The Xbox Store has run three different sales this week, and it has really thrown out some great options to choose from. As is customary with Xbox Sales, the TA news team has each picked a game to offer to you as their recommended pick-up. Our picks this week just happen to be emotional rollercoasters — adrenaline-pumping action, calming adventure, controller-breaking frustration, and empathetic experiences await you in this week’s Sales Picks.Heidi — A Short HikeA Short Hike is, as its name suggests, a pretty short game, but if that stopped you from buying it at full price, then good news! It’s now 30% off and under £5 — and you should definitely go for it! A Short Hike is one of those wonderfully relaxing indie games that magics any stress away. Worry and stress are no match for A Short Hike’s beautiful world and charming atmosphere, and you can easily get lost in the simple goal of making your way through Hawk Peak Provincial Park as you climb to the top. We play as Claire, whose initial reasons for wanting to climb to the top are almost forgotten as you become distracted by the myriad of intriguing paths leading off into the distance, or stop to chat to the varied cast of characters scattered around the park. The movement of running and gliding feels fluid and natural, and it’s tempting to climb as high as you can just for the simple pleasure of being able to glide back to the bottom. A Short Hike is an enjoyable experience throughout and is well worth getting at 30% off.A Short HikeHike, climb, and soar through the peaceful mountainside landscapes of Hawk Peak Provincial Park as you make your way to the summit.Kes — Split/Second: VelocityNow, I don’t mean to exaggerate, but Split/Second: Velocity is one of the best arcade racers of all time. Look! Our list of the best proves it! If I can’t appease you with the fact that there are tactical explosions that you deliver to your unaware opponents; that you demolish the track as you race using a three-tier special meter like a fighting game; that the controls are deliriously tight; or that the single-player campaign is an incredibly charming reality TV show — then it is because this game is good for you. Mentally, you will spend your time venting your real-life aggression by blowing up dams and unleashing devastation on the other stupid little racers. Take that! Then, flying through the flames of the hell you have wrought in this digital wreckage, you will truly feel the satisfaction of pure unrelenting aggression much like I imagine Lucifer did in Ezekiel 28 when he “became filled with violence within, and [he] sinned.” Please, other racers, I have sinned… but I am in first so it was well worth it. The other benefit to playing Split/Second is that the races are so adrenaline pumping — watching a plane crash land on a runway while you drive beneath is quite exciting — that you will undoubtedly have a much stronger pelvic floor. No doubt, I would spend every minute of every race clenched to the max. Otherwise, I would be at risk of an explosion of a very different kind because my word this game is so cool. Every boyish part of me was just in awe as I drifted canyon corners, pinged open shortcuts with my special meter, and precariously navigated a car flipping into me. I really love this game and it makes me so sad that we will never get a sequel. I have no stake in it, but I highly recommend paying the money for this one — I even used a bible quote to try and hook you in. Split/SecondSplit/Second is an intense arcade racing game set within the universe of a mega-budget, prime-time reality TV show. Contestants race to be the 1st across the finish line in a made-for-TV city built for destruction, with the ultimate goal of becoming the season champion. The city is rigged to blow and you’re in control of the action – bridges will fall, buildings will be reduced to clouds of dust and cars blown to pieces – devastating explosions will decimate your rivals and rip apart the track,…Luke — Astalon: Tears of the EarthI grabbed Astalon: Tears of the Earth on Switch after I caught the awesome AGDQ speedrun earlier this month. Now, a mere two weeks later, it’s on sale on the Xbox store, so I invite you all to try out one of the unsung gems of last year. Astalon is an action-platformer based heavily around exploration, with a trio of characters you can switch between in order to use their unique skills to access and unlock new parts of the map. It reminded me quite a lot of Bloodstained, and twice, actually — first retro spin-off Curse of the Moon in its character-switching mechanic and 8-bit-style presentation, albeit with that linear action framework replaced here with an ever-growing open map to chip away at as you discover new skills and put bosses in their place, so more like Ritual of the Night and the myriad games that inspired it.Some may decry the basic visuals, but I think it looks great — like Shovel Knight, Astalon may look and sound a lot like a game from the late Eighties, but there are modern sensibilities in its design and controls that make it way more satisfying to play than a lot of the games from the period it emulates. Fans of Axiom Verge will find a lot to love here, but honestly, if you’re at all interested in Metroidvania-style games, Astalon is among the better ones of recent years. It has been slightly cheaper in the past (30% off back in October, compared to 25% off now) so it might be one to wishlist, although for the sake of a dollar, I’d happily just chuck that extra cash at a game that deserves way greater success than it enjoyed at launch… here’s hoping it finds it in the coming years, as that retro style makes the game more or less timeless.Astalon: Tears of the EarthUphold your pact with dark lord Epithemeus as you fight, climb and solve your way through a twisted tower as three unique adventurers on a mission to save their village in a post-apocalyptic world. Sean — This War of Mine: The Little Ones There is no game out there that makes you question your morality more than This War of Mine: The Little Ones. Unlike Call of Duty, Battlefield, and nearly every other game where war is the central theme, This War of Mine focuses on the victims of conflict, the unarmed civilians caught in the middle of a warzone, the survivors. It’s a survival management game where you’re tasked with keeping a set number of characters alive in a scenario. Most of what you’ll get up to is pretty uninteresting: scavenge for materials, cook, trade, and build, but after a while, when resources become scarce, or one of your survivors becomes ill, things start to get tough, and you’re thrown into a world that will have you seriously asking yourself if you really did the right thing. At what lengths will you go to survive? Do you loot a nearby house that’s inhabited by an elderly couple that can’t fight back for the medicine you desperately need? They wouldn’t be able to fight back; it would be an easy score. Or do you risk going another 24 hours in hopes that you might be able to scavenge some elsewhere? There’s a careful balancing act in play at all times, and it’s up to you how to tackle each scenario. This War of Mine is inspired by the siege of Sarajevo during the Bosnian war, and it’s designed to show the player how war affects civilians stuck in the middle of conflict, and oh boy, does it do a good job of that, and it does it without ever coming across as preachy. This War of Mine: The Little Ones is currently 90% off in this week’s sale. For just $1.99/£1.59/€1.99, you’re getting an absolute bargain.This War of Mine: The Little OnesThis War Of Mine: The Little Ones provides an experience of war not from an elite soldier´s point of view, but from the perspective of a group of civilians trying to survive the ordeal. Struggling with a lack of food, limited or no medical supplies and under the threat of constant danger from the world around, players will need to make life-or-death decisions just to make it through another day.Tom — StrugglingWhile everyone here has offered something that hits many different emotional spots, the feeling of frustration… nay, anger, has been left on the sidelines. Luckily, I’m here to offer you a game that will make you question whether you hate yourself or not: Struggling. It’s a physics-based platformer that follows the story of a meaty ball of flesh with arms called Troy. He’s an abomination on a journey to find the abomination of Gods, and it’s fraught with humour, danger, and unforgiving obstacles. The game really is a lot of fun at times and the general theme around it is a bit wacky… it’s just really bloody hard. You only have control over Troy’s arms by using the toggles, so you have to pull the weighty sack of meat through the game in absolutely awkward ways. If you’re in the mood for a challenge and don’t expect to complete the game — I have the utmost respect for the one person that’s managed to complete the game without dying! — then picking up Struggling for half the price is well worth your time. I’d recommend using an old controller that you don’t mind breaking if you do decide to get it, though. You’ve been warned…StrugglingStruggling is a physics-based co-op platformer with a twisted spin on teamwork. Control the arms of a squishy abomination and lead it through a deranged world.Are you picking up any of these titles, or is your heart set on another? Let us know in the comments!
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