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 2021 games that are launching this year.
2023 games: Upcoming releases
Best PC games: All-time favorites
Free PC games: Freebie fest
Best FPSes: Finest gunplay
Best MMOs: Massive worlds
Best RPGs: Grand adventures
WorldBox
Steam page
Release: December 3
Developer: Maxim Karpenko
Launch price: $20 | £15.49 | AU$28.95
Launched into Early Access last week, WorldBox is a god game that tries to put as much destructive power into your hands as possible. You'll preside over a world with four races, each of which is capable of forming kingdoms and warring with others, and you might find it fun to just sit back and watch how this all plays out. Or, you could trigger a zombie apocalypse, send in some acid raid, usher a UFO visitation or better still, whack a giant crab in there and see what happens. It's basically a huge being-an-asshole simulator; Joseph dug it when he played an early build back in August. As for this Early Access release, it's the culmination of years of work and there's a lot to muck around with in there, though developer Maxim Karpenko expects another two years of development while new features like religions are added.
Paper Bride
Steam page
Release: December 3
Developer: HeartBeat Plus
Launch price: $7.19 | £5.21 | AU$10.35
Drawing from traditional Chinese folklore, Paper Bride is a fascinating horror game about a bride who literally turns into paper. The groom, understandably miffed about this, wants to figure out why this happened and ideally reverse it, only he finds that everything else related to the imminent wedding has turned to paper too: the food, the decorations. Paper Bride is a puzzle-oriented horror game with a point and click interface, so don't expect terrifying pursuits or scrappy combat. Expect a rich, disquieting atmosphere and some unique storytelling.
Mechajammer
Steam page
Release: December 3
Developer: Whalenought Studios
Launch price: $22.49 | £18 | AU$32.35
Here's a tactical turn-based RPG with a unique setting and art style. It's ostensibly "cyberpunk," but more specifically, it's set in an "off-world grindhouse jungle colony". As far as I know, that is a setting not yet tackled by a videogame. As you roam this literal urban jungle in search of an escape, you'll need to team up with—or wage war on—mercenaries and gangs, and you'll need to be extra careful when you do so because your decisions matter here: Whalenought Studios calls it an immersive sim. Some players are reporting some launch week woes, but once those are ironed out this looks like a treat for serious RPG lovers.
Highrise Mogul
Steam page
Release: December 3
Developer: Olli Arkko
Launch price: $9 | £6.74 | AU$13.05
Highrise Mogul looks like a modern take on SimTower: your job is to build a perfect highrise building full of offices, apartments, maintenance staff and places to relax. But it wouldn't be a tycoon game if it was all about building nice things, so you'll also need to manage the power grid, run PR campaigns to spruik your skyscraper, and make sure tenants follow the rules. The Steam page promises that, if you want, you can be the "most ruthless micromanaging landlord," which sounds like an absolute blast.
Leenie Boog
Steam page
Release: December 3
Developer: Alexander Bazhenov
Launch price: $4.49 | £3.59 | AU$6.75
This creepy survival horror game is apparently set during a "Thousand-Year War" but, more to the point, it includes an absolutely horrendous antagonist who's presence even in the trailer is going to give me nightmares. It's a first-person affair and it's all about stealth and evasion, so don't expect to cathartically murder the horrible Leenie Boog (that's the weird dog's name, didn't you know). There is a slight whiff of Five Nights at Freddy's here, but only because the stalker looks like a murderous living toy.
These games were released between November 30 and December 6 2021. Some online stores givers. us a small cut if you buy something through one of our links. Read our affiliate policy for more info.
