heyooooo i said i'd do a short sale game rec thread for the ludonarracon sale, so, here i am, doing it

Umurangi Generation ($11.99) - my 2020 GOTY. a first person photography game in the "shitty future" of tauranga aotearoa. take pics, complete bounties, and pay attention. the best environmental storytelling i've ever seen in a game. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1223500/Umurangi_Generation/

i HIGHLY recommend you pick up the Macro DLC as well ($7.99). Umurangi Generation is a complete game on its own but Macro still adds so much onto it. one of my few "you gotta get this" DLC recs. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1435580/Umurangi_Generation_Macro/

Neo Cab ($8.99) - Lina is the last human cab driver in Los Ojos. a friend of hers has disappeared - the only way she'll find out why is talking to her passengers, while trying to keep her 5 star rating so she doesn't lose her job. https://store.steampowered.com/app/794540/Neo_Cab/

Sunless Skies ($8.49) - captain a steam powered space train, working to survive travel from one port to the next while cosmic horrors tap on the glass of reality itself, and on your cabin window. sail the stars. betray your queen. MURDER A SUN. https://store.steampowered.com/app/596970/SUNLESS_SKIES/

i will add that altho that description of Sunless Skies plays up the drama and tension, i actually find a lot about the Sunless games to be soothing and comforting. there's a sort of European Truck Simulator (with combat) rhythm to it, and the characters can be so warm.

Frog Detective 1 + 2 ($6.73) - two v. short (1 hour+) charming and funny detective games for one low price. if you just want to chill out for a little this weekend and have some laughs, this can't be beat. https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/12873/Frog_Detective_1__2/

Hypnospace Outlaw ($13.99) - a personal GOAT. you are a moderator for a geocities-esque community, one that's accessed entirely as people sleep. navigate online tensions and secrets in an AU 1999 that will make you choke with laughter and tears. https://store.steampowered.com/app/844590/Hypnospace_Outlaw/

Pyre ($5.99) - you played a lot of Hades and need more? why not try my fave Supergiant game? a fantasy world VN fused with a magical version of NBA Jam, where you perform rites to try and bring your outcasts back to society. there's a talking Air Bud too. https://store.steampowered.com/app/462770/Pyre/

Where The Water Tastes Like Wine ($4.99) - travel depression-era america, hearing stories, telling stories, planting those stories like seeds to watch them change over time and distance - all to pay back your gambling debt to a wolf that beat you at cards. https://store.steampowered.com/app/447120/Where_the_Water_Tastes_Like_Wine/

bonus detail: said wolf is voiced by musician, actor, and heartthrob of Your Moms everywhere, Sting.

The Flower Collectors ($9.99) - it's the late 70s in Barcelona, and you are an ex-cop in a wheelchair who has witnessed a murder. teaming up with a young journalist, you uncover the town's secrets from your window. Rear Window turned into game mechanics! https://store.steampowered.com/app/1034750/The_Flower_Collectors/

and although it isn't on sale rn, i highly recommend the creators' previous game, The Lion's Song, which is a gorgeous episodic point and click set in 20th century austria. episode one is free, though, go get it! https://store.steampowered.com/app/437160/The_Lions_Song_Episode_1__Silence/

Mutazione ($13.39) - "a mutant soap opera where small town gossip meets the supernatural". you come to an island community to take care of your ailing grandfather... and you have lots of time to kill, people to meet, gardens to tend, and a life to live. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1080750/Mutazione/

When The Past Was Around ($5.99) - a short (2+ hours) puzzle point and click about love, letting go, and the joys and pain that roll through the heart as life goes on. tender and bittersweet, it's heart is full, open, and vulnerable. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1164050/When_The_Past_Was_Around/

Jenny LeClue - Detectivu ($4.99) - you are Jenny LeClue, wunderkind child detective - and you are also her author, Arthur K. Finklestein, whose editor has pushed to make the series more 'mature'. navigate two fractured lives at once as you solve a murder. https://store.steampowered.com/app/319870/Jenny_LeClue__Detectivu/

Heaven's Vault ($12.49) - from the creators of the incredible 80 Days! you are an archaeologist who is digging into incredible, lost history deep in space, facing the challenges of translating it now. The Outer Wilds fans looking for another fix, dig this! https://store.steampowered.com/app/774201/Heavens_Vault/

also going to say if you haven't already tried 80 Days ($3.24), a grand new twist and interactive telling of Around The World In 80 Days, you really, really should. one of the best. old school interactive fiction fans will especially love it! https://store.steampowered.com/app/381780/80_Days/

i might add a few more sales to this thread later tonight, but (mostly) gonna put it down for the moment - the mostly being, i *do* want to link to some games that aren't out yet, but do have demos and i think are worth your attention!

Chinatown Detective Agency - bit of "what it says on the tin", eh? play as Amira Darma in a neo-noir future, fresh into the world of private investigation, and having to rely every skill you've got to not only crack cases but keep afloat. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1401920/Chinatown_Detective_Agency_Day_One/