The 30 Best PC Games Under $20

Hollow Knight Hollow Knight is a so-called "Metroidvania" game in which you play a nameless night, exploring the ancient kingdom of Hallownest. The once-prosperous land has been blighted by Infection, and previous attempts to seal the blight within a Vessel have failed. The game has a non-linear progression system, multiple endings and a sequel on the way. (Buy on Humble Store)

Life is Strange This episodic adventure game from the folks at Dontnod puts you in the shoes of Max Caulfield – a teenager with burgeoning time-altering powers. As you explore Max's quaint hometown in the Pacific Northwest, you'll begin to unravel the details of a mysterious disappearance while getting wrapped up in a much larger supernatural affair that engulfs the entire town. (Buy on Humble Store)

Sonic Mania More than anything, Sonic Mania is a love letter to the classic Genesis Sonic games. It takes the art style and gameplay ideas that made those early games so popular, remixes them, polishes them, and revitalizes them for a whole new generation. In the age of Nightmare Sonic, this brilliant throwback is absolutely the best way to experience the blue blur. (Buy on Humble Store)

Slime Rancher If you need a game to help you unwind at the end of the day, consider picking up Slime Rancher. Explore a stylish world, use your VacPack to interact with just about anything, build up your ranch as you see fit, and start raising some darn slimes. (Buy on Humble Store)

This War of Mine While warfare is extremely common in games, This War of Mine distinguishes itself by putting the civilians front and center. Instead of troops attacking an enemy faction, these characters are everyday people just trying to make it through the dire situations around them. It's not lighthearted or joyous, but it's offering a narrative experience that's underrepresented in games. (Buy on Humble Store)

Baba is You Ever wish that you could solve a puzzle by changing the rules on the fly? Baba is You tasks you with manipulating the way objects work to solve each problem. Can't reach the goal? Well, you might need to alter what counts as the goal to begin with. It might seem like just another Sokoban clone, but the creative problem-solving needed here is well beyond a simple box-pushing game. (Buy on Humble Store)

Yakuza 0 Roll back to the late 1980s in Tokyo, and experience the life of Kiryu and Majima during the bubble economy. Serving as a direct prequel to the other six mainline Yakuza games, this installment perfectly rides the line between campy and sincere – making it one of the best entries in the series. (Buy on Humble Store)

Undertale Created primarily by one man, this modern classic built its reputation on whip-smart writing and the wildly effective subversion of RPG tropes. Not only is it keeping track of your meaningful in-game decisions, but outside actions like save-scumming can impact your experience in unexpected ways. It's clever, ambitious, and well worth ten bucks. (Buy on Humble Store)

Night in the Woods At the very start of the game, an anthropomorphic cat named Mae drops out of college, and moves back in with her parents in her small hometown. Her friends are still kicking around, and there are good times to be had, but the melancholy of a failing community and Mae's personal disappointments serve as a lovely contrast to the sillier moments of youthful indiscretion. (Buy on Humble Store)

Risk of Rain 2 The original Risk of Rain was an underrated indie gem, so it's nice to see the sequel expand in so many ways. Not only is this multiplayer rougelike now entirely rendered in 3D, but the playerbase is already surprisingly large at the early access stage. We're still months away from the finished product, but there are plenty of neat places to explore in the meantime. (Buy on Humble Store)

Forager Forager is an adorable indie game that offers up a little bit of something for everyone. Mining, farming, combat, crafting, and much more all crammed into one affordable game from HopFrog. It's pitched as "The Legend of Zelda + Terraria + Stardew Valley," so fans of those games will most certainly enjoy themselves. Just be sure to take a break every now and then. (Buy on Humble Store)

Return of the Obra Dinn Using a beautiful low-fi "1-bit" rendering style, this clever adventure game was developed by Lucas Pope – the creator of the much-loved indie darling Papers, Please. In this first-person mystery, you play as an insurance adjustor who must uncover exactly what happened to the entirety of the crew of the good ship Obra Dinn. (Buy on Humble Store)

Call of Juarez: Gunslinger While PC gamers were left out of the western festivities with Red Dead Redemption 2, there's a western-themed release from a few years back that won't cost you much. And in spite of the lukewarm reputation of the Call of Juarez series on the whole, Gunslinger is a must-play game for genre enthusiasts. (Buy on Humble Store)

Tacoma The pedigree of Fullbright is beyond reproach. Not only did the company release the classic "walking sim" Gone Home, but much of the team also worked on the Minerva's Den DLC for BioShock 2. With Tacoma, Fullbright's take on sci-fi puts us into a too-close-for-comfort corporate future with data tracking that is scarily intricate. Tracking so deep, in fact, the interloping player character can reconstruct every event that led to a space station inhabited by no one except for a helpful artificial intelligence. (Buy on Humble Store)

Alan Wake Collector's Edition Heavily steeped in the mood and aesthetic of Stephen King and David Lynch, Alan Wake is a fan favorite. Remedy Entertainment (of Max Payne fame) put together a thrilling narrative experience that keeps players coming back chapter after chapter – doubly so since this package includes both DLC episodes. (Buy on Humble Store)

Firewatch Set in a secluded forest in Wyoming, this exploration-based game places us in the shoes of a troubled fire lookout who spends a summer without much contact except the dulcet tones of Delilah – a fellow lookout stationed miles away. Not only will you be surprised by the twists and turns this game takes, but the simple act of hiking around in nature will keep you entertained for hours. (Buy on Steam)

Final Fantasy XIII A console-exclusive for years, Final Fantasy XIII made its way to PCs in 2014. And while it takes a while to get going, this Square-Enix RPG has a lot to offer in the combat department once you've learned the intricacies. And since it runs well at 60fps on very modest hardware, it's worth playing again if you already tackled it on PS3 or 360. (Buy on Humble Store)

BioShock Remastered Believe it or not, the original BioShock is over a decade old now. And while it went a long way toward popularizing a number of important modern game design concepts, the age definitely shows. Thankfully, 2K released a remastered version with a new coat of paint and some bonus features to boot. And if you're curious about how it stacks up to the original, it ships with a license for the initial PC release as well. (Buy on Humble Store)

Mortal Kombat X Historically, fighting games haven't been particularly strong in the story department. Sure, there are wild moments in the Tekkens and Soul Caliburs of the world, but NetherRealm Studios has pushed the genre into a legitimately fascinating place in their single-player story modes. Not only does this tenth major installment in the Mortal Kombat series offer a flood of nostalgia, but a whole new generation of fighters have been introduced in a very clever way. (Buy on Humble Store)

Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor In 2014, Monolith Productions wowed audiences by combining gameplay elements of Assassin's Creed and the Arkham games with the ingenious "Nemesis System" for populating and re-populating the orc ranks. The sequel is more expansive, but the significantly discounted price of the original game makes it the superior option for newcomers. (Buy on Humble Store)

What Remains of Edith Finch Developed by Giant Sparrow, the team behind The Unfinished Swan, this relatively brief experience puts you in the shoes of Edith Finch – one of the last surviving members of her family. As Edith adventures through her family's home, the player is thrown head-first into vignettes exploring both the lives and deaths of her family members. It's only a few hours long, but the mechanical twists and incredible characterizations are worth the price of admission. (Buy on Steam)

StarCraft Remastered Blizzard's wildly popular sci-fi RTS franchise turned 20 last year, so the original audiovisual experience doesn't quite hold up as well as the incredible core gameplay. Thankfully, Blizzard released an HD remaster, and it's only $15. And for those looking for a full-strength nostalgia bomb, the low-res original is free for everyone. (Buy on Battle.net)

Day of the Tentacle Remastered This classic game from the minds of Tim Schafer and Dave Grossman is one of the very best LucasArts adventures ever made, but it collected dust for years as Lucas pretended Star Wars was the only franchise that mattered. Thankfully, Double Fine (Tim Schafer's company) was able to convince the right corporate overlords to allow for the development of a high-res update in 2016. You can swap between the classic and high-quality assets at any time, and there's tons of behind the scenes material for super-dorks like us. (Buy on Humble Store)

Stardew Valley Stardew Valley is an incredible little farming sim that we've put hundreds of hours into. With art, music, design, and code being handled mostly by a single person, the scope of this heartfelt Harvest Moon-inspired title boggles the mind. And thanks to the folks at Chucklefish, a multiplayer mode is now included at no additional charge. (Buy on Humble Store)

TrackMania 2 Stadium TrackMania has always been a fast, chaotic, wonderful mess, and TrackMania 2 Stadium serves as the home of the best and worst the community has to give. This environment will only cost you $10 to buy-in, and you'll have access to the pure madness that is custom multiplayer servers. If you're dying to race against dozens of other people on wild custom tracks as phat euro beats fill the air, you'll fit right in. (Buy on Steam)

Dishonored Definitive Edition Arkane Studios, the developer behind Dark Messiah of Might and Magic, brought the Dishonored franchise to life all the way back in 2012. In this first game, you play as an accused queen-slayer, and your actions drastically change the world around you. If you play as a stealthy goody-two-shoes, you'll serve as a calming presence. If you're a murderous psychopath, the chaos begins ratcheting up severely. And with four additional pieces of DLC included for free, this first installment is definitely worth playing before you get around to the sequels. (Buy on Humble Store)

Borderlands 2 What happens when you throw a loot treadmill, a first person shooter, and an goofy cartoon into a blender? You'll either end up with a delicious milkshake or the incredibly sytlish Borderlands series. Join up with friends to play the entirety of Borderlands 2 in co-op, and you'll have dozens of hours of loot-grinding fun without stretching your purse strings. (Buy on Amazon)

Doom When it comes to PC gaming franchises, it doesn't get more iconic than Doom. And while it took over a decade for id Software to follow up Doom 3, it was worth the wait. Diehards of the flat-out speed of the early games will love this updated interpretation, and yet it remains entirely approachable for the uninitiated. Factor in the clever snapmap modding tool, and there's countless levels to play through at no additional cost. (Buy on Humble Store)

Streets of Rogue Streets of Rogue asks the question: "What if we fused the rogue-like genre with a modern setting, ridiculous missions, and a plot based on a mayor banning chicken nugget sales?" Play as a scientist, comedian, gorilla, cannibal, or a dozen (at least) other classes. Blow shopkeepers through walls. Bribe police officers. Literally eat people. Stay alive, work your way upwards, and enjoy the chaotic mayhem. ( Buy on Humble Store)