On an average day, about a dozen new games are released on Steam. And while we think that's a good thing, it can be understandably hard to keep up with. Potentially exciting gems are sure to be lost in the deluge of new things to play unless you sort through every single game that is released on Steam. So that’s exactly what we’ve done. If nothing catches your fancy this week, we've gathered the best PC games you can play right now and a running list of the new games of 2020.
2023 games: Upcoming releases
Best PC games: All-time favorites
Free PC games: Freebie fest
Best FPSes: Finest gunplay
Best MMOs: Massive worlds
Best RPGs: Grand adventures
A New Life
Steam page
Release: May 16
Developer: Angela He
Price: $2.99 | £2.09 | AU$4.50
A New Life is a short visual novel by Angela He, who was responsible for last year's very well-received Missed Messages. While that game had horror elements and "wholesome memes," A New Life seems to take a more gentle approach, centred around the way lovers can hurt one another. There are five endings, and according to the Steam page you'll probably finish it up in around 40 to 90 minutes. If you prefer to play short visual novels on the go, it's also available for iOS and Android.
Atom RPG: Trudograd
Steam page
Release: May 12
Developer: AtomTeam
Price: $10.99 | £9.99 | AU$17.99
Released in 2018, Atom RPG is a widely loved tactical RPG with a gritty real-world post-apocalyptic setting. Now it has a stand-alone expansion in the form of Trudograd, which continues the narrative of the original game. As a result, studio AtomTeam warns that you should probably play the core game first. If you have, Trudograd looks pretty cool: it takes place in a giant metropolis that "withstood the tests of nuclear obliteration and social collapse". Big warning though: the game's in Early Access and is currently "30 percent ready," though it's expected to launch into 1.0 within six months.
ESC
Steam page
Release: May 18
Developer: Lena Raine
Price: $4.99 | £3.99 | AU$7.50
ESC originally released on itch.io in 2018. It's a psychedelic text adventure by Lena Raine, best known as the composer for Celeste, with visual work by Dataerase. The premise is fascinating, albeit hard to summarise, so permit me a cut-and-paste: "Enter the memories of Raine as she explores the text-based world of VerdaMUCK, a simulation of the old network within the vast cerebrally-interconnected network of the near future. Meanwhile, a mysterious individual known only as The Navigator exposes the truths of the Cerenet as a conspiracy-in-the-making begins to unfold."
Library of Ruina
Steam page
Release: May 15
Developer: ProjectMoon
Price: $24.99 | £19.49 | AU$35.95
Launched into Early Access last week, Library of Ruina is ostensibly a combat-oriented game, but you won't be bludgeoning your opponent with Moby Dick. No, combat is a cards and dice affair, with the objective being to "heighten emotions" which, uh, seems to affect both the combatants and witnesses. There are fifty types of cards to use across five "beautiful library floors". The game currently has three chapters, with eleven more rolling out throughout the Early Access period.
Lit: Bend the Light
Steam page
Release: May 16
Developer: Copperglass
Price: $4.99 | £4.79 | AU$8.50
Here's a puzzle game with a refreshingly simple premise: as the name implies you need to bend light beam towards its goal. The problem solving is open ended, so you won't just be clicking away in order to find a single solution: there are likely to be ways to solve each individual puzzle. It's a beautiful looking game, but don't let that fool you: it looks to offer a fairly stiff challenge, too.
These games were released between May 11 and 18 2020. Some online stores give us a small cut if you buy something through one of our links. Read our affiliate policy for more info.
