Steam Deals, Weekend of April 5th

Another weekend, another set of Steam weekend deals!

Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad

A Soviet sniper hunts for targets. (Photo Credit: Steam)

This weekend: $2.99, with a free weekend (normally $19.99)

Josh: Tripwire is one of my favourite developers of all time, and while Red Orchestra 2 didn't get the same critical reception as its predecessor, it's worth checking out. 

The shooting in this game is tight, the physics are realistic, and I can't think of another FPS out there that makes hitting someone such a thrill. Hitting an enemy with a bolt-action rifle at 160+ meters will make you feel like a boss. Being hit will make you curse, and possibly startle you as you retreat into cover to bandage your wound(s). 

Other interesting features in this game include music that changes based on how your side is doing on the current map. This can, of course, be toggled off... but I'd argue that the tension of a last-ditch defense is heightened by it.

Another interesting feature was the addition of a stick-to-cover system. You're still in first person when sticking to cover, but you can pop over ledges and aim down the sights a bit more realistically now instead of just "uncrouching". It also makes a leaning system unneeded. 

The game does have a crude leveling system, but none of the unlocks are very game-changing, and the ones with the most significant impact tend to be easily accessible (like the bayonet for the bolt-action rifles) so you're not going to be left in the dust.

At $3.00, you're not risking much. Give it a shot!

Torchlight II

It's easy to get surrounded in Torchlight II. (Photo Credit: Steam)

This weekend: $9.99 (normally $19.99)

Josh: I confess I have played far less Torchlight II than I should have. With the right partner(s), I could have gone all the way. 

I'm one of those players who feels that the action RPG genre is best enjoyed with friends and, in the absence of someone willing to work around my lately-chaotic schedule, I haven't been able to pick it back up.

What I've played, I liked. Combat feels fun, and the classes feel unique and interesting. On higher difficulty settings, the game is challenging and forces you to weigh risks before running into a huge pile of enemies.

I actually prefer the gameplay to Diablo III, and given that this game is a fraction of the cost, it's a great value alternative. The game also offers some quality of life improvements, like having a pet who can run back to town for you to sell items.

Possible downsides: the graphics, which are aligned more to colourful animation than Diablo III's gritty gothic fantasy looks. The online portion, which requires you to create an account and sign in when you want to play.

Tripwire Interactive Bundle (Killing Floor + DLC, Red Orchestra 1 + 2, Dwarfs!?)

So many games, we couldn't choose just one to feature on this banner! (Photo Credit: Steam)

This weekend: $8.99 (normally $72.11 for everything)

Josh: I've already discussed RO2, but another great reason to buy this pack is for Killing Floor, which I consider to be a heavily underrated game and which will normally cost you more than twice the cost of the sale price of this pack.

Again, a game best enjoyed with friends. The FPS is billed as "co-operative survival horror" and while I'm sure that things are trying to kill me in the game, I'm not quite as sure that it means the game is "survival horror".

Especially when you can use a crossbow that fires buzzsaw blades.

The game is great fun, and trying to co-ordinate a defense in the heat of battle can quickly become chaotic.

"GET THAT SCRAKE! FLESH POUND, FLESH POUND!"

The game does a good job of making you hole up in different places on the map or, at least, move during the wave by having the weapon vendor move randomly about the map between rounds.

As a Tripwire game, Killing Floor has benefited from their constant stream of content releases. And while some of the content has been DLC, a lot of it has also been free content. 

Dwarfs!? has not seen too much playtime from myself but what I've seen was enjoyable. It plays like a shorter game of lemmings with more aspects to manage.

I like that the idea of a "high score" is being brought back in the game's arcade mode, though. 

This bundle is easily worth your money, so consider giving Tripwire some of it.