Steam Charts: Familiar Faces

Not much moving, not much shaking in last week's top ten best-sellers, as the after-effects of the Steam sale are still felt and, without many major new releases or breakout hits, there's that creeping sense of PC games in 2016 returning to business as usual. HERE COMETH THE BRANDS. We do get one new entry though, and it's a pretty one.

1. Grand Theft Auto V

Sometimes I fall prey to thinking the world's quite a small place really. It's only when I realise that shedloads people who want to buy Grand Theft Auto V haven't actually bought Grand Theft Auto V yet that I truly understand the enormity of the human population.

2. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

Despite my heartfelt prayers that CSGO would leave the top ten, purely so I don't have to write about it week after week, it's determinedly on the rise all over again. This can primarily be ascribed to its discount to $7.49 right up until 7 July, but I wonder if the Youtube scandal around betting also pushed it further into the public consciousness. No such thing as bad promotion, and all that.

3. Dead by Daylight

The only game here I haven't played yet. I should probably change that.

4. DOOM

I just picked up a 21:9, curved monitor because I'm a ridiculous, shut-in nerd, and inevitably this was one of the first things I tested on it. It looked magnificent, and it's testament to id's technical work that I still got the magic 60 FPS even at a honking 3140x1440 resolution. Lovely, unexpected DOOM.

5.Inside

John felt disappointed by the Limbo follow-up, but it pushed my buttons a little more, which I shall write about soon. In short: I think it flows amazingly, I love its look throughout, and also it's far funnier than people on both sides of the argument give it credit for.

6. ARK: Survival Evolved

Yeah that's still here. Let's do a thought experiment and imagine just how many in-development games are telling their investors that they'll be "the next ARK."

7. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

More sales fun. This is top of the list for indulgence on my ridiculo-monitor, if I can somehow make the time. I never quite finished the main campaign, so I've got that to do, but my interest is more in seeing sun-lit cornfields rendered that much more cinematically than it is discovering the fate of Geralt & chums.

8. Rocket League

Another beneficiary of the sale (it was down to $11.99 in the closing days of last week), but let's be honest, car-to-ball has not been far from the top ten since its original release. It'll be around for a long time to come, too. Is there anyone in the world who possibly begrudges it that?

9. Fallout 4

A 50% discount last week kept Bethesda laughing, but it's back up to full price now. I totally burned out on Fallout 4 after two campaigns, but a few months down the line I shall go back and see whether DLC and mods have finally stuffed some brains into the itchy-trigger-fingered sandbox game.

10. Total War: WARHAMMER

As only the last couple of days' worth of Steam sale are reflected in this chart, we get a non-sale game creeping back in. Total Warhammer's been chuntering along happily at $60, and no doubt the first couple of chunks of DLC have helped it along.