Steam Mini Sales: Guide and Recommendations April 22

In case you didn't know, Steam has been doing fairly large weekly sales for a couple of months now. Having spent some time perusing them, I'm noticing a few trends in the sales. The first is that these sales are surprisingly good. I was expecting the "anybody can have a sale at any time" to really mess up the good steam sale discounts. While we've yet to see how it affects their big sales, we can certainly see that these small sales are still really good. The second trend is that even though there are some good games, there are still a lot of sales you should avoid. The discounts aren't as high (usually) as the big sales and there aren't as many new titles on sale. So, to help you wade through this new money black hole Steam has created, I've come up with some guidelines and recommendations for you. This list will be coming to you each week on Tuesday, and I'll include the guides as well in each list.  

Guidelines for purchasing on the new Steam Weekly Sales: These are some general guides to help you with the multitude of games on sale that are outside my recommendations. We may have different taste in games, and so a game I don't think is worth it may be to you. Following these guidelines though will help you to make good Steam mini-sales decisions.

1. Only buy at 50% off or greater: Many of the games going on sale are priced with 10-40% discounts. While this may be just enough savings for a game high on your wishlist, it certainly isn't for just a really cool looking game that WILL be cheaper on a regular sale.

2. Only buy at less than 5$: This applies exactly like the above rule. Many games are still in the 10-20 dollar range even on sale. This may be enough for a game on your wishlist, but never gamble more on a complete shot in the dark.

3. Only buy games on your wish list: This is if the first two rules don't apply. Say you really want a game that is on sale, but the discount is only 25% or it still costs 15$. If it's been on your wishlist for awhile and your itching for a new game, then buy it and enjoy it. It probably won't be on sale again until Steams next big sale.

Recommendations: These wills simply be a few games that believe are worth considering. There will never be any set number, and I will stick to games I have experience with. I don't want to recommend things I've only heard are good.

Top Pick: Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising

Top Pick: Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising
This is a very old game. Released way back in 2001, this RTS Action Hybrid is one of the best I've ever played. If you can get past the graphics, it has amazing depth in story, gameplay mechanics, and control. If you have played the more recent Carrier Command, think of it like that if it had better AI, better story, better mechanics, and more gameplay choices.  Basically you are the captain of an advanced warship that uses nanite technology to craft planes, tanks, choppers, and more on the fly. Then deploy in real time with sophisticated AI to achieve your objective. You also have the option for direct control of these units as well if you feel like doing more than ordering them around. It's currently 50% off and 4.99 and if you buy it, it will be money well spent. (I purchased this)

Runner Up: Two Worlds Epic Edition. Many of you may have heard of Two Worlds before and how terrible it was. While the voice acting is questionable at best, the Xbox version was the one that suffered so many problems. The PC version looked a bit better, and ran a whole lot better than its console counterpart. Epic Edition includes all extra/bonus content, and comes with a few other goodies too. At 80% off and 1.99, you absolutely should buy this game. (I already owned this)

Honorable Mention: Dark I did a review for this game previously on my gaming site Left Stick Down, and I really liked the console version a lot. As I mentioned in the review it would one day go on sale. Here it is! I did try to Steam version to compare it to console and they are almost identical, aside from some graphical improvements. Check out the review to learn more. It's 75% off and 9.99, so I understand if that's still to steep for you. I still recommend it as an original stealth game idea, and think you should at least consider it. That's it for this weeks Steam Sale Guide. Come back next Tuesday for a look at even more great games for great prices!