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

Here’s a strong build order to expand your Steam library

The Steam Autumn Sale 2023 has arrived and the prices for PC games are dropping faster than any leaves can. This is the perfect opportunity to give yourself an early Christmas present or surprise a friend with a nice Thanksgiving gesture to show them your appreciation. As always, the huge variety of discounted video games on offer is mind-blowing, which has its good and bad sides.

The Steam Autumn Sale 2023 will be live until November 28, 2023, at 10am PT.

If you’re planning on spending the cold winter nights conquering the world or an entire galaxy, simply want to have some fun building a dinosaur zoo, or are ready to go mercenary for the chance to grab some diamonds, we’ve scouted ahead to compile the best strategy games to grab at a discount during Steam Autumn Sale 2023.

Steam Autumn Sale 2023: best strategy games

Steam Autumn Sale has great Black Friday offers for PC games in store / Valve

Age of Wonders 4

• 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.

Age of Wonders 4 had a triumphant launch year :: Triumph Studios / Paradox Interactive

Jagged Alliance 3

• 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.

Jagged Alliance is back in business! :: Haemimont Games / THQ Nordic

Jurassic World Evolution 2

• 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.

Rawr! / Frontier Developments

Total War: Warhammer 3

• 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.

Total War: Warhammer 3 had a mixed year, but you'll still get dozens of entertaining hours out of it / Creative Assembly

Civilization 6

• 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.

Civilization 6 is "complete" now / Firaxis

Marvel’s Midnight Suns

• 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.

Midnight Suns is Deadpool-approved / Marvel, 2K

Stellaris

• 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.

Just the boys going for a little stellar conquest, nothing unusual / Paradox Interactive

Age of Empires 4

• 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.

The Byzantines have arrived in The Sultans Ascend / Microsoft

Crusader Kings 3

• 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.

CK3 got tons of new content in 2023, making the game feel better than ever / Paradox Interactive

Against the Storm

• 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.

Against the Storm is a must-play for city-builder fans :: Eremite Games / Hooded Horse

Humankind

• 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.

Leave your mark on history with Humankind / Amplitude

Endless Space 2

• 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.

Disclaimer: Space isn't endless in Endless Space 2 / Amplitude

Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew

• 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.

Bloody pirates! / Mimimi Games

The Lamplighters League

• 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.

The Lamplighters League is pulpy fun :: Harebrained Schemes / Paradox Interactive

Anno 1800

• 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.

Welcome to Anno, prepare to stay for hundreds of hours / Ubisoft

The Steam Autumn Sale 2023 truly has so many great offers from the strategy and tactics category – frankly, there’s too many to list. I would like to point genre fans towards games like Two Point Campus, Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters, Expeditions: Rome, Songs of Conquest, and The Great War: Western Front as well, though, because those are some really good video games with solid discounts.

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