They Are Billions
Steam Page
Released: December 13
Developer: Numantian Games
Publisher: Numantian Games
Price: $24.99
They Are Billions is an isometric “steampunk” strategy game about building colonies and defending them on a post-apocalyptic planet. What are you defending against? Not steampunk fashionistas (though they’re arguably our greatest current threat, here in the real world), but instead “billions of infected” who appear to have been left in a terrible – and volatile – state in this post-apocalypse. The game is “real time with pause” and mixes elements of building with combat, though you’ll be protecting your colony against disease and infection as well. It’s in Early Access at the moment, but has already gained a “very positive” rating on Steam based on nearly a thousand reviews.
Stationeers
Steam Page
Released: December 13
Developer: Numantian Games
Publisher: Numantian Games
Price: $24.99
An Early Access title by Dean Hall – creator of DayZ – about building space stations. You can build them solo or cooperatively, and all signs point to it requiring the use of your brain: a dealbreaker for some (including me). “Inspired by the beloved Space Station 13, complex atmospheric, electrical, manufacturing, medical, agriculture, and gravitational systems require your thought and management at all times.” The game will be in Early Access for “at least a year” according to the Steam page, and its right at the beginning of its EA stage, but its already got a “very positive” rating based on 200-odd reviews, so there’s probably fun to be had with it right now. Whatever the case, this looks like a complex one for fans of intense simulations, so proceed with caution.
Train Station Simulator
Steam Page
Released: December 14
Developer: Appliks Apps Studios
Publisher: Appliks Apps Studios
Price: $12.99
If a milder mannered sim is what you’re after, Train Station Simulator is exactly what the title suggests. If you ever played Transport Tycoon back in the ‘90s, you’ve probably got a lingering compulsion to oversee public transportation, and this lets you not only build a train station but to furnish and operate it. Personally, I love trains and train stations, and the thought of creating one with the best cafes and toilets and with as few ticket cops as possible is a dream. This is in Early Access, with the final release expected in Q4 next year.
Rumu
Steam Page
Released: December 13
Developer: Robot House
Publisher: Hammerfall Publishing
Price: $19.99
Rumu is an isometric point-and-click adventure set in a futuristic “smart home”, which you navigate as the nominal vacuum cleaner Rumu. Yes, you play as a vacuum cleaner, but it’s a smart one. “When something draws you away from your home maintenance duties and into the hidden passageways and long forgotten rooms of the house, you’ll be faced with challenging moral dilemmas forcing you beyond your programming to uncover the truth about the love and loss of your elusive family,” reads the description. I spoke to one of the artists at Robot House in October about the game, give it a read over here.
Tally Ho
Steam Page
Released: December 15
Developer: Choice of Games
Publisher: Choice of Games
Price: $6.99
Tally Ho is a comedy text adventure set in England during the 1920s about being the valet or lady’s maid to bumbling employer Rory Wintermind. With over 600,000 words, the game is all about choice and consequence, so you’ll have to think hard before you decide whether to, for example, "help Rory sort out their love life, or sabotage it utterly”. To be honest, I’ve always dreamed of sabotaging the rich under the guise of being under their employ, so I’ll be playing this renegade.
These games were released between 12/12-12/18. The first page of this list is updated every Sunday and previous weeks are archived on the following pages. Some online stores give us a small cut if you buy something through one of our links. Read our affiliate policy for more info.
