Actually a pretty good selection for this month in Humble Choice with an overall set of pretty great looking games. So here's what's in it and the expected compatibility for Steam Deck and Desktop Linux.
This is the monthly bundle that you can subscribe to allowing you to claim all of the games included each month with a fresh set, and it also gives you a Humble Store discount (bigger discount up to 20% if you stay subscribed to it for longer). Below I will note each game you can get included plus the Steam Deck rating, any ProtonDB rating if there is one (or if it has Native Linux support) and each is a Steam link if you need more info first.
The games included are:
The Callisto Protocol - Deck Verified / ProtonDB Platinum
In this narrative-driven, third-person survival horror game set 300 years in the future, the player will take on the role of Jacob Lee – a victim of fate thrown into Black Iron Prison, a maximum-security penitentiary located on Jupiter's moon, Callisto.
Victoria 3 - Deck Playable / Native Linux
Paradox Development Studio invites you to build your ideal society in the tumult of the exciting and transformative 19th century. Balance the competing interests in your society and earn your place in the sun in Victoria 3.
HUMANKIND (Definitive Edition) - Deck Playable / ProtonDB Gold
Rewrite history by shaping a civilization as unique as you are. Combine 60 cultures from the Ancient Era to the Modern Age to lead your empire to victory. Build thriving cities, outsmart rivals in epic battles, spread your influence and leave your mark on HUMANKIND.
Fashion Police Squad - Deck Playable / ProtonDB Platinum
Even at this moment, our fashionable city is under assault. Baggy pants, dull suits, sightings of socks with sandals. A message needs to be sent, and it needs to be sent in style... Time to serve some good ol' Fashion Justice!
Terraformers - Deck Verified / Native Linux
Terraform Mars in this turn-based colony builder and resource management game with roguelike elements. Explore the planet, develop spectacular cities, spread life and turn the Red Planet into a green one!
Symphony of War: The Nephilim Saga - Deck Verified / ProtonDB Platinum
Enter Tahnra, a land savaged by war. You, a fresh academy graduate with humble beginnings, will grow to lead a grand army against a corrupt adversary. Gather heroes, form bonds, and lead your force in turn-based battles. Make use of tactics, terrain, morale and more to bring peace to the land!
Coromon - Deck Verified / ProtonDB Gold
Coromon is a modern take on the classic monster-taming genre. Tame Coromon and explore a vast world filled with thrilling turn-based battles, brain-twisting puzzles, and a mysterious threat to the world awaiting defeat. Nobody said being a Battle Researcher was easy!
The Excavation of Hob's Barrow - Deck Verified / Native Linux
The Excavation of Hob's Barrow is a folk horror narrative-driven adventure. Explore the isolated moors of rural Victorian England as you uncover the mysteries of Hob's Barrow. The answers lie in the soil...
Check out Humble Choice for more.
I do find one thing rather gratifying--so, like, there's this mechanic of how happy the colonizers are with things. And the game does "rising expectations" where over time, the amount of "support" you need to have increases, fairly steeply. And depending, all the little bonuses you can create, entertainment centre kind of things and tourist attractions and so forth, probably aren't going to be enough. But when you do various things that make Mars a bit more terraformed, it makes the whole population happier, giving you a massive ongoing bonus. So if you're doing a decent job at that stuff, you'll be getting the bad news that "rising expectations" are going to put you in deep, but then you bump up the heat level and the atmosphere level, plant a forest, and the penalty gets totally wiped out and you're golden again.
It is nice of them to bundle the strategy games on the same month. Both for those skipping, and for those looking for them.
Quoting: Purple Library GuyAmong those, I've just been playing Terraformers. It's pretty decent. The learning curve isn't bad, and it does have a fair dose of that "just one more turn" feel. I'm not sure how much mastery it really takes, though. After only a few playthroughs I'm feeling like I pretty much get it.
I do find one thing rather gratifying--so, like, there's this mechanic of how happy the colonizers are with things. And the game does "rising expectations" where over time, the amount of "support" you need to have increases, fairly steeply. And depending, all the little bonuses you can create, entertainment centre kind of things and tourist attractions and so forth, probably aren't going to be enough. But when you do various things that make Mars a bit more terraformed, it makes the whole population happier, giving you a massive ongoing bonus. So if you're doing a decent job at that stuff, you'll be getting the bad news that "rising expectations" are going to put you in deep, but then you bump up the heat level and the atmosphere level, plant a forest, and the penalty gets totally wiped out and you're golden again.
I have had the game even before the bundle and for me it it hold up for total 6 hours, which was time it took for one playthrough. Playing the prelude might have made the game feel bit less fresh.
Game feels bit like simplified version of Terraforming Mars, though having the board game feel and being about terraforming Mars might have something to do with it.
Maybe not too different but wish they'd include the best version.
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