The best Steam games in 2023

Narrowing down the best Steam games is frankly an absurd task. There are simply thousands of games to choose from. 

But there's a lot of wheat to sift from the chaff and we're here to help you do that. So the games you'll find on the list are the ones we think you should make a beeline for and install when setting up a new gaming PC. Many of these titles won't be the latest games, but we feel they make for excellent PC games that work very well on Steam. 

One of the advantages of Steam is access to easily applied modes via the Steam Workshop, cloud saves and syncing across PCs, and a comprehensive user interface for tracking your games, achievements, friends and more. Plus these games will likely work well on the Valve Steam Deck

So read on for our picks of the best Steam games. 

The best Steam games

Best free Steam games

We’ve researched the best free Steam games based on their popularity, the depth of their gameplay and our own personal experiences with them. The games listed below are perfectly playable, even if you never spend a cent, with rich experiences for paying and non-paying players alike. Furthermore, we’ve tried to explore a variety of genres. (Free-to-play shooters may be a dime-a-dozen, but they’re not necessarily to everyone’s tastes.)

Marshall Honorof

Marshall Honorof is a senior editor for Tom's Guide, overseeing the site's coverage of gaming hardware and software. He comes from a science writing background, having studied paleomammalogy, biological anthropology, and the history of science and technology. After hours, you can find him practicing taekwondo or doing deep dives on classic sci-fi. 

With contributions from