Christmas 2016 game deals: Xbox, Playstation and more
From Battlefield 1 to Forza Horizon 3, here are the top gaming offers in this year's holiday season
Christmas is just around the corner and games companies have already started offering discounts ahead of the January sales rush. Here are some of the latest deals and where to pick them up.
PlayStation Store
Sony is offering up to 60 per cent off on games through its online store. All titles available on the store can be downloaded directly to the player's hard drive, which improves loading speeds and eliminates the need for discs. PlayStation's January sale includes:
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
Join more than 350,000 subscribers and keep yourself informed with a selection of The Week’s most interesting, enlightening and entertaining stories - plus daily puzzles.
- Battlefield 1 - £27.99
- Fifa 17 - £29.99
- Grand Theft Auto 5 - £29.99
- Mafia III - £32.99
- Need for Speed - £15.99
- No Man's Sky - £24.99
- Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 year celebration - £21.99
You can pick up a 1TB PlayStation 4 Slim for £250 and the more powerful PS4 Pro for £349.
Steam
PC players can get in on the early sales too, as Steam is running its famous winter sale until 2 January. As expected, discounts can exceed 75 per cent off the original price, with game bundles usually offering the best value for serious gamers.
- Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare - £26.39
- Just Cause 3 - £9.99
- Project CARS - £7.71
Xbox Store
A free daily email with the day’s biggest news and analysis – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Xbox is kicking off its Christmas deals by discounting dozens of games. Gamers who have subscribed to the Xbox Live Gold service can save even more on selected titles. The first batch of deals include:
- Battlefield 1 - £38.49
- Destiny: The Collection - £34.99
- Final Fantasy XV - £42.49
- Forza Horizon 3 - £32.49
- Titan Fall 2 - £32.99
- Halo 5: Guardians - £26.99
- Star Wars Battlefront - £23.99
Those looking to pick up a new Xbox One S can get a 1TB model with Fifa 17 on Amazon for £279.99.
Cyber Monday 2016: Xbox and PlayStation game deals
28 November
Cyber Monday concludes the four-day Black Friday shopping weekend, bringing with it even more deals on games. Here are some of the latest titles and where to pick them up.
Forza Horizon 3
Amazon has dropped the price of Forza Horizon 3 on Xbox One to £23.99.
The third instalment of the arcade-racing series is set in Australia, taking players across sandy beaches to tropical forests in 350 of the most iconic cars in the world. Unlike previous titles, where you race to become the champion, Horizon 3 puts you in the shoes of the event's organiser. You'll need to take part in different events to build a fan base and expand the festival across the game's map.
The Daily Telegraph says Horizon 3 is "relentlessly excitable and upbeat" yet still manages to retain the finesse developed in the Forza Motorsport franchise fans have come to adore.
Watch Dogs 2
After launching two weeks ago, Watch Dogs 2 is now available for £32.00 on PS4 and Xbox One on Amazon.
Set within a new game world modelled on San Francisco, the action moves away from the prequel's protagonist Aiden Pierce to introduce Marcus Holloway, a young hacker who joins the anonymous group Dedsec. Players can hack into buildings, steal cars and create makeshift devices to take down San Francisco's all-controlling ctOS 2.0 security system.
Watch Dogs 2 tweaks the core hacking mechanics in the game, which Digital Spy says are "extensive and enable you to have a lot of fun and be creative with the missions".
Dishonored 2
Amazon has slashed the price of Dishonored 2 on Xbox One and PS4 to £29.99.
The sequel to 2012's Dishonored game features an improved stealth mode, allowing for greater freedom to overcome obstacles, as well as new non-lethal combat manoeuvres. There's also an improved version of the "chaos" system used to either stabilise or cause havoc in the new game world.
PC Gamer applauds Dishonored 2's ability to follow the player's actions and reward creativity, saying it "respects your ingenuity, acknowledging when you've done something clever".
The Division
You can pick up The Division for £14.99 on Xbox One and PS4 through Amazon.
An entirely new game in the Tom Clancy franchise, The Division is an open world game set in Manhattan after the outbreak of a virus. Players can earn experience points and build up their character with new weapons and armour. The game also features a weather system that can either help or hinder your campaign.
Expert Reviews gave the Ubisoft game a four-star rating and calls it "a great title" and a "fantastic piece of software engineering".
Battlefield 1
You can pick up Battlefield 1 for the Playstation 4 and Xbox One from Amazon for £32.00 - a saving of 40 per cent.
Dice has taken the series back to World War I, moving away from the futuristic warzones featured in the recent offerings from the Call of Duty series.
Players can make use of the era's weaponry and tactics in either single-player or the 64-player grand-scale combat mode that keeps fans coming back for more. With old-school weaponry and equipment come new challenges – waging trench warfare solo is said to be significantly more difficult than doing it as a member of a squad.
Fifa 17
Amazon has taken 40 per cent off Fifa 17 , which is available on the Xbox One for £29.00.
Fifa 17 brings with it a raft of improvements over its predecessor, including EA's Frostbite game engine, which is used in the Battlefield and Need for Speed series.
It also offers players The Journey, a new game mode which follows the path of young footballer Alex Hunter. You can start your career as Alex at any of this season's Premier League clubs, with your performances on the pitch and your choices off it determining how the story unfolds.
Alongside the new game mode, Manager Mode and Ultimate Team have both been tweaked and there are new stadiums and leagues too.
Titanfall 2
Titanfall 2 has been reduced on Amazon to £28.00 for Xbox One and PS4 consoles.
The original game appeared in 2014 and offered players a new perspective on the fast-paced, first-person shooter formula.
Its latest offering retains the jetpack-based, Mech-controlling multiplayer warfare, but adds the single-player campaign fans were yearning for. Titanfall 2 also introduces a bunch of new weapons and different character classes, which can all be upgraded through a progression system.
Trusted Reviews says the multiplayer improves upon its already strong base, while the new single-player campaign is "one of the best surprises of the autumn 2016 season".
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare
Amazon has dropped the price of the Call of Duty to £30.99 on both the Xbox One and PS4.
Infinite Warfare advances the futuristic setting of the previous titles by taking the first-person shooter into space. Along with new maps and weapons, a host of celebrity appearances make their way into the single player campaign, including Game of Thrones actor Kit Harington and F1 driver Lewis Hamilton.
The new anti-gravity grenades and spider bots liven up the already intense action, says The Guardian, with its multiplayer remaining "slick and intuitive."
Destiny: The collection
Destiny: The Collection is half-price on Amazon for PS4, priced at £19.99 and featuring all the downloadable content, including The Taken King and Rise of Iron expansions.
From the developers of the Halo series, the game is a massively multiplayer first-person online shooter set in a sci-fi universe.
Destiny is set in the solar system and players can travel between different planets with their friends to progress the story. They can also create their own character from a selection of classes, as well as upgrade weapons and armour by interacting with others in the game world.
Expert Reviews says shifting the focus to your own character is a "refreshing change from other FPS games", where the player may be more invested in changing their appearance than upgrading their weapons.
Black Friday Deals: Save up to £52 on a subscription to The Week magazine. Hurry, ends midnight