If you’ve used Steam for any significant amount of time, you know that they are downright infamous for their mega-sales. Well, they’ve got one going on right now! Since this one is for Halloween, almost all of the games on sale are horror in one way or another. Now, obviously I’ve not played all of the games on sale, but I have played a few, so let me help you find some games to get while they’re cheap. Also I should warn you about a few to avoid since they’re not worth buying at any price.
These games range from great to The Best Ever. The only reason to not buy them is lack of money from buying the other games on this list:
Telltale’s The Walking Dead Season 1: Do I even have to mention this one? It’s 75% off right now. Only the base five episodes. The DLC, 400 Days, is not discounted. Still, all together they’re under $12, and it’s still one of the best, most harrowing experiences you can find in a video game today.
Deadlight: This is a pretty fun platformer with zombies. I quite enjoyed it. I didn’t manage to finish it before my gaming rig died, though, so I haven’t reviewed it yet, but if you like platformers and feel they need more zombies, this is the game for you.
Vampire the Masquerade: Bloodlines: This is an older RPG, but it’s still one of the best out there. Make sure you seek out the fan patches though, if you want an experience that isn’t full of bugs. Not technically a zombie game, but it has zombies in it.
Plants vs Zombies: Do you seriously not own this game yet? At this price you have no excuse to not get it. Go!
Atom Zombie Smasher: This is a very unique game. It’s a sort of real-time tactical game where you have to rescue as many innocents as you can from zombie hordes, and in-between levels you find pieces of a story. Sometimes those pieces make no sense at all.
Left 4 Dead 2: This is one of my favorite games ever. Just make sure you play with friends. This link actually goes to a bundle pack for both L4D1 and L4D2, but since they ported all of the levels from 1 into 2, there’s really no reason at all to buy L4D1, unless you have a serious achievement addiction.
Killing Floor: Killing Floor is a simple game, but what it does it does very well. It is perhaps the best survival co-op wave-based horde shooter out there. (It’s a bigger genre than you’d think.) Most of the DLC is cosmetic, so you don’t have to get it, but it’s nice to have such a large selection of character models to choose from.
These games are either mediocre, but worth getting cheap or I haven’t played them and can’t actually comment on their quality:
Dead Pixels: I really enjoyed this game. I put it in this category because it’s better on the Xbox. However, at one dollar, it’s hard to argue with the price.
Dead Rising 2: I haven’t actually played this game myself, but I want to. I’ve heard near-universal praise about it.
Ghost Master: There actually aren’t any zombies in this game. I just really like it. It’s an older game, and it has it’s problems, some of them pretty big. But it’s very fun and has a lot of charm to it. If you’ve ever played games like Dungeon Keeper or Evil Genius, then imagine playing a game like that, but where you’re controlling ghosts in order to scare people into leaving town.
Trapped Dead: I didn’t get very far playing this game. It’s not terrible, but it’s not terribly good either. It does a pretty good job of keeping a cheesy 80s movie vibe, but it has a few problems, the biggest of which is that it’s just too slow for it’s own good. However, for $2.50, it’s probably worth it.
The Typing of the Dead: Overkill: I haven’t played this game, but I have played the original Typing of the Dead. They’re surprisingly hilarious remakes of various games of the “House of the Dead” series. I guess they’re technically “edutainment” but if all edutainment let you blow up zombies, it probably wouldn’t have the bad rap it has. Your kids might actually want to practice typing if you bought them this game. Plus this version comes with a port of the actual HotD game it’s a remake of, so if you don’t want to practice typing, you can use more conventional controls.
Dead Space 1 & 2: I’ve actually never played these, either, but I hear they’re really good. Also, notice that if you buy the games separately, you’re actually saving yourself one cent over buying them as a bundle.
These games are bad and their developers should feel bad:
Infestation: Survivor Stories – AKA: The War Z: This game, formerly known as The War Z, changed its name to avoid the criticisms it received at basically having been an alpha version of a game released as a full game. It was also released with descriptions about its content that was not just deceptive, it was full of outright lies. Not to mention the fact they plagiarized images from other people as part of their advertising. Really, there are plenty of other places that already covered the controversy over this game in depth long ago. If you want to know more, it’s not hard to find the info. In all fairness, from what I’m told, the developers actually are fixing the game, little by little, but that doesn’t excuse the fact that the company engaged in deceptive and dishonest business practices, and no matter how good the game eventually is, years from now, no one should buy this game, as a way to show game companies that we as consumers will not brook being lied to so flagrantly.
The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct: A great example of Shovelware (a game that was pushed out the door as fast as possible in order to capitalize on a franchise) Survival Instict is a generally terrible game with few, if any redeeming qualities. Don’t bother.
Sniper Elite: Nazi Zombie Army: This game is a pretty good example of “Good idea, bad execution.” The game is a wave-based horde shooter very similar to Killing Floor, and that just doesn’t fit sniping very well. While there are other weapons, the game wass built around sniping. Avoid this game and get Killing Floor instead.
