Sometimes some of the best games and experiences you’ll play will often be titles that aren’t $60 or $70 dollars. Sometimes the best games are in that $20 to $30 sweet spot range. These games aren’t always the triple-A massive titles and not exactly the super small indie games, but something in between.
With all that being said, I’m Caleb from Cubold Gaming, and here is our list of the best Steam Games that you can get right now for under $30!
Deep Rock Galactic
Deep Rock Galactic is a mining game where you go into otherworldly caves and mine materials with either friends or by yourself. Not only are you mining for important materials, but you also need to fight off hordes of alien bug monsters too.
The entire environment is destructible and the caves are always unique and fun to play with because they are procedurally generated. The art style and feel of the game is really unlike any other and it just gives you such an exciting feeling to explore and uncover these worlds you go to.
I will say that if you are thinking about getting this game, I highly recommend getting it with a friend or a few friends because the experience is much more enjoyable with friends, although you can still have a lot of fun playing it solo.
There are different classes to choose from, each of which has its own set of tools and abilities that will help you traverse all the different caves you go into. Whether you are a runner gunner type or maybe just someone who wants to focus on drilling and mining materials, the variety of different classes will satisfy your playstyle.
The best way I can describe the game is just that it is pure fun, especially with friends. You’ll meet an incredible community and the game has a pretty much unlimited amount of playtime. Deep Rock Galactic is more than worth the cost.
Stray
Stray is one of those games and experiences that you can really only know how it truly is if you play the game. The weird thing is that I went into playing this game thinking that it would be some sort of platformer game but I was completely wrong.
The game has such an involved story with characters a really heavy and thought-provoking story. I can’t really go too much into it because I don’t want to spoil anything but it’s definitely way deeper than what it looks like from the outside.
It’s kind of a weird thing, you wouldn’t think a game where you play a stray cat would be so good but the game is actually such a surprisingly enjoyable and actually mind-blowing experience. The only downside to the game is that you won’t be getting hours and hours of gameplay for the $30 you are spending, but you’ll be getting around 4-8 hours depending on how much exploring you’ll do, but honestly, that didn’t bother me at all.
The setting is a dark city scene and the puzzles and the way they build out the world are just genius honestly. It’s such a great gameplay style and that’s a bit surprising because you would think that things would be pretty straightforward playing as a cat, but they really impressed with the gameplay and world-building.
The game was action-packed, deep, and involved and it is honestly one of the best games that I have played in a good while. So if you are looking for a single-player experience, I 100 percent recommend Stray.
Satisfactory
Satisfactory has to be one of the most intricate and advanced survival games that I’ve played. The game has so many things you can create and build but it does a great job of making it relatively easy to learn and build up to those points.
It’s set on an alien planet and your goal is to just basically expand and industrialize in any area you possibly can. It’s not your typical survival game where you mine with a pickaxe for the whole game but rather your goal is to streamline that task and any other task and build massively automated systems to handle the mining for you.
It’s actually really cool when you get these massive systems into place. Just giant conveyor belts and processing sectors, it’s one of the more satisfying elements when you finally get some factories set up and everything is automated for you.
There are also enemies in the game, animal creatures that you need to fend off but the combat kinda takes a back seat in the game, although I felt I needed to mention that it's there.
The game also looks absolutely incredible. It’s super vibrant and colorful and it’s exciting exploring the alien planet the game is especially fun if you get some friends to play with.
The game is pretty easy to pick up and play but if you want to get into some of the really complicated and intricate elements of the game, just be prepared because it has a pretty big learning curve, but it’s definitely not impossible to get to that point, and the game does a good job of guiding you through but you’ll just need to put some time in.
It’s a super solid game and for the survival game enthusiasts out there, this is yet another game to look into adding to your Steam library.
PowerWash Simulator
PowerWash Simulator kind of took Steam by storm when it was first released and it still is a bit of a surprise in the gaming community even now. To think that people would spend hours upon hours cleaning things virtually seems kind of unrealistic, but this game makes it so enjoyable that playing the game for hours at a time isn’t far-fetched at all.
You play as a contractor that does various jobs with your power washer. I mean, that really sums up the game but there are obviously plenty of upgrades and things you can buy with the money that you make. You can get better power washers, different nozzles, and soaps, oh and you can also play the game with friends.
You aren’t only cleaning the sides of houses too, you can clean entire parks, subway systems, cars, and other giant projects. The game really doesn’t get stale at all and it’s probably one of the most relaxing games I’ve ever played.
Even if you don’t play this every time you log onto your computer, this game is really nice to have in your Steam library because it’s nice to have a game to come back to that’s really there for you to sit back and relax while playing.
Risk of Rain 2
Risk of Rain 2 is an action roguelike that is dangerously addicting. My friends and I played this game for an unreal amount of hours and still do to this day, but especially when we first got into the game, we played it nonstop.
The game features tons of different unlockable characters to play with a variety of skills and playstyles. Some characters are melee and close range focused and some are snipers or magic types, there really is something for everyone there, and mostly all of the characters are pretty usable.
The way the game plays is that you start out in an easy world setting, and you can spend as much or as little time in each world, so long as you find the portal for the way out. As time goes on though, regardless if you are on the first world or 4 worlds in, the difficulty level rises and becomes increasingly hard.
So as you progress from world to world and get more equipment and level up, the enemies get harder and harder. You also have an insane amount of items and equipment that you can purchase or loot in the game.
There is so much to this game that I could talk about it for hours but basically, if you like roguelike games and you want something that's going to give you hours and hours of gameplay, Risk of rain 2 is definitely a game you should look into.
Hades
Hades is regarded as one of the best Rogue-like games of all time and for good reason. The graphics, the art style, the gameplay, the voice acting, everything about this game is just absolutely top tier and is unparalleled.
You play as hades son trying to escape the underworld and you fight your way through hordes of creatures and giant bosses. You meet all kinds of cool characters and man the voice acting is just so good in the game. It’s just such a polished and unique experience.
It’s also a lot different than most other Rogue-likes because it has a huge narrative and story to the game that you kind of explore in a different way than you would a normal linear game.
The combat in the game is also pretty much unmatched. You get to upgrade in so many ways and use a variety of different weapons, and it feels just so satisfying. Also, the soundtrack is just perfect. The music is pure genius and I know I sound like I am just gushing over this game but it’s honestly for good reason.
Even if you aren’t the biggest fan of Rogue-like games or you don’t play them all that much, Hades offers so much more with the story, art style, gameplay, and overall quality of the game that I recommend this game to anyone and everyone.
Subnautica
Although I would expect most everyone to know what Subnautica is, I really think it deserved a spot on this list because of how good the game is. This game is among the best survival games out there and it’s both relaxing and terrifying at the same time.
On the off chance you don’t know, the game starts with your crash landing on an alien planet and you need to mine and collect materials to be able to build your base and survive. There is also a story to the game and a fair amount of mystery involved too so it really keeps things interesting.
Although you start out with nothing and basically no direction, later on, you get into the base building and the gameplay overall is great but where this game really shines is when you go out and explore the vast ocean. I mentioned before that the game can be terrifying and that is no joke.
Exploring the deep and dark depths of the ocean not knowing what monsters and creatures could be beneath you is just a terrifying feeling, especially when the monsters and creatures appear out of nowhere.
If you are one that likes survival games and haven’t tried Subnautica yet, it’s kind of a must to try and once you try it, you’ll most likely get hooked.
The Talos Principle
If you enjoyed the Portal games and generally enjoy puzzle experiences, The Talos Principle is going to be a game you’ll really want to look into. It’s a first-person puzzle game set in this odd but intriguing ancient world landscape with futuristic technology all around you.
The game features over 120 different puzzles, oh and the game isn’t linear either, which is a huge plus in my book. So you can really just go at your own pace and solve the puzzles that you want to solve.
Now there is kind of a story to the game but it’s not anything too in your face, it’s kind of a background thing if you want to explore that, but the main pull of the game is the amazing puzzles and the gameplay.
The game is also incredibly relaxing and low-key, and of course, the puzzles are top-notch here and it’s basically on par with the type of quality and puzzle level of something like the Portal games.
Even if you aren’t a huge puzzle game person, The Talos Principle is still such a good game that I would recommend this to anyone.
