Steam TGS 2026 Sale: Only Two Games Are Actually at Record Lows

The Short Version

The Steam Tokyo Game Show sale opened September 17 and closes September 22. Japanese publishers — Koei Tecmo, Capcom, Bandai Namco, Square Enix — are discounting, but most of it is noise. Two titles are at genuine record lows backed by price-tracking data: Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty and Nioh 2 – The Complete Edition, both at $19.99.

Everything else is either a modest discount on a new release that will get cheaper, or a real discount that was nonetheless beaten a few weeks ago. This guide separates those cases so you don't spend money on something that'll be cheaper in October.

Why Japanese Publisher Discounts Work Differently

Understanding the value here requires knowing how Japanese publishers price games over time. Western publishers — Ubisoft, EA, Bethesda — tend to reach the price floor on major titles within 12 to 18 months and hold it there. Japanese publishers like Koei Tecmo discount more slowly and more selectively. Their deepest cuts tend to cluster around event sales: Tokyo Game Show, The Game Awards, and occasionally Steam's platform-wide seasonal sales.

That has a specific implication: a 50-60% cut on a two-to-four-year-old Team Ninja action game during TGS is far more likely to be a genuine all-time low than an equivalent percentage on a Western title. It also means the newest Japanese titles in the event — the ones headlining the booth at Makuhari Messe — are mostly priced at token discounts and will get much cheaper over time.

Buy: Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty — Record Low, and the Timing Matters

Price breakdown

The price drop is not coincidental. Koei Tecmo confirmed on September 16 that Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember will launch March 4, 2027, and simultaneously opened an Alpha Demo through September 30. The original game hit its lowest price ever on the same day.

This is a well-documented publisher playbook: when the sequel launches, the price of the original goes up, not down. The discount window the publisher creates to onboard players before the sequel arrives is almost always the best the first game will see. That is where Wo Long stands right now.

Wo Long 2: Wings of Ember — what's confirmed

Xbox Game Pass subscribers will get Wo Long 2 at no additional cost on day one. If you are on that subscription, the case for playing the first game beforehand is still strong — Wo Long 2's combat system is built directly on the first game's deflect mechanics and Morale system, and the sequel does not re-explain either. At $19.99, the entry cost is low enough to treat it as a gameplay tutorial for March.

Sources: KOEI TECMO America official announcement (Sep 16, 2026) · PlayStation Blog — Wo Long 2 launch announcement

Buy: Nioh 2 – The Complete Edition — Record Low, Better Starting Point

Price breakdown

Nioh and Nioh 2 are numbered sequels but are not interchangeable. Nioh 2 is the better game by a significant margin — it addressed the original's repeated-map problem, overhauled the loot system, added a character creator, and introduced the Yokai Shift ability, which gives players a meaningful tool to manage the difficulty spikes that frustrated many players of the first game.

It is also a prequel. Playing Nioh 1 first is not required — you lose nothing in story continuity starting with 2, and the second game's design improvements make it the better introduction to the format.

The Complete Edition bundles all three paid DLC chapters, meaning you get the full content scope with no additional purchases. Paying $19.99 for that package is, as of September 14, the lowest price the game has reached on Steam.

If you complete Nioh 2 and want more, the first game is the obvious follow-up. The reverse direction — starting with Nioh 1 — makes the experience harder to recommend.

Sources: SteamRaw — Nioh 2 price history · playze.io — Steam TGS 2026 sale analysis

The Rest of the Sale: Honest Assessments

Rise of the Ronin: a real discount that's not the bottom

Rise of the Ronin is discounted in the TGS sale, and it is a good game — Team Ninja's open-world Bakumatsu action title with strong combat. But price-tracking data shows it sold for less earlier this month than it does today. If you want it now the price is acceptable, but it is not the floor, and the floor will come again.

Monster Hunter Wilds: too new for a real cut

Monster Hunter Wilds is the most technically demanding game in the sale and also the one where the discount math is least favorable. New flagship Capcom releases take time to reach their genuine low, and this sale's discount is shallow by that standard. The game is also very demanding on hardware — verify system requirements against your actual machine, not an optimistic read of the minimum spec.

PRAGMATA: wait for patches too

Capcom's long-delayed sci-fi action game launched this year and is discounted, but modestly. First-year pricing on major releases almost never touches the floor; the most polished version of any game is also the cheapest, and this one is neither yet.

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy — The Non-Action Pick

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy collects three complete courtroom adventure games with redrawn art and dozens of hours of content. It is a reading game with occasional shouting, not a combat game, which makes it the outlier in a sale otherwise dominated by swordplay. The per-hour value is among the highest on the platform at almost any price. It is close to but not quite at its floor — check the current price directly before buying. If you want one game from this sale that is nothing like the others, this is it.

What to Do Before September 22

1. 1Check Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty on Steam — buy if the price is still $19.99.
2. 2Check Nioh 2 – The Complete Edition on Steam — buy if the price is still $19.99.
3. 3Try the Wo Long 2 Alpha Demo (free through September 30) to decide whether the combat system is for you before committing to the first game.
4. 4For everything else: watch the game page, not the sale percentage.

The sale closes September 22, 2026.

Sources: playze.io — Steam TGS 2026 sale buying guide (Sep 17, 2026) · SteamRaw — Nioh 2 Complete Edition price history · KOEI TECMO America — Wo Long 2 official announcement