Plenty of hot new PC games have arrived recently, so those who are looking for something to play should not be short on options. Here are some of the top games released in the past few weeks.
BioShock Infinite
Heralded as a triumph by many critics, BioShock Infinite marks a return to stellar form for the series after the middling experience that was offered by BioShock 2.
As well as being one of the top charting PC games at the moment, it lives up to the hype with a blend of frenetic gameplay and engaging, intelligent storytelling that you will want to discuss with your mates at length.
BioShock Infinite is brave enough to tackle themes such as racism and religion without doing so in a clumsy way. It also stays relatively faithful to the kind of gameplay seen in earlier entries in the series, although this time the player can acquire powers known as Vigours rather than Plasmids for some supernatural carnage.
Defiance
The MMORPG market has been dominated by World of Warcraft for almost a decade, with many potential rivals soon kicked to the kerb by Blizzard’s all-powerful series. The best way to find success is to do something different, which is exactly the aim of Defiance.
While Defiance has a lot of the trappings of MMORPGs, such as PvP play and loot-based questing, it is all played out in a post-apocalyptic world with the mechanics of a third person action shooter bolted on for good measure.
Defiance feels a little like Borderlands, but with the opportunity to take part in major missions with much larger groups. There are upgradable vehicles to go with a wide variety of weapons and it is even tied in with a TV show of the same name for some meta-narrative fun.
Cities in Motion 2
There was quite a furore surrounding the release of EA’s Sim City reboot earlier in the year, so fans of town planning who do not want to have to deal with an always-on connection to Origin might find Cities in Motion 2 a welcome change of pace.
As the name suggests this game is focused on transport infrastructures and tasks the player with catering to the needs of a variety of dynamically realised urban centres.
This sequel to the popular original includes new features such as co-op multiplayer and little evolutionary additions such as bus lanes to help keep it feeling fresh.
Lords of Football
There are plenty of games that let you experience the beautiful game on the pitch, but Lords of Football takes a more holistic approach, allowing you to experience the entire lifestyle of players and managers.
You need to manage the lives of multiple footballers, steering them through training and also the encounters they have off the pitch to make sure they are match fit and in the zone.
This kind of depth is rarely seen in football games and it should be a good choice for anyone who likes to play God.
Justin Collins is a freelance games journalist who writes for a number of sites about the top charting PC games as well as the latest console releases.