Steam In Review: March 13 Edition


Another week in review at Steam.

It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood. You know what time it is, that time of the week we look at Steam and all of the wonders it has brought us. Valheim dominated Steam’s top selling list coming in at numero uno for the fifth week running. Loop Hero remains a strong contender at number two, outperforming even the Valve Index kit. Outriders is rising up in numbers despite being unreleased and the distinct possibility that it is coming to Game Pass.

As a side note, you still have two days from this publishing (Saturday) to pick up Metro 2033 for free. Redeem and keep it forever, even if you can’t or don’t want to play it right now.

Releases

  • Stronghold Warlords: The reception to Stronghold Warlords might not be as strong (get it?) as the folks at Firefly Studios expected. Currently sitting at a 62% mixed rating, reviewers are praising the game as an improvement over more recent Stronghold games, with critics blasting the title for its reduced complexity compared to Stronghold 2 with smaller maps, armies, and strongholds than some prior games in the franchise. It should be noted that Stronghold Warlords is a budget title ($40) built by a small team of about 10 people.
  • Lust From Beyond: Still have to double check this to make sure I’m not calling the game “Lust From Behind.” Although that wouldn’t be an inaccurate title. Lust From Beyond pulled in a very positive 85% rating on Steam this week from 376 people as the super-budget ($20) title gave everyone the most awkward chub in recent Steam history. “Horror erotica done right” say the reviewers while criticizing the simplicity of some events.
  • Forza Horizon 4: I’ve learned to never question how badly a AAA game could launch a port, but Playground Games nailed this one. With a 72% mostly positive rating from 5,938 people, Forza Horizon 4 is still the masterpiece game everyone loved when it launched three years ago. That said some are not happy over Microsoft’s pricing; $60 for a game from 2018 with a $100 Ultimate Edition and $137 in DLC. The game is available on PC and Xbox for Game Pass owners.
  • Cyanide & Happiness – Freakpocalypse: 325 gamers gave this a 62% mixed rating on Steam. The biggest issue appears to be the length of the game and its ending. For $20, Freakpocalypse clocks in at just over two hours for many (conveniently the length of Valve’s refund policy) and rather than offer any sort of conclusion simply tosses up a “to be continued” sign. As the first in a trilogy, Freakpocalypse has reviewers worried that the ultimate product will cost AAA prices for roughly six hours of gameplay.
  • Bloodroots: The tiniest of last week’s list to the smallest reception. On the plus side, all sixteen reviews had something positive to say as the game sits at a 100% positive rating. Reviews praise Bloodroots for its fast action and Hotline Miami-esque gameplay. Presumably many of the people who wanted the game bought it when it released on Epic and consoles last year.

Retired Games

This week was all about retiring DLC as seasons come to a close and new things cycle out the old things. Perhaps the most notable among the list is the removal of a Sinatraa skin from Aim Lab Signature Series presumably due to Sinatraa (the streamer) being suspended pending an investigation into allegations of sexual assault. Also notable on the docket is the removal of a number of editing apps by Magix.

Banned Apps

This week saw a number of titles banned from developer GosDev, a Russian meme/troll developer part of what I have referred to in the past as the ‘Internet Memesters Union‘, a cabal of shovelware developers creating variations of troll games, many of which are full of low-key political propaganda. The creators use networks of fake developer/publisher names to avoid getting swept up in Valve’s banwaves. It hasn’t worked that great. The ban is at least partially related to the games using item spam to create dozens of marketplace products using the same unlicensed images.

  • Desktop Dance – Ricardo Entertainment / Gachi Production
  • Mid or Feed – GosDev Productions / Rofel Studios
  • Trump vs Biden: Infinity War – GosDev Production / Trump’s House
  • USSR Life – GosDev Production / SaveMeFromGULAG

Also banned this week was a couple of titles from the Zero Research Institute. There hasn’t been any comment from the developers, however there is some reason to believe that the developer has been banned from Steam before, and this ban may be for evasion.

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