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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 you can play right now and a running list of the 2024 games that are launching this year.
Exhausted Man
Steam page
Release: July 25
Developer: Candleman Games
Exhausted Man is about an exhausted man who has the groundbreaking idea of performing all tasks while lying down. His movement is a curious face-first crawl, with his knees propelling his upper body. Frankly, it looks more exhausting than walking! But the exhausted man has made up his mind and it’s our job, as players, to help him navigate the moment-to-moment indignities of modern life while lying down. This is a “physics-comedy” in the vein of QWOP and Octodad, elevated by its bold claymation inspired art style. Expect challenging movement- and physics-based puzzles with moments of glorious stupidity offsetting frustration.
Farlands
Steam page
Release: July 25
Developer: JanduSoft, Eric Rodriguez
Mixing Stardew Valley and Forager, Farlands indulges the fantasy of being gifted an entire planet to develop however you want. This distant “agrarian rock” was once settled but has since fallen into disrepair, so expect to spend a lot of time on the usual farming sim busywork before eventually embarking on space adventures in search of resources and, hopefully, friends. This is an Early Access affair: it’ll stay there for “approximately” one year while a bunch of new stuff is added to the game, including romances, new planets, house upgrades and heaps more.
Lost Castle 2
Steam page
Release: July 25
Developers: Hunter Studio
The first Lost Castle didn’t make much of an impact in the west, but it was very popular in China. This sequel aims to up the ante considerably, with much more of everything, more fluid graphics and animation, and a bunch more to come during its year-long Early Access stint. The elevator pitch is simple: it’s a fantasy roguelite take on Castle Crashers, essentially, though its developer is currently receiving a bit of flack for the lack of a couch co-op option, which Hunter Studio promises is forthcoming. If you fancy an action-oriented RPG with online coop for up to four players, this could be worth giving a spin.
Aooni
Steam page
Release: July 26
Developer: Game Studio Inc.
Aooni, or Ao Oni, first released as a browser game in 2008, and has since won a considerable reputation in Japan, spawning a film and various manga tie-ins. It’s a retro-styled survival horror with pixel art graphics, and like many horror games in this mold it was presumably inspired by Yume Nikki. It’s a pretty simple haunted house set-up, buoyed by its execution and, crucially, the weirdly discomforting blue freaks that follow you around. This Steam release adds a new story starring Ai and a “high speed mode”. If you’re a horror fanatic you should probably give this a try.
Ells Tales: Chicken
Steam page
Release: July 26
Developer: Ells&Pills
This is basically horror sokoban starring a chicken. Despite its presentation it really is fundamentally a sokoban game, so if that doesn’t appeal to you, maybe move on. For everyone else —for all you sokoban tragics—this is the gritty take on the genre that some of you sickos have been longing for. Get the puzzles right, or the chicken dies.
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