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 2025 games that are launching this year.
Serra de Deus
Steam page
Release: November 14
Developer: David Pateti
Serra de Deus might look like more PS1-era horror jank, but it’s actually a fascinating slice of life sim about operating a hot dog stand in a Rio de Janeiro favela. Protagonist David de Lima has returned to the city to take over said stand, and for a lot of Serra de Deus you’ll actually be, well, making hot dogs. And then, with the money earned, you’ll be decorating your house with new furniture. If this sounds like unpromising material to you, never fear, because soon enough David catches wind of a gnarly murder mystery that can’t easily be blamed on the usual assortment of gangsters. No, there’s something very weird afoot.
Hymer 2000
Steam page
Release: November 13
Developer: doBell
Hymer 2000 is a puzzle game where you’ll chat with an operating system called Hymer, who can react to your inputs in a way that kinda reminds me of Eliza. Discovering new keywords that can help more specifically prompt Hymer is a big part of the game, but so is finding new “pareidolic faces”: in other words, faces that appear accidentally in everyday objects. The objective is to understand Hymer and to shut it down. As far as fictional operating system games go, this is among the strangest and prettiest I’ve seen.
Goodnight Universe
Steam page
Release: November 12
Developers: Nice Dream
This first-person narrative game is played from the perspective of a six-month-old baby, but not just any lil’ terror: this one has psychic powers. Somehow an evil tech corp has cottoned onto your powers and wants to abduct you, but little do they know that a six-month-old baby with psychic powers should not be messed with. What results is a puzzle-laden adventure with some fascinating eye-tracking implementation that aims to simulate what it might be like to manipulate the world with your eyes and facial expressions.
Verho – Curse of Faces
Steam page
Release: November 10
Developer: Kasur Games
Here’s another modern take on the old King’s Field format, joining the likes of Lunacid, Labyrinth of the Demon King and Monomyth. It’s set in the typically bleak ‘n’ hostile world of Yariv, where the enemies move slow, the NPCs speak elliptically, and circle strafing is in vogue. Obviously this genre is starting to reach saturation point, but the early Steam reviews for Verho are “very positive” and the art style is as evocative in the way only old 3D games can be. There’s a demo, too.
Shard Squad
Steam page
Release: November 10
Developer: The Root Studios
Hot on the heels of Aethermancer comes another RPG blending roguelite trappings with Pokémon style creature collecting. Though Shard Squad has another trick up its sleeve: Vampire Survivors is also clearly an influence, so you’ll be using your “squad of elemental creatures” against hordes of opponents, with certain configurations of these creatures resulting in unique effects. Looks like a good time, especially on a handheld PC.
