It’s that time of the year when any leftover money you’ve got after buying gifts, arranging holiday travel, and donating to worthwhile causes is going to go PC games. The Steam Winter sale kicks off today, and we’ll be updating this story every day with what we think is the best of the best as well as all of the other day’s deals. Things are a little different this year, with featured deals lasting for 48 hours while the rotating flash deals update every 12.

What are you picking up (or hoping to buy) during Valve’s quarterly sales event? Let us know in the comments below.

Day 1: December 18, 2014

Our pick: Dark Souls 2 — $14.70 (63%)

The follow-up to the crazy-hard Demon’s Souls and the crazy-hard Dark Souls is… still crazy-hard. The game might not be to everyone’s tastes, but it’s a series that you have to respect for sticking to its punishing formula. Read our Dark Souls 2 review and check it out on Steam.

Other 48-hour deals:

• State of Decay — $4.99 (-75%)
• Euro Truck Simulator 2 — $3.74 (-85%)
• Space Engineers — $9.99 (-50%)
• Civilization: Beyond Earth — $29.99 (-40%)
• Total War: Rome II Emperor Edition — $14.98 (-75%)
• Sniper Elite III — $24.99 (-50%)
• Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes — $13.39 (-33%)
• Rocksmith 2014 — $20.99 (-65%)

Community’s Choice hasn’t kicked off yet, but here are the first six flash sale games:

• Damned — $4.99 (-75%)
• Styx: Master of Shadows — $14.99 (-50%)
• Microsoft Flight Simulator X: Steam Edition — $4.99 (-80%)
• Hegemony Rome: The Rise of Caesar — $4.49 (-85%)
• Injustice Gods Among Us — $4.99 (-75%)
• SpeedRunners — $2.49 (-75%)

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