Steam Autumn Sale 2023: best strategy games to grab at a discount

• Off by 30%.
• Expansion Pass off by 18%.
• Find Age of Wonders 4 on Steam.

Age of Wonders 4 is probably my personal favorite strategy game of 2023, so a 30% discount in its launch year is a sweet deal. For anyone in possession of the base game already – or if you’re really sure that you’re going to love the game once you’ve purchased it – the Expansion Pass is an easy recommendation as well. Both Dragon Dawn and Empires & Ashes have been brilliant additions to the title. This is turn-based strategy at its finest.

• Off by 34%.
• Find Jagged Alliance 3 on Steam.

Speaking of bloody fantastic turn-based games discounted in their launch year: Jagged Alliance 3 is an amazing return to form for the turn-based tactical series full of cheesy action movie wit. Hire your dream team of mercenaries and cause havoc or protect innocents by meddling in a country’s ongoing civil war – those diamond mines are basically free real estate now! A very fun mix of XCOM and Mount & Blade.

• Off by 70%.
• Premium Edition off by 61%.
• Find Jurassic World Evolution 2 on Steam.

Tell me you don’t love dinosaurs and I’ll call you a liar. Dinosaurs are awesome and Frontier’s Jurassic World Evolution 2 makes them look as beautiful and imposing as the best movies. We’re even seeing some feathered species coming to the game now, so science is slowly catching up with the popular depiction of the magnificent beasts. If you’re looking to pick up content expansions for the game, the Premium Edition is a great deal.

• Off by 50%.
• Collection Bundle off by 41%.
• Find Total War: Warhammer 3 on Steam.

It’s been a rollercoaster of a year for Total War: Warhammer 3. The Forge of the Chaos Dwarfs was an excellent piece of DLC beloved by fans, but then controversial price hikes and a general unhappiness with a lack of frequent patches led to a shitstorm par excellence, which is why the game’s rating dropped so hard. But it’s still a very good game, especially paired with the best Total War: Warhammer 3 mods, which are getting more and more impressive.

• Off by 90%.
• Anthology Bundle off by 88%.
• Find Civilization 6 on Steam.

Oh, look: Civilization 6 is off by 90% again! I write this every time, but it’s an incredible pick-up. I’d also like to highlight the Anthology Bundle this time around, which contains the expansions and a boatload of DLC for the game, which as of 2023 has been completely finished – unless Firaxis is throwing another surprising wave of additional leaders our way. Since Civilization 7 is officially in development now, though, that seems rather unlikely.

• Off by 67%
• Find Marvel’s Midnight Suns on Steam.

Another fun Firaxis game, which didn’t quite hit the economical mark the developer wanted it to hit. Mixing XCOM with card game aspects, Marvel’s Midnight Suns is perhaps not entirely what the studio’s fan base or Marvel fans expected, but it’s certainly worth a try: It’s a well-executed, good-looking, and engaging title for any tactically-minded superhero fan.

• Off by 70%.
• Starter Pack Bundle off by 62%.
• Find Stellaris on Steam.

If you look up at the night sky regularly, admiring the stars, and think “Mine!” Stellaris is what you need in your life: Create your very own species from a near endless pool of possibilities, and role-play it in whichever way you want – in Stellaris, you can become the galaxy’s savior as well as its doom. Solve ancient mysteries, master the arts of war and diplomacy, and expand your empire’s boundaries to acquire untold riches. Stellaris is the ultimate space 4X grand strategy.

Similar deals exist for Hearts of Iron 4 and Europa Universalis 4, if those settings are more your thing.

• Off by 50%.
• Find Age of Empires 4 on Steam.

It took a while, but Age of Empires 4 is a very good real-time strategy game now that’s worth a look if you’re a fan of the genre. Its start was a bit of a mixed bag, but Relic and World’s Edge definitely gave it the necessary attention to turn things around. Since launch, key features and even two free civilizations were added to the title, and only recently its first expansion, The Sultans Ascend, was released, which brought a ton of new content including a new campaign to the game.

• Off by 50%.
• Chapter 2 off by 36%.
• Find Crusader Kings 3 on Steam.

Speaking of sultans and empires: Paradox has been pushing out some amazing Crusader Kings 3 expansions this year, including the fantastic Tours & Tournaments. If you’ve been holding out from switching from CK2 to CK3 due to a lack of content, the time might be coming to think that through again – especially as both the base game and the Chapter 2 Pass with all of 2023’s DLC are discounted.

• Off by 35%.
• Find Against the Storm on Steam.

Against the Storm is getting its full 1.0 release this December, but you can already pick up and play in Early Access now – and you should, because this mix of city-builder and roguelike is the best indie strategy title this year. From aesthetics to mechanics, Eremite Games knocked it out of the park with this time eater.

• Off by 75%.
• Premium Edition Bundle off by 73%.
• Find Humankind on Steam.

A different kind of historical 4X than Civilization, Humankind is worth a look for genre fans. You don’t just pick one leader or civilization in this title, but have the option of changing your culture with every passing age, adapting to what’s going on in the world as you play. While not turning out to be the Civ-killer some people hyped it up to be, it’s a fun one to sink your teeth into.

• Off by 75%.
• Definitive Edition Bundle off by 67%.
• Find Endless Space 2 on Steam.

Another one from Amplitude: Endless Space 2 doesn’t quite have the scale and freedom of a Stellaris, but Endless Space is a neatly designed space 4X with lots of depth and fun factions. And for fantasy fans of the gameplay style, the Endless Legend Definitive Edition Bundle has a huge discount to show for itself as well.

• Off by 20%.
• Find Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew on Steam.

Released in 2023, Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew is a very good real-time stealth tactics game. And it features undead pirates, so what more do you want? No, it’s seriously a brilliant genre entry by Mimimi Games, featuring rock-solid mechanics, an impeccable theme, and a really good-looking art style.

• Off by 20%.
• Find The Lamplighter’s League on Steam.

All the same can be said for The Lamplighters League, a turn-based tactical game made by Harebrained Schemes, the developer of BattleTech. Combining an Indiana Jones-style tone, solid game mechanics, and really cool characters, The Lamplighters League is for those looking for a more relaxed than complicated experience.

• Off by 75%.
• Find Anno 1800 on Steam.

For city-builder fans with a hand for logistics, Anno 1800 is still the go-to address. Ubisoft Mainz has done some very interesting things with the series in this one, especially when it comes to long-term content production – and sometimes those developments can get a bit wild, like with the title’s Cthulhu-themed expansion. Yeah, that’s a thing – and, somehow, it works.