--- description: Amazon Prime members will now get 20% off the cost of new video games ordered through the site. title: Amazon Has a Sweet New Deal for Video Gamers image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt217d6d4d588b8006/698878bda988ca95ce6b6142/gettyimages-473889268.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Retail](/tag/retail/) ## Retail Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Amazon Has a Sweet New Deal for Video Gamers  by [Alex Fitzpatrick](/author/alex-fitzpatrick/)  ## Alex Fitzpatrick Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 12, 2016 4:59 PM CUT  PlayStation 4 controller. PlayStation 4 controller.Alexander Hassenstein - FIFA—2015 FIFA  by [Alex Fitzpatrick](/author/alex-fitzpatrick/)  ## Alex Fitzpatrick Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 12, 2016 4:59 PM CUT Play lots of video games? Got Amazon Prime? Then you’ll love the online retailer’s latest announcement. Amazon Prime members will now get 20% off the cost of new video games ordered through the site, the company announced Tuesday. That knocks about $12 off the price of a $60 title. The discount applies to physical copies of new games either pre-ordered before their release date or purchased in their first two weeks of availability. Games pre-ordered on Amazon are shipped to be delivered on release day. It’s worth noting that Best Buy has a similar deal, Gamers Club Unlocked, with a lower cost of entry. Best Buy’s program offers the same 20% discount, along with other perks, for $30 every two years. Amazon Prime, meanwhile, costs $99 a year. But Prime also comes with a host of other non-gaming benefits, like free two-day shipping, access to Amazon’s streaming movie and TV catalog and [lots more](http://time.com/3892861/amazon-prime/ "undefined"). ### 10\. _Prune_  Polyculture As its name suggests, _Prune_ is a game about removing things to nurture other things, where you swipe your finger to sever restrictive limbs and free others to grow. But it’s also about basking in a minimalist garden of forking paths as you work out the spatial logistics of coaxing a tree to blossom. It’s both an arboricultural exercise and a meditation–on light, darkness, color, sound and perhaps most of all, the things we’re forced to leave behind. _\[iOS, Android, Windows Phone, PC\]_ ### 9\. _Rise of the Tomb Raider_  Lara warms herself in front of a campfire as she looks outward into the cold, Siberian night. Crystal Dynamics/Microsoft The antithesis of Sony’s linear, shoot-heavy _Uncharted_ games, [_Rise of the Tomb Raider_](http://www.amazon.com/Rise-Tomb-Raider-Xbox-One/dp/B00KVRNIQU/ref=sr%5F1%5F1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1448303708&sr=1-1&keywords=Rise+of+the+Tomb+Raider?tag=timecom-20 "undefined") moves at comparably ruminative speeds, embedding you in its bleakly beautiful and broad wintry landscapes with only your wits and scant weapons. It’s both a study in how to craft a relatable protagonist whose every fight is tooth and nail, and the best puzzle-exploration-survivalism odyssey since Crystal Dynamics’ 2013 series relaunch. _\[Xbox One, Xbox 360\]_ ### 8\. _Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain_  Kojima Productions [_Metal Gear Solid_](http://www.amazon.com/Metal-Gear-Solid-Phantom-Pain-PlayStation/dp/B00JKM06HG/ref=sr%5F1%5F3?ie=UTF8&qid=1448303628&sr=8-3&keywords=Metal+Gear+Solid+V%3A+The+Phantom+Pain?tag=timecom-20 "undefined") creator Hideo Kojima’s series swan song turns out to be his finest work yet, a tactical stealth simulation wrapped in a colossal resource management puzzle inside a love letter to theatrical inscrutability. It’s a clandestine feast of open-world prowling, a tactical toybox staged in sprawling bulwarks bristling with eerily sentient enemies–the new pinnacle of stealth gaming, and a triumphant final act from one of our luminaries. _\[PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One\]_ ### 7\. _Her Story_  Sam Barlow A whodunit subjectively pieced together by scanning full-motion video clips that require you to spill real-world ink turns out to be a superlative example of how to rivet employing the sparest techniques. It’s complexity from simplicity, a mesmerizing, hybrid investigative-voyeuristic experience where you observe a woman interviewed by detectives about a 1994 murder, unraveling (or deepening) the mystery by lighting on terms or phrases used to ply a vast but fragmented database, trying to puzzle out what happened — and why. _\[iOS, Mac, PC\]_ ### 6\. _The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt_  CD Projekt RED One way of talking about studio CD Projekt Red’s open-world magnum opus _The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt_ might be “the game that made me like _Fallout 4_ less.” It’s that near roleplaying perfection, assuming you like slow-burn fantasy games about potion-chugging mutants and ethical courses of action with inexorably bleak outcomes. [_The Witcher 3_](http://www.amazon.com/Witcher-Wild-Prima-Official-Guide/dp/0804161593/ref=sr%5F1%5F1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1448303519&sr=1-1&keywords=The+Witcher+3%3A+Wild+Hunt?tag=timecom-20 "undefined") is to the rest of the video game roleplaying genre as George R.R. Martin to J.R.R. Tolkien. _\[PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One\]_ ### 5\. _Super Mario Maker_  Nintendo It’s _Super Mario Bros._, _Super Mario Bros. 3_, _Super Mario World_ and _New Super Mario Bros. U_ rolled into a rich but accessible toolbox, letting players create and share whatever bizarre level ideas they can dream up. Why it took Nintendo this long to release a [Super Mario level maker](http://www.amazon.com/Super-Mario-Maker-Tricks-Secrets/dp/151732176X/ref=sr%5F1%5F1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1448303450&sr=1-1&keywords=super+mario+maker+game?tag=timecom-20 "undefined") is anyone’s guess, but if one game sells the two-screen idea of the Wii U–the stylus is essential here–it’s this one. _\[Wii U\]_ ### 4\. Ryan North’s _To Be or Not to Be_  Tin Man Games [Ryan North’s _To Be or Not to Be_](http://gamebookadventures.com/gamebooks/to-be-or-not-to-be/ "undefined") is the digi-fied version of a crowdfunded 768 page choose-your-own-adventure that came out a few years ago in book form. Studio Tin Man Games’ digital version is the quirkiest, funniest, most insightful retelling of Shakespeare’s _Hamlet_ I’ve experienced in any medium. Multiply by a gazillion possible narrative routes, cultural takedowns and goofy cameos by everything from ghostly aliens to undead presidents. Like Inkle Studios’ _80 Days_ last year, it’s the smartest bit of interactive fiction you’ll flick through all year. _\[PC, Android, iOS\]_ ### 3\. _Batman: Arkham Knight_  Warner Bros. Rocksteady reversed the curse of the shoddy superhero tie-in when it surprised with _Batman: Arkham Asylum_ six years ago. [_Arkham Knight_](http://www.amazon.com/Batman-Arkham-Knight-PlayStation-4/dp/B00IQCRKT8/ref=sr%5F1%5F3?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1448303292&sr=1-3&keywords=batman+Arkham+Knight?tag=timecom-20 "undefined") is everything the company’s learned since cranked to 11 with a side of 12\. And it’s not just a fitting fireworks finale that banks on past design glories rubbed in next-gen gloss: the studio took big risks by turning _Arkham Knight_ into a buddy game, pairing Batman with the Batmobile, managing to make its inclusion both essential and exhilarating. _\[PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One\]_ ### 2\. _Undertale_  tobyfox In the guise of a Japanese roleplaying game, _Undertale_ is an investigation of what may really be happening when we play so-called Japanese roleplaying games. It’s a fantasy odyssey that deconstructs itself as you wander. It invites replays, winking at us like a smarter, subtler version of a “Let’s Play” YouTuber shouting insults at the screen. And it’s relentlessly, fastidiously obsessed with helping us see the consequences of the choices so often flippantly made, and the implicit violence we’re wont to do in the name of freedom. _\[PC\]_ ### 1\. _Splatoon_  Nintendo Nintendo’s best idea in years, [_Splatoon_](http://www.amazon.com/Splatoon-Wii-U/dp/B00KWFCV32/ref=sr%5F1%5F1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1448303149&sr=1-1&keywords=Splatoon?tag=timecom-20 "undefined") sees two squads of four players battling in skatepark-inspired arenas, outfitted with ink-spewing gadgetry and one imperative: to paint as much of their team’s color on the ground as possible before time runs out. There’s nothing else quite like it, nor the cathartic dopamine jolt to be had when you sail up a paint-smeared quarter pipe, an Inkzooka at the ready, leap over the edge, take aim with your weapon, and reduce a startled opponent to goo. _\[Wii U\]_ Ultimately, which program is right for you depends on your needs. If you’re just looking for video games, Best Buy’s cheaper program may be the wiser choice. But Prime is a compelling package that [seems to get better every few months](http://time.com/money/4018508/amazon-prime-video-downloads/ "undefined"). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4177260/amazon-video-game-discount/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4177260/amazon-video-game-discount/"},"headline":"Amazon Has a Sweet New Deal for Video Gamers","datePublished":"2016-01-12T16:59:26.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:44:11.917Z","description":"This could save hardcore gamers some money","url":"https://time.com/4177260/amazon-video-game-discount/","keywords":["Retail","Tech","Video Games"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt217d6d4d588b8006/698878bda988ca95ce6b6142/gettyimages-473889268.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alex Fitzpatrick","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alex-fitzpatrick/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt217d6d4d588b8006/698878bda988ca95ce6b6142/gettyimages-473889268.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"GettyImages-473889268","caption":"during the group stage of the finale for FIFA Interactive World Cup 2015 at Palais am Lenbachplatz on May 18, 2015 in Munich, Germany.","creditText":"Alexander Hassenstein - FIFA—2015 FIFA","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/retail/","name":"Retail"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4177260/amazon-video-game-discount/","name":"Amazon Has a Sweet New Deal for Video Gamers"}}]}] ```