For critics who claim PC gamers rarely acquire games legally and are the descendants of the gun and rum-running privateers who once roamed the Caribbean, the quarterly counterpoint has returned in the form of Steam's Summer Sale and the Valve faithful have been further stocking their backlogs -- and supporting developers -- with games that will likely to go un-played.
The Steam Summer Sale, which kicked off on June 19, has been following its well-established format of delivering daily deals, flash sales and batches games that have been democratically decided upon.
If you've browsed any thread in which a Steam sale was the topic of conversation, you've likely seen the memes and GIFs of Valve Boss Gabe Newell being showered with a torrent of wallets from PC gamers. If you don't want Newell to return your wallet devoid of everything accept a few Steam trading cards, there are some steps you can take to maximize the value you get out of your purchases during the Steam Summer Sale.
Updating your Steam Wishlist helps you reinforce what games you intend to buy, although these sales are known for offering game so deeply discounted that it's almost intuitive to buy them. Wishlist notifications seem to have been disabled for this sale, which is likely to encourage consumers to keep checking the site, but an updated list makes for a much more manageable perusal of Steam store when using the company's mobile app.
Unique to Steam latest Summer sale is the introduction of teams, which
Every vote counts and taking part in the sale's community voting influences which four games will be next to receive a deeper discount. Every three votes a user makes generates a trading card, which can be accrued to craft a Summer Sale Badge and receive the XP, experience points, that come along with crafting it.
Wait for Flash Sales and the grand finale to find the best deals. Event the Daily deals fall into the Flash Sale bracket, receiving the deeper discounts that come along with inclusion in one of the eight-hour sales.
If you're happy with the price of a Daily Deal and want to support a developer who has found favor with you, then, by all means, fire when ready. If you're on the fence, remember: daily deals last 48 hours, as the move to the "Yesterday's Big Deals" panel after 24 hours - their prices stay the same.
If your wallet is still intact on the last day of the sale, you'll have an offer all of the sale's best discounts. While not every game will be featured in one of Steam's front-page sales, it's prudent to purchase back-page games when you know they'll be going off sale for a while.
