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The Steam Summer Sale 2025 is finally here, and I'll admit I'd been waiting for it all year long. Over the weekend, I finally bit the bullet and purchased Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown and Black Mesa for great discounted prices — these two games had been sitting in my wishlist for longer than I care to admit. My wallet may not have been ready, but last night, it had no say in the matter.
So, I dove headfirst into the discounts, and while my single-player backlog groaned in despair, I did what any sensible person would do — I picked up the best multiplayer and co-op games on sale I could find, because games are simply better when you're screaming at a friend.
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8 Chained Together ($4)
A rough co-op adventure that makes your insides hurt
Chained Together became all the rage online last year when it came out. A co-op 3D platformer, this game puts you and your squad in chains, challenging you to cooperate and escape hell. Along the way, you'll go through multiple worlds and environments, engaging with them through new mechanics, all while making sure that you and your squad remain a cohesive, well-functioning unit.
The chains' physics are impressively thought-out and implemented, meaning you would often have to think twice before executing any maneuver. Now, while I played the game on a custom Fortnite map (seriously, those things are awesome), I knew I'd always want myself and my friends to play.
The Summer Sale is the perfect time to get multiplayer games you can play with friends — you can either convince them to buy a game easily, or just get two copies and put one in their library. I've done the former with Chained Together, and can't wait to fall off a hundred times, waking up my neighbors as I cuss out my friend who could probably hear me without the headphones, 2000 miles away.
Chained Together
Systems
Released June 19, 2024
ESRB t
Developer(s) Anegar Games
Publisher(s) Anegar Games
Engine Unreal Engine
Multiplayer Local Co-Op, Online Co-Op
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7 A Way Out ($6)
A more grounded co-op experience from the creators of It Takes Two
I recently built a low-medium-end gaming PC for my partner using old parts I had lying around. This was their first-ever PC, and an introduction to gaming in general at the age of 25. While familiarizing her with the language of gaming, It Takes Two became one of the first games we played together. I can't appreciate it enough for being so easy to pick up, even for non-gamers.
While that was one of the first games for her, It Takes Two was my second game from the studio, the first being A Way Out, which came out in 2018. I'd played it on the PlayStation 4 when it came out with my brother, but wanted to show my partner how the same mechanics and formulae worked in a more grounded setting.
The concept of breaking out of prison while playing split-screen co-op, helping each other out by creating the right distractions and timing things right was instantly alluring, and for $6, I'd be able to share the game with her through Steam's Remote Play feature, too.
A Way Out
Released March 23, 2018
ESRB M for Mature: Nudity, Blood, Intense Violence, Sexual Content, Strong Language
Developer(s) Hazelight Studios
Publisher(s) Electronic Arts
Engine Unreal Engine 4
Multiplayer Local Co-Op, Online Co-Op
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6 EA Sports FC 25 ($14)
Now, this one is a bit hard to justify, but hear me out. I already own FC 24, and as much as I loved playing it for the couple of weeks I did, I still uninstalled it and played FC 25 on Game Pass. For all my complaints against subscription models, being able to play online matches with a friend over Discord on the latest and inarguably the best football sim on the market is still a privilege.
Regardless, on my online storefront, EA Sports FC 25 cost me less than $2.50 to grab and own, which is actually less than what I pay for Game Pass and/or EA Play. So, on the day I forget to renew my Game Pass subscription, I can still hop onto FC 25 with a friend and play the game's fantastic Rush mode, which is all I want to play when I've got less time on my hands than usual, usually during breaks between work.
EA Sports FC 25
Released September 27, 2024
ESRB Everyone // Alcohol And Tobacco Reference, Users Interact, In-Game Purchases (Includes Random Items)
Developer(s) EA Canada, EA Romania
Publisher(s) EA Sports
Engine Frostbite
Multiplayer Online Multiplayer, Local Multiplayer, Online Co-Op, Local Co-Op
5 Star Wars Battlefront II ($4)
The resurgence has been strong with this one
This is one purchase I've been bullied into making. I've barely ever interacted with any Star Wars media, outside of the Tie Fighter game and Knights of the Old Republic (remake when, Disney?). Now, with the Battlefront II multiplayer servers running at full power again thanks to May 2025's resurgence, the game is at the forefront again, and my Star Wars nerd of a friend strong-armed me into getting this.
Admittedly, I did get something out of the bargain, as I only got this on the condition that he would finally play Dying Light, a game I will always love and keep playing. Now, I am excited at the prospect of finally playing a full-fledged Star Wars game, and there could be no better way to enter the fray than beside a friend to guide me through the mechanics, dropping the occasional bit of lore, too.
4 R.E.P.O. ($8)
Lethal Company walked so R.E.P.O. could explode
After clocking a shameful number of hours into Lethal Company, my friends and I were looking for something new. We needed something to shake things up, and while we did try Phasmophobia, it was a little too scary to continue. This is where R.E.P.O. comes in. The game's been all over the internet for the past few months, and rightly so. A spiritual cousin of Lethal Company, R.E.P.O. puts you and your friends in the familiar co-op horror and task-oriented loop.
However, this game comes with its very own unique brand of chaos. You're repo agents in space, tasked with recovering expensive tech from planets infested with terrifying creatures who really don't like visitors. The gameplay loop revolves around inventory juggling, looting expensive tech, a constant feeling of creeping dread, and oh, panic-ridden screams and giggles over comms.
R.E.P.O. is understandably growing in popularity right now, and I have no doubt that, like me, a lot of other people who were on the fence about this one are finally going to buy it, thanks to the Steam Summer Sale going on right now.
R.E.P.O.
Systems
Released February 26, 2025
Engine Unity
Multiplayer Online Co-Op
Number of Players 1-6 players
Steam Deck Compatibility Unknown
Early Access Release February 26, 2025
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3 Liar's Bar ($3)
I'm ready for friendships to be staked like chips
As someone who meets their closest friends only twice a year, card games have become kind of a sacred ritual for us. No matter the trip, no matter the agenda, there is always a deck of cards in my bag. So when I saw Liar's Bar on Steam for just about $3, the idea of translating that chaotic table energy to an online version we could engage with any time throughout the year was too good to pass up.
I'll admit I'm still in the process of bullying one of my friends to buy it so I can finally play, but the vibes are immaculate, and the reviews are stellar. Liar's Bar has the perfect balance of casual bluffing and slow-burn paranoia that will have you questioning each one of your friend's moves. Think of it like Among Us, except the spaceship has a bar tab and everyone's going to wake up with a killer hangover. For the price of a pack of chips (pun intended), this one is already a win in my books.
Liar's Bar
Systems
Released October 2, 2024
Developer(s) Curve Animation
Publisher(s) Curve Animation
Engine Unity
Multiplayer Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
Steam Deck Compatibility Playable
Early Access Release October 2, 2024
2 Stardew Valley ($7)
I played Stardew Valley for a little under a year back when I first got a PS4 in 2017. Of course, I also got Horizon Zero Dawn along with it, which meant that once I left my farm, I never visited it again. Now, however, things have changed. Not only do I have a partner to start a farm with, but I also want to show her the cozier side of gaming.
Stardew Valley being this cheap on Steam is the perfect time to get started. While my copy of Stardew Valley is free with my Game Pass subscription, it was a no-brainer to pick up a copy on Steam for her, so we can farm, forage, and fish together.
Stardew Valley
Released February 26, 2016
ESRB E for Everyone (Fantasy Violence, Mild Blood, Mild Language, Simulated Gambling, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco)
Developer(s) ConcernedApe
Publisher(s) ConcernedApe
Engine Proprietary
Multiplayer Local Multiplayer, Online Multiplayer
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1 The Outlast Trials ($16)
The greatest co-op horror game ever, in my opinion
I've stated time and again that The Outlast Trials is one of my all-time favorite co-op games. It's all the scares of the fantastic Outlast horror game series, merged with a stellar co-op experience. You and your friends are guinea pigs in the Murkoff Corporation's experiments, and they have you completing tasks like gruesomely eliminating witnesses, turning off power in facilities, or destroying legal documents, all while being chased by insane asylum inmates who just want a hug... with chainsaws or needles. Each of the game's nine levels has a stalker-type enemy constantly chasing your squad, and you have to hide, run, and sometimes fight back using bricks or bottles while completing the tasks.
From insane sequences where each member of the squad baited the final antagonist while the rest completed tasks, juggling an electric baton-wielding enemy like a hot potato, or running blind through a carnival while my friend kept shouting directions at me because I ran out of nightvision cam batteries, The Outlast Trials is oen of the most solid co-op games you will ever play.
Why did I buy it again at the Steam Summer Sale? Easy, because the one friend I'd always wanted to play the game with never got the game, and this was finally my chance to repay the favor and have him join in on the adventure instead of just watching on Discord, lending his presence as emotional support. Oh, and also because I'm afraid of revisiting the game alone, now that the old squad has stopped playing due to an initial lack of levels.
The Outlast Trials
Released May 18, 2023
ESRB M For Mature 17+ Due TO Intense Violence, Blood and Gore, Sexual Themes, Nudity, Drug Reference, Strong Language
Developer(s) Red Barrels
Publisher(s) Red Barrels
Engine Unreal Engine 4
Multiplayer Online Multiplayer
There's nothing like playing games with the right people
This year's Steam Summer Sale is clearly one of the best — my friends better be ready.
There's something strangely fulfilling about buying games you know you'll play with the right people — even if it takes weeks of bullying and sending calendar invites (with the occasional emotional blackmail-laced plea) to make it happen. These games had been sitting in my wishlist for the longest time, and now, they are chaotic memories just waiting to be made.
Between the discounts and the price cuts, the endless potential for laughter and mayhem, and the sheer magic that makes every game twice as enjoyable when you're playing it with a friend. This year's Steam Summer Sale is clearly one of the best I remember, and my friends better be ready.
English (US) ·