For Father’s Day this year, I was gifted a gift card to Steam. I had the plan to purchase a remake of a beloved game many months away. Once the game released, the excitement had dwindled into nothing as I quickly realized that I didn’t need to play a shiny version of a game that I already think is pretty much perfect.

This remake wasn’t going to change that.

So instead, I saved the gift card until something caught my eye. Since then, many games have caught my eye. This $50 gift card was once going to be used for 71% of the price of the remake, difference made out of pocket. Instead, I turned that into five games, with only $3 out of pocket.

WRC Generations.

Nine Sols.

Hades.

Lords of The Fallen.

Mortal Kombat 11.

Over the span of a few months, that excitement-turned-malaise has shifted back to excitement again. I’m most looking forward to Lords of The Fallen. There’s just something about this team’s dedication to the souls-like formula that feels like they deserve the sales and attention from the masses. True reverence for Dark Souls is apparent when playing, but not to where it feels like a ripoff; instead, genuine inspiration and evolution seeps into the world. Some things they get right. Others are swings and a miss.

But that’s okay. We need creativity and risks in gaming. Playing it safe has never been exciting to me. I played the game for a bit a couple of years ago, but stopped. Earlier in 2025, they released a 2.0 version of the game that addressed a lot of the complaints many had. This dedication to updating the game and listening to the community is extremely welcome and I wanted to reward them with my wallet.

I hope to see the sequel get a lot of attention.