2024 games: Upcoming releases
Best PC games: All-time favorites
Free PC games: Freebie fest
Best FPS games: Finest gunplay
Best MMOs: Massive worlds
Best RPGs: Grand adventures
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 2023 games that are launching this year.
King of the Castle
Steam page
Release: March 3
Developer: Tributary Games
Launch price: $5 | £4 | AU$7.95
King of the Castle is a fascinating party game about deadly politicking in the dark ages. With support for up to 24 players, players are split between one monarch and a gaggle of nobles, the latter tasked with voting on every one of the former's schemes. No two sessions or stories will be the same (providing you don't play it, like, forever?), with 950 "possible events" and 80 discreet endings, as well as a massive 17,000 choices. Basically, it sounds like a great tabletop game brought to life, with seemingly endless opportunities for the nobles to stick it to the king (regicide included). King of the Castle has full Twitch integration, and can be played online via video stream or at home on the couch.
Meg's Monster
Steam page
Release: March 2
Developer: Odencat
Launch price: $13.49 | £11.51 | AU$19.75
Meg's Monster is set in a dark underworld populated by beasts that eat humans, but its protagonist, Roy, is an exception to the rule. No, not only does Roy not eat humans, but when he stumbles upon a scared little girl in the underworld, he undertakes to help her. Perhaps his motive isn't entirely innocent: the girl's tears, after all, seem capable of triggering the end of the world, which is as unappealing to monsters as it is to humans. What follows is a retro-styled JRPG where the playable character is an absolute tank with 99,999 HP, the twist being that keeping Roy alive isn't really the point: the little girl Meg must but be protected. This has been getting a bunch of really positive Steam reviews, and definitely has a fascinating premise.
Rytmos
Steam page
Release: March 1
Developer: Floppy Club
Launch price: $13.49 | £11.51 | AU$19.75
Steam ran a puzzle-themed event last week called Thinkathon, and as far as I can tell Rytmos is the most immediately appealing. It's a painterly puzzle game about gradually filling out musical compositions. When a puzzle is completed, a new component is added to the accompanying music, and over time the composition becomes more complicated, or "fuller". The soundtrack is quite varied, too: expect everything from "Zimbabwean Kalimba-based" music through to early German electronic, and much more besides. Certain modifiers are unlockable too, so that if you want, you can add a relaxing delay effect to your Ethiopian jazz, for example.
Sokfest
Steam page
Release: March 1
Developer: Sokpop Collective
Launch price: $5 | £4.29 | AU$7.50
This is the Sokpop Collective's 100th game, and fittingly, it's a point 'n' click adventure set at a festival populated by characters from earlier Sokpop gems. The objective is to make friends with each of this varied cast, and while some will welcome your friendship with good grace, others will require a bit more exploration and a dash of puzzle solving. Expect the usual off-kilter Sokpop comedy, some fun musical performances, and the usual pillowy, colourful Sokpop art style.
Dungeons of Aether
Steam page
Release: March 1
Developer: Dan Fornace, ampersandbear
Launch price: $13.49 | £11.51 | AU$19.75
Popular platform fighter Rivals of Aether gets a dungeon crawling roguelite offshoot. It's a single-player, turn-based affair where you control a four-strong party of beautifully pixelated anthropomorphs. With the "steampunk" town of Julesvale as your base, you'll push as far down into its subterranean depths as possible, slaying foes in semi-randomised dice-based combat. The story mode is the main dish, but there's also Challenge Dungeons that up the challenge significantly with "true roguelike difficulty". This looks like a fun roguelike on its own terms; even better if your a fan of the Rivals world.
