discount, $8.99

I’d only reviewed Happy Broccoli Games’ Duck Detective a few weeks ago, so I won’t ramble on. A simple and charming detective game, you play as a cliché of a semi-famous duck addicted to bread and recently divorced. Fully voiced, highly dramatic, and just a little bit too short to say too much without spoilers. At only $8.99 there is nothing to grumble about unless you are a very angry bear.

Children of the Sun – 20% Discount, $11.99

Do you like scalping cultists with your magical bullets? Another one I’ve written the review for recently, René Rother’s Children of the Sun is a fantastic stylized puzzle title with enough grit and angst to embarrass 2015’s Hatred. There isn’t much to say as it is another short one that does what it says on the tin: You see humans with yellow or pink bits, you guide your magical bullet to that point and kill the cultists.

Baldur’s Gate 3 – 20% Discount, $47.99

Baldur’s Gay, as I’ve been calling it, is still a bit steep but I really can’t blame Larian one bit. For those not in the know, I find fantasy, magic, dragons, and all other sorts of World of Warcraft nonsense to be a load of piffle. However, much like The Witcher 3, Larian masterfully crafted this beautiful world, characters, and dialog just so that I’m pulled in by its weird creatures, names with apostrophes, and stupid sexy rogue-ish vampires.

Silly jokes aside, exploration and that first act alone is so rich and full of life that you’ll understand rather quickly why people get into D&D. I’ve heard Baldur’s Gate 3 described as “My First D&D,” and though that might be the case for experienced weekly players. Those of us without people around or who are too busy can deeply enjoy this magnificent world Larian has crafted on our own.

Tomb Raider I-III Remastered – 20% Discount, $22.49

From one magnificently crafted marvel to another, the Tomb Raider I-III Remastered Starring Lara Croft is how remasters should be done. Sure, there are a couple of things tightened up that we older players might not love, but the majority of those “improvements” such as controls are optional. To make the point I made in the review earlier this year, it quite literally remastered a masterpiece.

You can keep crying, “Woe is me” Lara for all I care, this is the character I fell in love with because she is the personification of a video game character. She sees something, she wants it, she gets it, anything in the way be damned; T-rexes, lions, tigers, snakes, and more.

Sea of Stars – 30% Discount, $24.49

One of the most beautiful games ever made, I find myself sitting just thinking about the art of Sea of Stars far too often. One for fans of the 90s RPG, Sabotage Studio’s love letter to the likes of Chrono Trigger, Secrets of Mana, early Final Fantasy, and the Mario (Super & Paper) RPGs is brilliant. As I said about Baldur’s Gate 3, the fantasy RPG genre was never accessible or enjoyable to me until these last few years, and Sea of Stars is that for 90s JRPGs.

Lies of P – 40% Discount, $35.99

Alexx didn’t enjoy Lies of P for its more “hardcore” adhesion to the aspects of Souls-likes many of us have adapted to, and I can’t blame him. However, in my tens of hours, I fell in love with this horribly twisted and dark take on the story of Pinocchio. If you’re a big fan of the first Dark Souls, you’ll probably enjoy and even breeze through Lies of P. However, if you’ve only really gotten into the genre with the likes of Elden Ring and its more accessible aspects, you’ll hate it.

About as polarizing as a good set of sunglasses, Lies of P is not just a love letter or copying Miyazaki’s work, it is trying to be its own thing while adhering to a tried and tested formula. For fans of being beaten around the head with sticks by semi-naked men, NEOWIZ’ Lies of P is exactly what you want. If you want to burn another $6, the Deluxe Edition is also on sale at a 40% discount.

Wasteland 3 Digital Deluxe – 66% Discount, $16.99

I couldn’t pass up talking about God-President Regan and the band of mad Coloradans (Coloradians?) again, especially not for this low price. The Digital Deluxe edition seems to be the more basic option with a couple of extras, though if you want all the DLC avoid the Colorado Collection as that’s $39.48. Instead, get this Digital Deluxe Edition and buy the DLC separately because then it is under $30 for the whole thing.

A classic RPG with a nuclear winter bend to it, inXile Entertainment’s 2020 release is full of that Fallout-themed fun we’ve been missing since Bethesda has been playing with the bellybutton fluff that is Fallout 76. Spider-mechs, cultists, red-headed casino owners (with more charisma than Benny and his jets), and more. Well worth the time for its more satirical moments.

American Truck Simulator – 90% Discount, $1.99

After mentioning my hundreds of hours in Door Kickers 2, I couldn’t leave off American Truck Simulator as I’ve gone full crazy and begun playing it in VR. That includes raising my hand to traffic, throwing my head out the window to swear, and occasionally forgetting I’m wearing the headset and getting confused when the wheel in-game lines up with the wheel I’m holding, then I realize. I’ve said it time and time again, a good podcast or audiobook with these dad games, you’ll spend weeks driving from coast to– well, currently to the corn husking region.

Though to explain the low-low price tag, I’ve only included the price of the base game because as is the case with most dad games, there are 49 DLCs currently. Some are a bit more discounted than others, with recent additions only 10% off. Again, if I didn’t include it for this price, I’d be lying to myself that this was my recommendation list.

Euro Truck Simulator 2 – 90% Discount, $1.99

Though Europe is where I’ve spent my last couple of months, mostly because I was able to get a Ferrari F1 paint job for the Mercedes Actros. Yeah, we’ll ignore that I’m not using the Iveco, mostly because I don’t like them. Another one that it felt wrong not to include, especially as I’ve crossed 50,000 miles in this one truck recently. Again, the DLCs are plentiful, stacking 91 high this time out, though there are EVs in Euro Truck Simulator 2 which is a difference.

Though here’s a tip, don’t bother with the Renault E-Tech as the dash is terrible in VR and you’ll end up going 100 MPH and falling on your side. Not the most pleasant experience, laying on your side and wanting to vomit as you appreciate the road textures. Ok, I was being a bit silly, but at the same time I hate that dash UI on that thing, it is terrible.

TRIANGLE STRATEGY – 50% Discount, $29.99

One of the most beautiful RPGs ever made, and I’m not just repeating what I said about Sea of Stars. ARTDINK and Square Enix’s TRIANGLE STRATEGY takes what Octopath Traveler had, adds a bit of Dune-like storytelling, and has a truly interesting and captivating world. Maybe not the best “My First JRPG” but certainly one if you’ve enjoyed the occasional title in the genre and want to get into something twinged with a bit more of that 90s flavor.

Do I need to shout a bit more about the art style because I honestly could, the “2.5HD” thing has sparked my interest in so many titles lately I’m worried I’m the JRPG equivalent of the COD graphics people? You know, the people who fawn over a fully realized celebrity’s face in their brown/Russian man shoot ’em ups. A lot more civilized than that, TRIANGLE STRATEGY is perfect for anyone who enjoys a great JRPG.

Dungeons 3 – 75% Discount, $7.49

I had to go deep into my backlog on this one because I couldn’t end on a recent title, I had to go find something brilliant but off the beaten path. Realmforge Studios’ 2017 title, Dungeons 3, is a brilliant lampoon of Warcraft and other fantasy series while being a continuation of the Dungeon Keeper style of game. Narrated by the great Kevan Brighting of The Standley Parable fame, he and Emma Tate’s Thalya bicker, bite, and snarl at each other in hilarious ways.

Of course, Dungeons 4 is more recent, though you can’t pick that and all its DLC up in the Complete Collection for $19.96. With such legally distinct DLCs as “Lord of the Kings” and “Evil of the Caribbean,” you can spread the good word of evil from here to legally distinguishable Mordor. A great comedy title that understands comedy in games (for the most part), I can’t recommend Dungeons 3 enough as my final suggestion.

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