If you’ve taken the dive into PC gaming, Steam will no doubt be your first stop. These are the games you should boot up first.
Key Takeaways
- Steam is the ultimate place to find PC games, offering a vast library that caters to all preferences and interests.
- First-time PC gamers can ease into the experience with games like Portal, Hades, and Disco Elysium.
- Genres like farming sims in Stardew Valley and roleplaying adventures in Baldur's Gate 3 offer diverse gaming experiences for beginners.
Whether you're new to gaming or are jumping ship from consoles, or are just adding PC gaming to your life, you already know Steam is the place to be. There are other PC storefronts to choose from, but unless you're looking for a specific game exclusive to one of those, Steam is the one-stop shop for all the games you could ask for. In fact, hundreds of games are added every week now. If you're just joining the party now, you have hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of games at your fingertips fighting for your attention.
PC gaming can be intimidating, especially for newcomers. There are just so many games that you could spend hours scrolling through the lists trying to decide which you should invest your hard-earned cash. And then there are the free games that only ask for your time on top of that. As a more seasoned PC gamer, let me guide you to my personal picks for the first games you should play on Steam to get the best experience.
1 Portal
Your first steps in first-person
Portal
$10 at Steam
Getting to grips with playing games from a first-person perspective and using a mouse and keyboard can be extremely hard for newcomers. There absolutely is a learning curve and a "getting your sea legs" process that those of us who have been gaming for decades can easily forget. That's a big reason why many people who are shown fast-paced shooters first bounce off them so hard.
Portal is a perfect introduction to playing all first-person games. There is almost no hazard that you need fast reactions to deal with, and the puzzles all challenge you to develop your special awareness and sense of place in 3D environments. It won't make you a nFPS pro, but will put you on the right track to start tackling more action-heavy shooters in the future if you click with it.
2 Hades
Devilish roguelike
Hades
$25 at Steam
The roguelike and roguelite generes are almost as notorious for their difficulty as Souls games. Whether or not that's true will depend on the game, and Hades is by no means an easy game, but it is the most appealing and rewarding to dedicate time. Rather than being sent back to the beginning each time with little to nothing to show for it, Hades constantly gives you ways to improve and new story moments between attempts.
You play as the son of Hades attempting to escape the underworld in a stunning art style that is reason enough to try it out. Unlike most other roguelikes, however, Hades is packed with story and voice acting, so you get to know all the various Gods, monsters, and myths as you slowly get further and further with each run. Not getting to the end never feels disappointing, because you always get something new, whether it be a weapon, buff for future runs, currency to spend on decorations, or new conversations.
3 Disco Elysium
Put your detective hat on
Disco Elysium: The Final Cut
$40 at Steam
The best way to introduce yourself to gaming, or gaming on a new platform, has to be by combining it with a genre that you're already interested in. Mysteries are inherently captivating, but only through games can you actually participate in solving them. Disco Elysium is a mystery adventure game wrapped up in a fictional world that feels like it's on the brink of collapse.
Your character, a detective, wakes up with amnesia to align your perspectives and allow you to learn about the world as the character does. This game is all about talking to people, asking questions, and building up your detective how you see fit. It is one of the most flexible and adaptive games ever created — so, even if you don't know exactly what you're doing, it is almost impossible to get stuck. Then, once you've made it through, you will be in a perfect position to play it again for a completely different experience.
4 Slay The Spire
The heart of the cards
Slay the Spire
$25 at Steam
Deck builders and collectible card games (CCGs) are another pair of genres typically seen as hardcore. So, when I suggest Slay The Spire, a deck building roguelike, I understand that it sounds like the exact opposite type of game to recommend as one of your first Steam games. Unless you're adamantly opposed to card games as a whole, hear me out on this one.
By being a roguelike, which resets your deck to a standard base for each character on every run, you never have to go deep into the weeds of collecting and structuring the perfect deck. All you need to do is decide which cards you add and remove as you play each run. I will admit that this is a very hard game, but since it is completely turn-based, you are never rushed to make any decision. If you think carefully and learn how the cards and enemies behave, you will get addicted to working your way through each floor and seeing what cards show up.
5 Stardew Valley
Farming bliss
Stardew Valley
$15 at Steam
One of the earliest genres of games to break out into the mainstream was farming sims, specifically with Harvest Moon. Everyone could not only understand the concept of building and working your own farm, but those who weren't interested in the more action-heavy games finally had a game that let them express their creativity and tickle their sense of satisfaction from completing a daily routine.
Stardew Valley is the spiritual successor to Harvest Moon, with a heavy emphasis on the word successor. You are plopped into a new town to restore a farm to working order while getting to know the townspeople on a yearly calendar. Plant and harvest your crops, raise animals, explore the mines, and even date your fellow villagers. The chill vibes and simple satisfaction make this one of the most addicting games on Steam.
6 Baldur's Gate 3
Rewarding roleplay
Baldur's Gate 3
$60 at Steam
Ignoring the stereotype of Dungeons and Dragons players being stuck in dank, stinky basements with piles of dice and tombs of rules, I think the real barrier to entry to pen-and-paper games is just how slow they can seem. It feels like every move a character makes has some formula to remember and modify with dice rolls and math equations. Through the magic of video games, Baldur's Gate 3 offloads all that boring stuff and just lets you go on the adventure you have in your imagination.
So much is possible in Baldur's Gate 3 it's staggering. Any idea you have that you think should work probably will, or at least will do something that makes sense. Throw a torch at a house? It's going to burn down. Throw a locked treasure chest off a cliff? It will probably break open if it's high enough. If you can think it, you can probably do it in Baldur's Gate 3, making it easily the best RPG on Steam.
7 Persona 4 Golden
Childhood memories
Persona 4 Golden
$20 at Steam
Whether you have a fondness for your time in high school (assuming you're past that age) or not, I think we can all agree that it is a very pivotal time in our lives. Persona 4 Golden examines that time of uncertainty, personal growth, and coming to terms with one's own identity while wrapped up in a supernatural mystery that will have you hooked for the nearly 100 hours you could potentially spend playing.
The real magic in this JRPG is the cast. Almost every person you meet, whether it be your party members, townspeople, or others you can form connections with, has a unique and compelling story to learn and watch unfold. That all mixes into the overall story of exploring an alternate world where people's shadows representing their repressed emotions take shape to attack them. This is a game you won't want to say goodbye to by the end, despite its length.
8 Final Fantasy XIV
The final MMO
Final Fantasy XIV
$20 at Steam
We're beyond the heyday of the MMO and can now crown Final Fantasy XIV as the definitive king of the genre. That wasn't true when it first launched in a poor state, but years of patches, expansions, and fixes have turned it into not only the best MMO, but the best Final Fantasy game ever made. Like every other numbered entry in this series, previous experience with the series isn't required.
If it wasn't for Final Fantasy XIV, I probably wouldn't include an MMO on a list like this at all. It's only because this game has such a fantastic story and quality-of-life features to onboard people who typically don't play this genre. In fact, you can play almost all the content by yourself with AI companions when needed if you don't want to engage with other players. Of course, playing with friends, and making new ones in the community, is a large part of the fun here.
9 Destiny 2
Co-op shooting at its finest
Destiny 2
See at Steam
I'm sneaking Destiny 2 here if you're at least somewhat comfortable with shooters. This isn't a Call of Duty or Counter-Strike where one stray bullet will take you out, and in fact, is more focused on teams fighting AI enemies than other players. There is a PvP mode, of course, but the bulk of the game is running missions with your friends for better gear.
Made by Bungie after leaving Halo in the hands of 343i, Destiny 2 has some of the smoothest and most satisfying gunplay on the market. Each weapon just feels so right to shoot that it almost doesn't matter that the story is all over the place. Simply teaming up with your pals to run some missions, or a raid if you really want to push yourself, and grinding out loot drops is rewarding enough to make it a regular part of your gaming routine.
