Steam’s Going Rogue sale is full of great time sinks

Valve’s new PC game promo covers roguelikes, roguelites, soulslikes, and metroidvanias

Valve is hosting a big Going Rogue sale on Steam this week, and if you’re into roguelike games, roguelite games, and everything in between, there are deals to check out by May 9.

Curiously, Steam’s digital “festival” is also highlighting a whole bunch of games that were inspired by the Souls, Metroid, and Castlevania series, so the lines are even more blurred than normal. Valve broke down the genre differences in an explainer video, and as someone who tries not to get cranky about ever-shifting game genres, I’ll stay out of it.

The main link: “They’re all rooted in elements of RPG fantasy or action, and persistence means success.” That sums up a lot of my favorite video games, especially lately.

Whether or not you agree with the organizers’ exact terminology, it’s still a cute, well-meaning, personable video, and I hope Valve does more of these in the future.

One more caveat: not every Going Rogue game is on sale, so this spotlight is about getting Steam users’ attention focused on cool games they might’ve missed.

The best of the best

Speaking of, it’s neat to see the “top-rated” list, which spans Dead Cells, Hades, The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, Slay the Spire, Rogue Legacy 2, Risk of Rain 2, and even Vampire Survivors. I’ve been meaning to check out that last one — it’s three bucks. What am I waiting for???

You really can’t go wrong with any of those well-reviewed picks. I’d also strongly recommend Death’s Door for $11.99 — it’s suitable for a really wide audience, and I hope it gets the legacy it deserves. What an awesome game; I loved 100%ing it.

As for me, I’ve got a lot more Rogue Legacy 2 grinding ahead of me. In case you missed it, the 1.0 version is out and it’s fantastic. And better yet, it’s 20 percent off right now.