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 new games of 2019.
Iron Marines
Steam page
Release: May 16
Developer: Ironhide Game Studio
Price: $14.99 | £11.39 | AU$21.50
Iron Marines is a lush and colourful RTS by the creators of the Kingdom Rush series. Originally released for smartphones in 2017, the gorgeous art style translates well to a big screen, and the release comes with a bunch of new optimizations and features specific to the PC version. Overall what you're getting is a charmingly whimsical take on Starcraft, with 21 campaign missions, more than 40 upgrades and 14 heroes–all of which are unlocked at the start and all of which have their own upgrade paths.
Irony Curtain: From Matryoshka with Love
Steam page
Release: May 16
Developer: Artifex Mundi
Price: $19.99 | £15.49 | AU$28.95
As the name implies, this new Artifex Mundi point-and-click adventure game is a Cold War-inspired romp set in the fictional nation of Matryoshka. The protagonist is a journalist but he's a bit out of his depth: Matryoshka and its powerful capitalist foe are at loggerheads, and he's in some vague way drawn into it. The tone here is evidently light: the art style is very Saturday morning cartoon, and the game is called "Irony Curtain" after all. Very cute.
Deuterium Wars
Steam page
Release: May 17
Developer: Disquire
Price: Free
Launched into Early Access last week, Deuterium Wars is a free-to-play multiplayer sidescrolling shooter with an emphasis on ship customisation. As you play, you'll accumulate all manner of materials which can be put towards not only bolstering your ship but also adding better weapons to it. In addition to the PvP combat, it looks like you can trade with other players as well. The game is set to launch into 1.0 within a year, and studio Disquire plans to develop smartphone and console, and for all to support cross platform play.
Ritual: Crown of Horns
Steam page
Release: May 17
Developer: Draw Distance
Price: $12.99 | £10.29 | AU$18.50
Another Early Access launch, Ritual: Crown of Horns is an ultra-violent twin-stick shooter promising a "acid-fueled" interpretation of the Wild West. You'll be fending off hordes with shotguns and six-shooters, and by all reports its a lot more precision oriented than you might usually expect from a twin-stick shooter. For example, one Steam reviewer describes it as a mix of Hotline Miami and Devil Daggers. Which sounds terrifying, to be honest. The game is expected to launch by the end of year and there's even a demo on the Steam page.
Ruckball
Steam page
Release: May 18
Developer: The Architects Republic
Price: Free
Ruckball is a 3v3 six degrees of freedom sports game about punching an oversize ball into a circular goal. Like Rocket League, mastery of Ruckball seems to rest on a similarly open-ended Rocket League-style physics system, though apparently you're able to brawl with your opponents in this? (Amazing if true). The game's in Early Access and the studio doesn't know how long it might take to complete, but it's free-to-play so there's no harm in giving it a shot.
These games were released between May 13 and May 20 2019. Some online stores give us a small cut if you buy something through one of our links. Read our affiliate policy for more info.
