I can only always recommend Ziggurat. If you like singleplayer shooters and smooth and fast gameplay then that's it. It's easily one of the best shooters there is on PC. I always see myself go back when I just want to relax and kill some time. Truly an underappreciated game. It basically has unlimited fun with procedurally generated dungeons and a mass of classes that all feel differently to play. Not to mention the difficulty. I haven't even managed to clear all characters on easy. It also has timeless stylized graphics, so it will never feel outdated.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eDCkxSchzI

I might have to include this for the next secret Santa.

I was thinking of creating a new thread series just now. It would be called "Vivster's Gift Shop" and I would randomly give out some awesome games people should try. I mean Ziggurat is only 3.75€ right now. Too bad you cannot hoard gifts and have to always attach them to someone when you buy it.

It would also be right on time to score a few favors for the "Greatest User" competition^^

I shouldn't have watched that trailer. I have a big headache and it made me feel worse! It looks challenging and quite hectic. I'll have to add it to my wishlist.

I thought you could buy the games for gifting without selecting who would get them right then. I remember, three or so years ago, that I bought two games as gifts during our Secret Santa event and that I got them in my inventory for a while. Maybe Stema has changed that?

In any case, it's a good idea for a new series of threads but you'll have to go beyond PC games, otherwise you'll get tired of gifting them to the same half a dozen users.

But there aren't any worthwhile games on console, you know that. Also if it means to get someone who rarely plays on PC to play something on it it's worth it. I assume there are quite a few console people who have a capable PC but not much to play.

True. And there's also people that, besides playing on consoles, also game on PC.

I was surprised the other day when I saw that Wright was playing Civ V. I didn't know he also played on PC.

Apparently the change to the gifting System was this year in May. It really sucks.

Valve and their (miss)management of Steam...

Yeah, CRPGs are niche, always been (thankfully), so I'd never expect it to actually win - but not to be even nominated says a lot about this site and people writing for it.

And honestly, for me at least, mainsteam appeal is usually a bad thing, since, more often than not, it means cattering to lowest common denominator.

Guru3D has announced the winners of the contests they've run this December:

http://www.guru3d.com/news-story/december-2017-contest-winner-announcements.html

Lucky b*stards

Then you should also never expect a niche game that does not appeal to main stream sensibilities be nominated for GOTY. It's called "Game of the Year" and not "Just a Game from this Year". It needs to have some kind of impact and Divinity didn't have any. It can't have any impact if only a tiny fraction of people have even heard of it, so why should it be nominated for an award when nobody actually cared?

What I'm saying is that quality is by all means only a secondary attribute with any award. Be it the Oscars, Pulitzer or even Nobel. What counts first is impact and popularity. Then, if it's a tie between things it comes down to quality. That's how awards work and how they should work. That's why there are extra awards for specific niches to recognize lesser known entities.