2023 Steam Winter Sale is now live: Our best deal picks

Many avid PC gamers have wondered whether, after the sneaky Steam Deck OLED launch, our resident Santa Claus, Gabe Newell, would offer us any further holiday treats. The answer, it turns out, is yes, because the 2023 Steam Winter Sale is now on, and there are some fantastic PC game deals straight out the gate.

This Steam Winter Sale is set to run from today, Dec. 21, 2023, for two weeks until Jan. 4, 2024, 10am PT. So, while you won’t need to pounce on every deal you see right away, just make sure you don’t forget to hit that purchase button before the sale ends in January.

And while it’s a fantastic sale this year – enough to fill anyone’s stocking, surely – there’s a lot to choose from. If you’re dying to pop some games in your basket right away and don’t have time to trawl through all the great games on offer, we’ve looked through these initial Steam discounts and plucked out some real gems. These are the games we’d personally pick up, as they’re great fun and are, at these prices, absolute bargains.

There are plenty of stellar games to choose from in this year’s Winter Sale, but here are just a few stand-out options that caught our eye and might catch yours, too.

1 Sid Meier’s Civilization VI

Turn-based strategy

Civilization is the most popular 4X franchise, offering great turn-based strategy, either solo against the computer, or vs real-life opponents. If you’ve a hankering for guiding a civilization from settler to space explorer, this is the game for you, and for the price of a burger with this discount, you can’t go wrong.

2 Resident Evil 4 Remake

FPS horror

Resident Evil 4 was the horror game to revolutionize not just horror gaming, but FPS gaming in general. The Resident Evil remakes are highly-praised, and this Resi 4 remake is no outlier. For 50% off it’s not to be missed for fans of the horror genre.

3 Baldur’s Gate 3

Sandbox-style RPG gameplay

Baldur’s Gate 3 is one of the biggest games of 2023, and here it is with its first-ever deal. BG3 took the spotlight largely due to its sandbox-style RPG gameplay, allowing for any number of routes towards success or failure. It might only be 10%, but for such a new and popular game, it’s well worth the cost.

4 DOOM Eternal

Kick-ass fun

There’s not much to say about DOOM Eternal other than that it’s kick-ass fun that updates a classic game in near-perfect manner. For 75% off, you’re guaranteed hours of fun. Oh, and much like its predecessor, it runs spectacularly on PC, so don’t worry if your hardware’s a little ageing at this point.

5 BattleBit Remastered

Tried-and-tested Battlefield formula

BattleBit was a bit of a surprise gem this year. It takes the tried-and-tested Battlefield formula and throws pixel graphics on top, all for an incredibly cheap price. Take another 40% off, and you have a bargain for those of you into large-scale multiplayer shooters like Battlefield.

6 Deep Rock Galactic

A game to play with friends

We picked this one because it’s great for those of you who want a game to play with friends but aren’t into multiplayer shooters. You can sink so much fun-filled time with friends into Deep Rock Galactic, scouring for minerals, fighting off cave monsters, and platforming up to safety. At this low price, it’s a steal.

7 Core Keeper

Think Terraria, but top-down

Core Keeper’s a great pick for those of you who want a more chill game to play with friends. Think Terraria, but top-down. Oodles of progression (including bosses to kill) and tonnes of exploration, and for under $10 it’s well worth it.