On an average day about a dozen new games are released on Steam. And while we think that’s a good thing, it can be understandably hard to keep up with. Potentially exciting gems are sure to be lost in the deluge of new things to play unless you sort through every single game that is released on Steam. So that’s exactly what we’ve done. If nothing catches your fancy this week, we’ve gathered the best PC games (opens in new tab) you can play right now and a running list of the 2022 games (opens in new tab) that are launching this year.
Unusual Findings
Steam page (opens in new tab)
Release: October 13
Developer: Epic Llama Games
Launch price: $17 | £13.59 | AU$24.60
Given the sheer amount of modern media that fetishizes the 1980s, you could be forgiven for passing over Unusual Findings, a point and click adventure set in the heady days of 8-bit videogames, VHS and futuristic neon. But even if you’re wearing of the punishingly ubiquitous nostalgia, this throwback has a lot of style, as well as the substance to match it. Three friends have secured a cable signal descrambler (all the better to scam free “pay per view adult” content), but instead of accessing free TV shows they stumble upon an alien spaceship distress signal. The signal may be distressed, but it’s also (probably) connected to the deaths of local people. This being the ’80s, this trio’s efforts to solve the mystery will inevitably lead them to a number of 1980s-themed set pieces (yep, there’s a video store). What appeals about Unusual Findings is its finely detailed pixel art, more so than the trappings of the era it leans on.
Atama
Steam page (opens in new tab)
Release: October 14
Developer: Team Zutsuu
Launch price: $18 | £13.94 | AU$26.05
Atama is a psychological horror game about Kaede, who has arrived in the small Japanese village of Kisaragi to visit her aunt. This aunt has stopped writing, and Kaede wants to know why. I think you can guess what happens next: the village of Kisaragi is creepy, cursed, and ridden with foes. Kaede can’t fight, but she can inhabit the viewpoint of her adversaries, all the better to stealth her way around the village to figure out what the heck is going on. It’s a stealth horror game, basically, but with an involvingly weird story and an austere, slightly retro, approach to world building. If the stealth is too much, there’s a story mode that does away with the stress. If you love the stress, there’s also a post-game Hardcore mode that adds permadeath and more.
Lost Eidolons
Steam page (opens in new tab)
Release: October 14
Developer: Ocean Drive Studio, Inc.
Launch price: $25 | £30 | AU$50
The strategy RPG renaissance (opens in new tab) continues with Lost Eidolons, which has a decidedly modern (read: not deliberately retro) take on the genre. The story and setting is familiar—a peaceful land has been overtaken by a tyrant, who must be overthrown—but there’s not a chunky pixel in sight, with studio Ocean Drive opting for a more immersive, realistic graphical style. Still, this is very much an SRPG: you’ll tactically command soldiers, customize and recruit for your force, all while building up your camp and learning about the people who have joined you. As Jon pointed out in the afore-linked article, there are a lot of new SRPGs in 2022, but this is one for folk who like their production levels high.
Trifox
Steam page (opens in new tab)
Release: October 15
Developer: Glowfish Interactive
Launch price: $18 | £13.49 | AU$26.05
Trifox is another homage to 1990s 3D platformers, though it shares an overhead perspective that positions it closer to modern games like Sackboy: A Big Adventure and Super Mario 3D World. Another thing that distinguishes it from the ye olde ’90s games is its three playstyles: you can roll out as a Warrior, Mage or Engineer, and you can even create a hybrid. Overall there are 30 abilities to mess with across four different worlds, and you can expect the usual mix of light-hearted combat, stress-free exploration and vibrant colour schemes. It’s been a busy year for the 3D platformer—thanks, Kaos the Kangaroo and Frogun— and now you’ve got another to wishlist.
Stella Pastoris
Steam page (opens in new tab)
Release: October 15
Developer: Cryptomnesic Softworks
Launch price: $8 | £5.79 | AU$11.50
Stella Pastoris is “a fusion of god game and shmup” which takes its cues from the old SNES game ActRaiser. The games are very different—ActRaiser is a platformer with city-building elements—but they share an interest in blending two seemingly incompatible genres. In Terra Pastoris you need to protect a bunch of Malthusian monks on a marooned space station. You’ll be fighting (read: shooting) machine evangelists, while also managing the survival of “the ever growing ranks of faithful”. Look: everything about Stella Pastoris, ranging from its narrative setting through to its gorgeous 1-bit art style, is a bit confoundingly weird, which is exactly why I’m going to play it.
