Praise GabeN, my friends, for the fine folks at Valve have blessed us with yet another seasonal sale, where we can pick up some of those titles that were on our wish list, but always just outside of the price range we'd be willing to pay during the rest of the year. The Halloween Sale has begun, so a number of great games are available deep discounts!
What titles are worth your hard-earned dinero, though, and which ones are just straight up bad hombres? That's what I'm here for! I've played a good deal of games, my friends, so I'm willing to put myself out there are serve as your guide to the best deals on the best games during the Steam Halloween Sale.
And before you ask, NO, Steam doesn't offer a referral program, so I get nothing from them in providing my opinions and suggestions to you all! The only pay I'll be receiving for my efforts will be whatever any of you fine Steemitizers provide via your fine Steemitizing. So now, on to the list!
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - Shadow of Chernobyl
I won't lie to you: this is one of my favorite game series of all time. It's a quirky sort of Eastern European horror shooter, set in the dreary nuclear wasteland of the Chernobyl Power Plant and it surrounding area. With intense gunfights, terrifying mutated creatures, and a moody, dread-filled atmosphere that is rooted in our own world, this game grabs ahold of you and doesn't let go until the very end.
The bundle, which includes Shadow of Chernobyl as well as its two sequels, Clear Sky and Call of Pripyat, is available for $15.99, but you can buy each game individually for $7.99 a pop. Download the HD update mods to bring the graphics and effects up to modern levels, and you'll be in for a very unique, very creepy treat.
The Darkness II
Oh, you didn't play The Darkness 1? That's really not something to worry about. The Darkness II is an entirely new take on mafia hitman Jackie Estacado and his, erm, dark powers. As one reviewer puts it: The Darkness II is a horror game with one significant detail, you are the monster.
Strike from the shadows against mafia thugs and occult enemies alike in this sleek, cel-shaded first person tale of revenge. Right now you can pick up a copy for $5.99. Or, if you're a particularly generous soul, you can pick up a 4-pack for you and three of your closest friends to play through the four player co-op campaign. How many other games selling for six bucks have a four player co-op campaign these days?!
F.E.A.R. - First Encounter Assault Recon
Monolith was somewhat of an underdog among the big first-person shooter producing studios in the late 90s and early 2000s, but what their games lacked in widespread popularity they more than made up for in their gameplay. Blood was a great use of the Build engine (of Duke Nukem and Shadow Warrior fame), Shogo: Mobile Armor Division was an excellent and unique anime-styled (and anime-parodying) mech shooter, and F.E.A.R. was a exhilarating and pants-shitting good time. As the lone survivor of a Delta Force team with super spooky super powers, it's you against an army of mindless clone soldiers - and a very creepy, very powerful little girl.
This game is going to make you shit your pants, in summary. Try not to play it after a big meal, and also don't play it while wearing any sort of special holy religiously mandated underwear. You can get all of the games in the series - F.E.A.R., F.E.A.R. 2, F.E.A.R. 3., and all of the associated DLC - for the measly sum of $13.74 by picking up this bundle.
Splinter Cell: Conviction
While some may prefer the Metal Gear series as their stealth action game of choice, the Splinter Cell series has always been able to stand tall as a giant of the genre, with the added bonus of not being too weirdly Japanese at times as Metal Gear can be. In Conviction, the Splinter Cell recipe has been cooked to perfection, with just the right sides and condiments to make it a meal that will satisfy you for a long, long time.
Introducing a mark and execute gameplay style, Conviction turns Sam Fisher into the badass that previous games always hinted that he could be - if it weren't for the fact that combat in previous games was as clumsy as a sack race. Mark and execute allows Sam to target up to 4 enemies at once and eliminate them in quick succession in order to stop the man who killed his daughter. This, combined with the huge replay value afforded by the many collectible and customizable weapons, as well as the co-op Deniable Ops mode (also playable solo), makes Conviction one of my favorite games of all time, and at $4.99 you can't go wrong.
To sweeten the pot, if you're a big time Splinter Cell fan, you can pick up Conviction and three additional Splinter Cell games - the original, Chaos Theory, and Double Agent - for only $9.99 in this bundle!
I hope that this post has helped you make a more informed shopping decision during this Halloween Sale! Next up: the Steam Winter Sale, which is all too many months away!