The is Niche Deals. In this column, we regularly cover new and upcoming deals, discounts, and more for video games. Let us know if there’s a deal we should cover!
Now that the holidays are underway and we are getting closer to a new year, its time to check out some of the annual video game sales being run on various digital platforms. The GOG Winter Sale has been underway for around a week now, and I’d like to take a moment to recommend some cheap classic PC games to our readers.
Here’s 15 recommendations from the 2019 GOG Winter Sale:
Jagged Alliance 2
Sir-Tech Software/Strategy First
$1.99 (80% off)
Jagged Alliance was a fairly popular and venerated series in the ’90s, and many fans tend to agree that Jagged Alliance 2 was the height of the franchise. This time around you are sent to the small nation of Arulco to assist a rebel group in their mission to overthrow a ruthless dictator. As with all the games, Jagged Alliance 2 mixes management and RPG elements with turn-based tactical battles as you hire your mercenaries, outfit them with an arsenal of authentic weapons from the ’80s and ’90s, and send them off on missions across Arulco. The original game is also fairly cheap right now.
RollerCoaster Tycoon: Deluxe
Chris Sawyer Productions/Atari
$2.39 (60% off)
By now, anyone who is interested in theme park management games probably already has a copy of RollerCoaster Tycoon. If not, then what are you waiting for? The Deluxe version includes the expansion packs, and the franchise has tons of mods out there you can use to further extend your time with the game. The sequel is also 60% off right now.
Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri Planetary Pack
Firaxis Games/EA
$1.49 (75% off)
Alpha Centauri is not only one of the best Sid Meier games, but also one of the best 4X games in general, which is why its a shame it never got the same level of attention and support that other Firaxis games received. When the game was first added to GOG, it lacked the Alien Crossfire expansion, but GOG eventually rectified this by upgrading the game to the Planetary Pack at no additional cost. If you love the genre and have somehow avoided Alpha Centauri until now, then give it a try.
Star Wars Republic Commando
Lucasfilm
$3.49 (65% off)
With the release of the final movie in the Disney sequel trilogy, we are all reminded of how far Star Wars has fallen. These are truly dark times in the galaxy, so lets remember the good days by playing some Republic Commando. I’ve personally always had a soft spot for Republic Commando, largely because it explored some new ground in the world of Star Wars video games by having you control a squad of elite Clone Troopers instead of a Jedi or ace X-Wing pilot. GOG has plenty of other good Star Wars games on sale right now too.
Ghost Master
Sick Puppies/Strategy First
$0.59 (90% off)
If there is one thing everyone knows about Niche Gamer, its that we love ghosts. One of my favorite ghost games is Ghost Master, a spooky strategy sim I originally learned about from a demo disc that came with an old game magazine. The objective of each level is to summon various types of specters to scare away the inhabitants of a building. There’s dozens of different ghosts, each of which are bound to specific types of rooms and objects, and have their own unique way of interacting with the mortal realm. The game costs less than a dollar right now, so there’s really no reason not give it a chance.
Shogo: Mobile Armor Division
Monolith Productions/Interplay
$1.99 (67% off)
Shogo: Mobile Armor Division is a relatively unknown FPS from the late ’90s that I played a lot of as a kid. I found it in one of those bargain bin double packs that Target used to sell, and it was packaged alongside a copy of Septerra Core: Legacy of the Creator. The game was overshadowed by the original Half-Life back in the day, but being a mecha and anime-obsessed preteen at the height of the Gundam crazy in America, I actually kind of enjoyed Shogo more at the time. I replayed the game several years back, and while it hasn’t exactly aged well, I still enjoyed playing through it again.
Metal Fatigue
Zono Inc./ Night Dive Studios
$0.89 (85% off)
Metal Fatigue is another forgotten favorite from my childhood that I found in a bargain bin back when EB Games still existed. It’s a relatively unique RTS with a heavy emphasis on towering mechs with customizable parts. You can even hack off parts from enemy mechs and reverse engineer their technology to produce it for yourself. Another interesting part of Metal Fatigue is that each map is set across three plains, with a ground level, underground, and stratosphere area that certain units can freely travel between.
Disciples 2 Gold
Strategy First
$1.99 (80% off)
The Disciples series is another series from the early 2000s that has largely been lost and forgotten to the depths of PC gaming history. This fantasy 4X series never gained the same level of fame and popularity as other franchises from the era, but I still enjoyed it a lot back in the day. The game features RPG-inspired party building and turn-based battles, where each “army” is led by an upgradable hero that can be equipped with various items, weapons, and gear. The original game is also deeply discounted right now.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Ubisoft
$3.39 (66% off)
Ubisoft’s Prince of Persia reboot series from the early 2000s was beloved by many gamers across all platforms, but my favorite was always The Sands of Time. Your mileage may vary of course, but I was never a fan of the dark and edgier direction the sequels took, preferring the more colorful and relatively lighthearted tone of the first game. In any case, you can buy the entire series (including the 2008 reboot everyone forgets about) for just $13 right now.
The Saboteur
Pandemic Studios/EA
$4.99 (75% off)
The Saboteur was the last game made by Pandemic Studios before they were unceremoniously dismantled by EA. While it wasn’t their best game, it was still a solid open-world action title that explored some unique ideas in the otherwise saturated subgenre of WWII video games. The game places you in the shoes of Sean Devlin, an Irish racing mechanic that has joined the French Resistance in Nazi-occupied Paris to avenge his loved ones. The game’s areas start in black and white with some limited effects in color, but the visuals become more vibrant as you liberate sectors across the city.
Turok 2: Seeds of Evil
Iguana Entertainment/Night Dive Studios
$6.99 (65% off)
The Turok franchise were some of the first games I ever got for my N64, and Night Dive Studios has done a nice job making the series compatible with modern hardware. They even added some nice quality of life tweaks, all while keeping the game as close to the original release as possible. Night Dive’s updated version of the first Turok is also on sale.
Deus Ex GOTY Edition
Ion Storm Inc./Square Enix
$0.97 (86% off)
Despite the jank and questionable voice acting, Deus Ex was a revolutionary blend of FPS and RPG that is still fondly remembered by gamers across the globe. Its a game you can play through half a dozen times and still discover a thing or two you never noticed before, and this replayability is further enhanced with the countless mods people have created for it. This is probably the cheapest you’ll ever find Deus Ex outside of a giveaway event, so if you still don’t have a copy now’s a good chance to grab it.
Escape Goat
Magical Time Bean
$2.49 (50% off)
Escape Goat is a charming little puzzle-platformer from the old Xbox Live Arcade days. You play as a goat that is being held captive in the Prison of Agnus, a treacherous maze of rooms full of deathtraps and otherworldly guards. With the help of a magical mouse, you’ll need to solve puzzles, avoid traps, and make your way through all 50 levels of the Prison to regain your freedom. The sequel is also 50% off and worth taking a look at.
Warlords Battlecry III
Infinite Interactive/Enlight Software
$4.99 (50% off)
Warlords Battlecry was a series of fantasy RTS games with light RPG elements. The franchise was pretty unique at the time for its inclusion of upgradable heroes that can be equipped with various items and gear, something that wasn’t all that common in RTS games back then. Your heroes even persisted across the game’s nonlinear campaign. The series features a huge selection of different races and hero classes, and the game’s many excellent mods add even more of them. While I think that the third game was the best in the series, you can buy all three right now for $11.
Geneforge Saga
Spiderweb Software
$4.49 (70% off)
Finally, we come to Geneforge Saga, a bundle pack that represents what’s probably the greatest overall deal in this list. Geneforge Saga is actually a collection of all five games in the series, each of which is a sprawling RPG full of branching choices and interesting characters. The game’s story and lore are based around the Shapers, an order of mages that harness lifeforce energies to create creatures to serve them. The series gives you a ton of freedom, allowing you to play as the Shapers themselves, or defy their rule and fight alongside the rebels trying to overthrow them.
If you didn’t find anything you like on this recommendations list, I have another one here that you can check out for more games, though I can’t guarantee that the deals are exactly the same.
Are there any games that you will be buying during the GOG Winter Sale?
