Free Stuff: The Thread

[Grey_Wolf_c]

I believe Gone Home, a puzzle/walking simulator is free in Humble until 3/5. It might require signing up to their free monthly emails or something, though.

Grey Wolf

[rooster707]

I believe Gone Home, a puzzle/walking simulator is free in Humble until 3/5. It might require signing up to their free monthly emails or something, though.

Grey Wolf

Just checked, none of that this time.

It's also a DRM-free download (as opposed to a Steam key), if that matters to anyone.

[Grey_Wolf_c]

Humble is offering a free copy of Age of Wonders 3 if you subscribe to their newsletter in the next couple of days.

https://www.humblebundle.com/store/age-of-wonders-iii

Yours,

Grey Wolf

[Wraith]

Possibly a non-qualifier, but someone might find it interesting - to celebrate their 3rd anniversary, Paradox are making Stellaris free to play on Steam until May 14th.

You don't keep the game forever, it's free for the weekend and then discounted after that if you want to buy it. There is a free ebook that you do keep though, if you sign up to the Paradox newsletter through your (free) forum account.

[Knaight]

Humble is offering a free copy of Age of Wonders 3 if you subscribe to their newsletter in the next couple of days.

https://www.humblebundle.com/store/age-of-wonders-iii

Yours,

Grey Wolf

You also get it if already subscribed. It is a steam key, and it doesn't come with the expansions, but it's still real solid.

[Man_Over_Game]

Trying out Sims 4. I just got a notification that the base game is free on Origin for the week so I'm checking it out it see if it's better, worse or a sidegrade from Sims 3.

Did confirm. Sims 4 is free to own until May 28.

[TaRix]

Guacamelee 1 (SuperTurboChampionshipEdition) is free on Steam for about 20ish hours from now! Great fun if you don't already have it.

[Man_Over_Game]

Guacamelee 1 (SuperTurboChampionshipEdition) is free on Steam for about 20ish hours from now! Great fun if you don't already have it.

Great game. It does support 4 player local CoOp, but...it can get really hectic.

[Jimorian]

Epic Games has shifted from a free game every 2 weeks to a new free game every week. Right now that game is City of Brass.

Become a daring thief in City of Brass, a first-person action adventure from senior BioShock developers.

Armed with scimitar and a versatile whip, you’ll lash and slash, bait and trap your way to the heart of an opulent, Arabian Nights-themed metropolis – or face certain death as time runs out.

https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-U...-of-brass/home
Until June 6th


On GOG, you have Obduction, a Myst-like puzzle adventure sci-fi game.

From Cyan, the indie studio that brought you Myst, comes a new sci-fi adventure.

As you walk beside the lake on a cloudy night, a curious, organic artifact falls from the starry sky and inexplicably, without asking permission, transports you across the universe. You’ve been abducted from your cozy existence and added into an alien landscape with pieces of Earth from unexpected times and places.

The strange worlds of Obduction reveal their secrets only as you explore, discover, coax, and consider their clues. As you bask in the otherworldly beauty and explore the enigmatic landscapes, remember that the choices you make will have substantial consequences. This is your story now.

Make it home.

https://www.gog.com/game/obduction
Until June 1, 1 PM UTC.

[deuterio12]

Epic Games has shifted from a free game every 2 weeks to a new free game every week.

I wonder whetever that's a sign their strategy is working (we're getting lots of players so if we release even more free games we'll get even more!) or a sign it's not working (number of players isn't increasing, maybe if we release even more free games we'll manage to lure them in!).

[Man_Over_Game]

I wonder whetever that's a sign their strategy is working (we're getting lots of players so if we release even more free games we'll get even more!) or a sign it's not working (number of players isn't increasing, maybe if we release even more free games we'll manage to lure them in!).

Probably more of column B. They have to do something to be competitive against Steam. People won't change unless there's a reason to, and, well, Steam is a thing because there's profit in allowing people to be comfortable and lazy.

Steam lets people be lazy, and you're trying to convince people to put in work so that they can be lazy on your system instead. There's gotta be a good incentive for it.


People are so vehemently against it, though, that a few months back, someone threatened the Borderlands 3 lead designer just because it's being initially released on Epic. People are willing to go far to maintain their comfort levels.

[Jimorian]

This week's Epic Games freebie is Kingdom: New Lands.

How long will you last?

Be brave, ruler, and fight to the bitter end,
lest these New Lands conquer you instead.

Kingdom is a minimalistic micro strategy game with modern retro aesthetics and an ambient soundtrack. Players take control of a monarch struggling to build their kingdom from nothing by exploring the world, recruit loyal subjects and defend from the nightly Greed attacks.

https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-U...new-lands/home
Until the 13th

[Man_Over_Game]

There is a free DLC for Borderlands 2. Some sources seem to say that it's temporarily free until next month, so pick it up. I expect it will be free indefinitely, but I'd still be on the safe side.

On a similar topic, all Borderlands games are on some ludicrous deals, up to 90% off. The Handsome Collection is like $6 right now.

[OutOfThyme]

There is a free DLC for Borderlands 2. Some sources seem to say that it's temporarily free until next month, so pick it up. I expect it will be free indefinitely, but I'd still be on the safe side.

On a similar topic, all Borderlands games are on some ludicrous deals, up to 90% off. The Handsome Collection is like $6 right now.

It's not going to be free indefinitely. It's free until July 8 at 06:59:59 UTC (11:59:59 PDT), according to the official site.

[Jimorian]

Next up on Epic: Enter the Gungeon

Bullet, Guns, & Puns

Enter the Gungeon is a bullet hell dungeon crawler following a band of misfits seeking to shoot, loot, dodge roll and table-flip their way to personal absolution by reaching the legendary Gungeon’s ultimate treasure: the gun that can kill the past. Select a hero (or team up in co-op) and battle your way to the bottom of the Gungeon by surviving a challenging and evolving series of floors filled with the dangerously adorable Gundead and fearsome Gungeon bosses armed to the teeth. Gather precious loot, discover hidden secrets, and chat with opportunistic merchants and shopkeepers to purchase powerful items to gain an edge.

https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-U...e-gungeon/home
Until the 20th

And on GOG: Toonstruck (1996)

Drew Blanc is a cartoon animator and the original creator of the Fluffy Fluffy Bun Bun Show.. Drew's boss, Sam Schmaltz (played by Ben Stein), sets him the task of designing more bunnies to co-star in the Fluffy Fluffy Bun Bun Show by the next morning. However, the depressed animator soon nods off, suffering from acute artist's block. He wakes early the next morning to inexplicably find his television switched on, announcing the Fluffy Fluffy Bun Bun Show. Suddenly, Drew is mysteriously drawn into the television screen and transported to an idyllic two-dimensional cartoon world populated by his own creations, among many other cartoon characters.

To get home, you'll need to unravel the secrets of these loony lands before they unravel you permanently. Outsmart demented clowns, shock the socks off cross-dressing livestock, and match wits with a diabolical Count named Nefarious. It's a mind-reeling toonatopia that'll have you acting so depraved you might even shock yourself. Send someone an exploding turkey. Watch Spike the Clown torture balloon animals. If you've got any energy left after those escapades then try and prevent an all-out war between the cartoon forces of good and evil. Word to the wise: BETTER PACK AN ANVIL!

https://www.gog.com/game/toonstruck
Until the 17th? Looks like the giveaway is part of GoG's sale right now.

[Keltest]

Probably more of column B. They have to do something to be competitive against Steam. People won't change unless there's a reason to, and, well, Steam is a thing because there's profit in allowing people to be comfortable and lazy.

Steam lets people be lazy, and you're trying to convince people to put in work so that they can be lazy on your system instead. There's gotta be a good incentive for it.


People are so vehemently against it, though, that a few months back, someone threatened the Borderlands 3 lead designer just because it's being initially released on Epic. People are willing to go far to maintain their comfort levels.

Its not just that people are lazy, the Epic Game Store is an objectively bad service, especially compared to Steam. It has very few features and, perhaps most importantly, is prone to being hacked for credit card data every so often, which is no Bueno. If they want people to switch to their service, they should be spending money on improving their service so it actually does what people want, not try to buy their way into the market.

[KillianHawkeye]

All these new game platforms are just like these new video streaming services. Nobody wants to switch from Netflix or Hulu to a worse platform (and pay more money when they're already paying for Netflix/Hulu). I love Star Trek, but I'm not signing up for CBS' stupid streaming platform.

It's not about being lazy, it's just not something that's worth doing at all.

[Jimorian]

Epic's Game of the Week: Rebel Galaxy

Rebel Galaxy

Rebel Galaxy is a game of action-packed combat, exploration, discovery, trade, and “negotiation” with the outlandish denizens at the edge of the known universe.

You’ll battle pirates, explore anomalies, befriend aliens, scavenge battle wreckage, mine asteroids, and discover artifacts. Choose your path as a roguish do-gooder, crafty space-trader or power-hungry privateer in this swashbuckling space adventure.

https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-U...el-galaxy/home
Until June 27th.
This is a fun one that I have played already. And what they don't tell you in the blurb is how amazing the soundtrack is for this game. Weirdly for a far future space game, the music is all blues/rock based stuff from some great artists in the genre, but it really fits the gritty mood of the game and play!
Here's a link to the soundtrack playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBAY...YFqBnFn2myQwRw

On Steam for another 15 hours as of this post: Kabounce.

Kabounce™ - multiplayer pinball sport, you are the ball!

Take complete control of the ball and reach ridiculous speeds with intuitive momentum and rhythm based movement in this re-imagining of pinball. Rack up sweet combos and points by hitting bumper pins and perform spinning skill moves in short, 5 minute, matches. Eliminate opposing players to steal their hard-earned points and score to win! Up to 8 players online, 4 vs 4.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/431930/Kabounce/
Until June 24th, 10am Pacific.

[Man_Over_Game]

Damn, missed the one about Kabounce. To make sure that everyone gets notification (or at least, can see there's a new post on the site), could we make a habit to make separate posts instead of editing a current one when it comes to adding new entries?

[Jimorian]

I'm a little late on this one, but from Epic Games: Last Day of June

Join Carl and June on what begins as a magical outing to their favorite spot, and try to unlock the sequence of events that could save the day – and June’s life – in this cinematic experience that will compel you to ask yourself: “What would I do to save the one I love?”

Last Day of June is an interactive tale about love and loss, from an all-star team of creators.

https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-U...y-of-june/home
Until July 4th

And good point about the edit and not seeing the thread light up, but there's a rule in the forum against posting multiple times to a thread without an intermediate reply, so I was playing it safe. This would have to be something approved by a mod as an exception for this thread.

[Edit: and looking at the moderator comment on the original post, I see that double posting has been approved, so will do so in the future.]

[Jimorian]

On Epic Games this week: Overcooked

Overcooked is a chaotic couch co-op cooking game for one to four players. Working as a team, you and your fellow chefs must prepare, cook and serve up a variety of tasty orders before the baying customers storm out in a huff. Sharpen your knives and dust off your chef’s whites, there isn’t mushroom for error and the steaks are high in these crazy kitchens!

The Onion Kingdom is in danger and only the finest cooking can save it! In Overcooked players must journey through a variety of cruel and unusual kitchens on their quest to become master chefs capable of conquering an ancient edible evil which plagues the land.

https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-U...vercooked/home
Until July 11th

[Man_Over_Game]

On Epic Games this week: Overcooked

https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-U...vercooked/home
Until July 11th

Hell yeah. I've heard good things about that game, and that it's pretty friggin' hard.

[Knaight]

It's excellent, though Overcooked 2 pretty much makes it obsolete. It's also a game that basically needs to be played multiplayer.

[Resileaf]

On Steam, get Age of Wonders 3 for free (DLC not included) before next weekend.

[deuterio12]

Torchlight is this week's epic store free game.

[Grey_Wolf_c]

Moonlighter & This War of Mine are this week's free games in Epic. At current acceleration rate (from 1 free game every two weeks, to a free game every week, to two free games a week), I expect the Epic store to close down as a completely unviable business in a few months.

However, as in the last couple of games, the mac version is "unsupported" even when one exists, and This War of Mine is simply "unavailable", so I'm not sure exactly what I just "got". Probably, on balance, I got nothing but a bad customer experience, which is the Epic store's primary purpose, it seems.

Grey Wolf

[Vinyadan]

So, this week Epic has Alan Wake and For Honor.

[Sian]

got a mystery bag with a number of games where i already had one of them, first one grabbing it gets it

Tropico 4: KELHB-PYWYE-XQ2HW

[deuterio12]

Celeste and Inside free on epic store this week, interesting since they're relatively new titles.

[Jimorian]

Free from Humble Bundle, Endless Space - Collection (sign up for newsletter required). 1 1/2 days from the time of this post remaining.

Also from Epic this week, Lovecraftian game, Conarium.