AU Deals: Deck Your Halls With Deep Discount Hauls And Serious Backlog Fuel
AU Deals: Deck Your Halls With Deep Discount Hauls And Serious Backlog Fuel
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I have a bad habit of telling myself I am just browsing, then somehow ending up reinstalling a 100-hour RPG. This Christmas Eve of delights did not help my self control. There are some genuinely sharp discounts across every platform here, including a couple of games I happily paid full price for years ago and never regretted.
In retro news, I’m celebrating the 26th birthday of SWAT 3, a cop-centric inspiration for the tactical CQC antics of your modern Rainbow: Six Siege. It sure had a strange path to becoming a shooter, however, as it’s technically the seventh installment of Sierra’s old-as-the-hills (or mountain, as it were) Police Quest adventures. From there, it morphed into an isometric SWAT tactics game, and then this: a po-po RoE shooter where, ideally, you’ll arrest perps instead of installing blowholes in ’em.
While Sierra certainly wasn’t the first to kick the door in on this sub-genre, the pretty peerless solo, co-op, and TDM offered here stacked up tighter than SWAT 3’s more remembered rival of the day, Rogue Spear.
Cyberpunk 2077: Ult. (-34%) A$79 This is the full redemption arc in one box, including Phantom Liberty. It runs better than it ever has on Switch hardware and the writing is still preem.
Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Rem. (-19%) A$69 These remakes are pure nostalgia filtered through gorgeous modern pixel work. Old school systems, timeless charm, and surprisingly cosy pacing.
Spyro Reignited Trilogy (-29%) A$49.90 Three PS1-era platformers rebuilt with real care. It is colourful, breezy, and still secretly demanding if you chase 100 percent.
Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots (-44%) A$39 Arcade golf at its most relaxing. Easy to play, hard to master, and dangerously good at making you say one more round.
Ni No Kuni: WotWW (-33%) A$59.90 Studio Ghibli gorgeousness, heartfelt storytelling, and a battle system that rewards patience. Still one of the most charming RPGs of its generation.
Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero (-21%) A$79 A love letter to Budokai Tenkaichi fans. Ridiculous spectacle, huge rosters, and exactly as subtle as a Super Saiyan entrance.
Sonic Frontiers (-76%) A$23.90 Messy but fascinating open zone Sonic. When it clicks, it really clicks, especially the soundtrack and boss fights.
Monster Hunter Wilds (-64%) A$41.90 Capcom refining its loop yet again. Great onboarding, satisfying hunts, and that familiar just one more kaiju energy.
Gotham Knights (-71%) A$32.20 Sure not the Arkham sequel I wanted, but a solid co-op brawler with a surprisingly earnest take on Bat family drama.
Dead Space Rem. (-61%) A$43.40 One of the best remakes ever made. The atmosphere is oppressive, the sound design is evil, and it still absolutely holds up.
Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands Next-Level Ed. (-73%) A$30 Borderlands filtered through tabletop chaos. Goofy writing, flexible builds, and much better pacing than its predecessors.
Xbox One
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (-92%) A$7.80 Spectacle dogfighting with melodrama to spare. It looks great, sounds incredible, and makes you feel like Mav’.
Middle-Earth: Shadow of War (-71%) A$15.70 The Nemesis system still carries this. Orc rivalries, revenge arcs, and emergent nonsense you will talk about for years.
Dying Light 2: Stay Human (-61%) A$39 Parkour first, zombies second. Night runs are still terrifying and the movement alone makes this worth a look.
Gran Turismo 7 (-38%) A$78 A stunning celebration of car culture. Even if you are not a petrol head, the craftsmanship is undeniable. Phenomenal in VR.
LEGO Horizon Adventures (-63%) A$21.90 Aloy gets the plastic fantastic treatment. It’s light, funny, and everything clicks. Ha. Pun.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits (-70%) A$17.90 Pixar looks with Souls-lite combat. Tough but fair, and emotionally sincere in a way few games attempt.
Outer Wilds (-40%) A$18.50 One of the smartest games ever made. Do not read guides, just trust your curiosity.
Lies Of P (-40%) A$51.10 A grim fairy tale Soulslike that absolutely earns its difficulty. Tight combat and exceptional art direction.
Unicorn Overlord (-65%) A$33.20 Vanillaware doing what they do best. Strategy depth wrapped in absurdly detailed 2D art.
PS4
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (-92%) A$8.90 Same brilliant aerial action, still runs beautifully, still unforgettable. Brilliant in PSVR.
Just like I did last holiday season, I’m getting festive with the LEGO section. In Mathew Manor, my sons and I are again racing / rating 2025’s batch of LEGO Advent Calendars. Basically, we open the City, Harry Potter, Minecraft, and Star Wars ones daily and compare the mini-prizes for “Awesomeness” and “Actual Xmas-ness”. 2024’s winner was the Lego Marvel one, but, weirdly, there’s no 2025 equivalent. So it’s anybody’s race this year.
Here are the cheapest prices for the four calendars we’re using. Score them yourself or just live vicariously through our unboxings.
Adam Mathew is a passionate connoisseur, a lifelong game critic, and an Aussie deals wrangler who genuinely wants to hook you up with stuff that’s worth playing (but also cheap). He plays practically everything, sometimes on YouTube.
