Wait, it's almost Christmas? Already? It feels like it was only yesterday that December began, though I suppose time flies when you're frantically writing about holiday deals and The Game Awards. If you've lost track of the days like I have, you still might have some Christmas shopping to do, but there's a problem: it's too late for most retailers to ship physical orders before the big day, even if you fork over the cheddar for expedited shipping. And while you might be able to find what you're looking for in-store, there's also a good chance the holiday frenzy has cleared out available stock.
If the people you're buying for are gamers, though, you can skip rolling the dice with shipping and searching physical stores altogether by getting digital games. By selecting gifting options when purchasing these, codes for them are instantly shown or emailed to you, which you can then give to the recipient for redemption. And thanks to the holiday season, many of 2023's best games are on sale on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC (via Steam, GOG, or Epic Games) for awesome discounts — including many favorites of mine that I've played and highly recommend.
You'll find the best deals I've spotted for the digital versions of these seven games below, along with quick descriptions of each one's excellence. I've also included links to deals on physical copies in the event you decide to take a chance on shipping.
Quick links ⤵️
- Baldur's Gate 3: was
$59.99now $53.99 at GOG - Starfield: was
$69.99now $46.05 at GMG (Steam) - Alan Wake 2: was
$49.99now $39.99 at GMG (Epic Games) - Remnant 2: was
$49.99now $29.99 at GMG (Steam) - Resident Evil 4: was
$59.99now $29.99 at Xbox - Trepang2: was
$29.99now $19.12 at GMG (Steam) - Hi-Fi RUSH: was
$29.99now $19.12 at GMG (Steam)
Last-minute game deals
Give the gift of games this holiday
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December 25 is fast-approaching, and with shipping carriers straining to manage the chaos of holiday shopping, trying to order a physical item this close to Christmas is a huge risk. That's why buying someone a digital copy of one of the best Xbox games or best PC games is a great idea, as you'll get a code for it instantly that you can give to them when it's time for presents. There's no case that they can unwrap under the tree, but hey — a gift's a gift, and they'll have a blast with the game whether they have a disc for it or not.
Note that while GreenManGaming gives you a code by default and Steam has a built-in game gifting feature, you'll need to select "Buy as a gift" when purchasing a game from the Xbox store to get a code (have it emailed to you, if you want to give it to the giftee on Christmas). On GOG, you have to select "Gift this order" during checkout. Sadly, there's no way to directly gift games on PlayStation, though you can get someone a PlayStation gift card so they can take advantage of these deals themselves.
In addition to these wonderful games, a subscription to Microsoft's buffet-style Xbox Game Pass service would also be a fantastic gift for players on Xbox and PC. It gives its members access to over 400 games, including every first-party Xbox exclusive title. That means Starfield and Hi-Fi Rush are fully playable through the service. Remnant 2 came to Game Pass at the end of November, as well.
