Dear users,
BetaDwarf team has kindly provided us with extra time for this giveaway. Feel free to request your key :)

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Always yours,
GOTD Team

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:)

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I forgot to mention until the giveaway was almost over this morning that if you activated your copy of Minion Masters you also get a second copy of the game, (thanks for reminding me Mavadelo). You'll find a second copy of the game in your Steam inventory. Please see the end of the 'Useful Information not related to today's game giveaway' located at the end my review for more details of how to trade or give this game to one of your Steam friends.

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Minion Masters is not suitable or recommended for young children

Please only post comments about today's game giveaway; other comments either not appropriate, or not about the game will be deleted at the moderator or administrators discretion; however a little light banter among community members and with the moderator to keep this a friendly place to visit will be allowed, and will be judged by the moderator as to whether it is suitable or not to be left.

I am posting this in light of the massive increase in negative comments not related to the game being given away, inappropriate comments and spam (Almost 700 spam comments were posted earlier this month on one day) that have occurred over the past several months since the site was updated and in particular since the site started to give away games from the Steam world and since they started using Facebook. Only comments about the game will be responded to.

I truly believe that if we get lots of decent feedback about the games we get here, more developers will be happy to give away their games. Seeing lots of complaints (and spam) instead of feedback about the game given away will not persuade other developers to give their games away for free. So please bear this in mind when posting your comments. Any comment not about the game for example complaints, or if deemed unfriendly or inappropriate, especially inane or abusive comments, will be deleted or added to the spam folder, which automatically black lists the IP address you used. Although I have enjoyed responding to many of those commentspreviously, I will no longer waste my time answering comments from community members who should have read the moderation policy.

Negative feedback about the games given away are always welcomed because they can also be very constructive for developers, however, complaining about the way the site is operating or problems about downloading or installing the games should be directed to the giveawayoftheday contact form which I've linked to HERE; alternatively, if the problem is game related and it is late in the day (I can't moderate 24 hours a day), please also post your issue in the forums where you may get a response from the community. Often, such problems are related to the way your computer is configured, or a conflict with something you have running in the background such as an overly sensitive anti-malware program. i.e. your security may block the installation (for example quite a few game giveaways I've installed have been blocked by my copy of Zemana Anti-malware suite). All game giveaways that require a download from this site also include a Themida wrapper, which can casue conflicts with some security programs and may result in the game being blocked from installing. Also please read the moderation policy which can be found HERE and if you do have a problem please check the FAQ's thread HERE. Thank you.

Minion Masters

In Brief

Minion Masters is in Early Access at this time, so I could be considered an alpha or Beta version of the final game. It was originally released on Steam on the 2nd December 2016. Once out of Early Access the game will become Free to Play, but at the moment it costs £14.99 plus if you want the Premium Upgrade, that includes lots of extra items that will cost more once the game has been released, it will cost you another £14.99. We are getting the basic version, but that also includes items that would normally cost real money once the basic game goes to Free to Play.

Choose your Minion Master and collect an army of Minions to go head-to-head with other players online, in a real-time minion battle! Solo mode also included.

Suggestions:

After playing Minion Masters please give some feedback about your opinion of the game taking into account the moderation policy of this web site (I've provided alink in the moderator comment above), for example, what you liked or disliked about it, or how it could be improved from your point of view. The game is still in early access and the developers welcome feedback from the community. If you don't like this genre at all, please explain why. What, improvements, if any, would change your opinion? There are thousands of subscribers to the game giveaway of the day every weekend which makes this an ideal forum for giving developers ideas as to what their consumers (i.e you) would like to see in a game. For example, you could suggest extra content such as better or more original mini games, or a level editor that you would like to see that would make it more appealing to you. Maybe you think the graphics are a little dated and are in need of re skinning, or maybe you've just had enough of the genre and want to see something different or something with more originality?

If you have problems getting a key once you've completed all four of the tasks (i.e. subscribe to a newsletter from developer, follow the developer BetaDwarf on Twitter and BaboonLord (the CEO of BetaDwarf) and share the game on your Facebook page.

Assuming you don't mind playing games via Steam and miss today's offer totally you can get the game 24/7 via Steam HERE for £14.99/$19.99, though once out of Early Access it will become a Free to play game, with options to purchase extra content, some of which is already included in the paid for version. The developer has been giving out free keys regularily. Check the developers web site HERE for details, or read the Steam discussions on this game HERE

Introduction:

Choose your Minion Master and collect an army of Minions to go head-to-head Player 'v' Player battles online, in a real-time minion battle using strategy, knowledge of your minions, to earn more minions (cards). The game does have trading cards some of which drop while playing the game. once you've collected a full set you become eligible for free booster pack drops every week so long as you've signed into your Steam account at least weekly. Trading cards can either be traded for other cards, sold on the Steam market for real cash or swapped for badges. If you choose the latter you also get a discount coupon off other games in your wish list with between 33% to 60% off. You also get an emicon which can be used when communicating with Steam friends via Steams messaging system, or when leaving comments on friends profiles, or commenting on games, plus a Steam background wallpaper. All of which (apart from the discount voucher) can be traded or sold on the Steam market!

Installation:

Assuming you've got your Steam key for Minion Masters (via your enmail). However, if you’ve used a throwaway email or you've changed your email from the one you originally used when first signing into the comments section there will be problems getting a key, because the key will be sent to that email. One of the giveaway team did say last week that there may be problems using Yahoo emails. If you do have any problems, i.e. not receiving your key, please use the giveaway contact form that i've linked to above in the moderator comment. I do not have any priveleges that enable me to sort out email issues. The giveaway team did post information about the email issues several weeks ago explaining the email situation.

Once you've received your key you have to activate the game via your Steam client. Once activated it will be permanently tied to your Steam profile and you'll be able to install the game at any time, anywhere on any computer, so long as you can validate who you are (usually via the email you registered with Steam). If you don't have a Steam account you will first have to download and install the Steam client HERE. There is no download for this game directly from the giveaway site. you download it via the Steam client. Then create a Steam profile/account. Once that has been completed you can input the Steam code that you've received (after completing the form filling) via the game button along the top of the Steam client, (located between friends and Help - see image below). From the drop down menu select 'Activate a product on Steam'. This opens a product activation window. Just follow the prompts to complete activation. Once the Steam code has been accepted, the game will be permanently associated with your Steam account and can be installed any time you wish.

If you have a problem installing or activating or getting Minion Masters to work, please visit the problems section over in the Game Discussion forums, which I've now incorporated into the FAQ's thread, and which you can find HERE. Once the giveaway is over, please post any issues you have over in the Game discussion forums HERE

The Game:

I'm really pleased with this game, it's fast, has lots of action, requires quick thinking. A knowlegde of each minions strengths and weaknesses will help win battles again online enemies, plus there are interesting enemies, perks, rewards and various battle cards to earn. You can access Steam news and updates about the game and see broadcasts of various recent online battles between real people. You'll find helpful hints and what strategies to use against your enemies as well as what the best cards are, plus there are daily challenges and level rewards as well as access to various guides that will help you understand the game much better via the Steam client directly from the game by clicking on the news icons located on the right side of the game arena.

Fast-paced head-to-head Duels

Enter a world of Minion battles!Summon your Minions and watch them charge blindly toward their opponents, leaving it entirely up to you to decide their course by where you place them.
Minions can claim the bridges and destroy the rival Master.
Claiming bridges earns you xp and allows you to level up, earning unique perks based on your chosen Master.
You can also use mighty spells to tip the tide of the battle, for example with a well aimed healing fireball (it’s a thing) in the midst of your wounded troops.

Unlock and Craft Mighty Minions and Spicy Spells!

Like the Demon Warrior that grows stronger every time you play it - Raid boss time!
Or the peace-loving Mana Puff, that gives you extra mana when it's happy - which is always.
Of course, you could also get the Troubadour, a large, friendly gentleman who loves his bagpipe more than his opponents do.

Real-time Online matches - from Wood League to Grand Master

Play online against worthy opponents who think they can outwit you.
Lightning-fast matches let you play “just one more” all the time.
Or invite your friends and beat them with your home made deck of juicy creativity!

”Anything else?”

Replays!
Rapid game updates!
Collect your own Arenas!
Season rankings!
Gorgeous 3D visuals!
Pick one of a bajillion strategies
Did we mention the Puffs? There’s even a King Puff! The following review was originally posted by Marshall Honorof on the 8th Dec 2012 when it was in early alpha.

If you've ever played a collectible card game like Magic: The Gathering, at some point you've probably wondered how all of those battles would play out in reality. It's one thing to say that six frightened squirrels can hold back a colossal giant, or that a heavenly catastrophe just reduced every forest, island, and mountain in the vicinity to cinders, but how would it look on a three-dimensional battlefield? Minion Master, a new free-to-play, multiplayer-focused PC strategy game, attempts to combine the strategic deck-building of a CCG with the tactical movement of a board game. The resulting creation isn't perfect, but merits a glance from anyone who's interested in the mashup of those two game types.

Getting started is quick and easy, and your first of five pre-constructed decks is free. Cards come in two flavors: summons, which include sorceresses, zombies, catapults, and whatever other creatures you need to wreak destruction on your behalf, and modifiers, which can enchant creatures, reshape the board, or hurt or heal the player directly. Each card costs a certain amount of mana, the game's primary resource.

Instead of an abstract exchange of numbers, each round of Minion Master plays out on a hex-based grid. Creatures will automatically move across the board in accordance with their AI programs. Archers prefer to hang back and defend a player's home turf, while trolls will surround themselves with enemies to make full use of their area-of-effect melee skills. You can also micromanage each unit, ordering them to defend or attack certain tiles, but this costs additional mana. This process is cumbersome and often not worth the cost, but is something of a necessity to take advantage of different terrain types or defend vital choke points.

Each player begins with 20 life points, and incurs damage when creatures attack his or her central stronghold: a tower in a far corner of the map. Killing a player's creatures will also eat away at his or her life total, dishing out damage depending on the relative strength of the creature. Sending out a swarm of kobolds to do your dirty work may seem like a good idea at the time, but if a few enemy knights trounce ten of them, you'll find yourself missing half of your life total within a few turns.

One of Minion Master's most unique features is the way it handles mana. Rather than stockpiling land cards or sending units out to gather the magical resource, players gain mana by discarding any summons or modifiers they hold in their five-card hands. While this means that Minion Master offers no devastatingly huge monsters or cataclysmic enchantments, it also keeps the game balanced and the decisions tense. Is it better to cast a spell that discards everything in your hand to replenish your life points, or summon just one lowly footman while holding onto some powerful modifiers for your next turn? Weighing a card's potential destructive power against its utility as a mana source is at the heart of the game's strategy.

Reference accessed HERE 28th Jan 2017

Other Reviews, Videos and a Slideshow of images:

You can see Steam community reviews of Minion masters, most of which are positive HERE, and if you want to see some game-play you can see some videos of game play HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE. You can a slideshow of around 90 images showing the solo introductory battles HERE.

Conclusion:

Minion Masters is an excellent multiplayer PvP strategy card game with a three dimensional arena where you battle various enemy minions and earn upgrades and new more powerful minions by gaining experience and winning rounds. The game has been in development for several years by the developer BetaDwarf. The fast gameplay is ideal for quick battles and rapid advancement. There ar elots of rewards and perks awarded regualtily to keep you interested. This game is in my opinion one of the best Steam games we've been given apart from the Forge of Gods dlc packs. Great fun and apart from the younger mebers of your family an ideal game to play with friends as well as solo. I highly recommend you try this game. All progress is saved in the Steam clud, so if you uninstall or upgrade your computer, progress is not lost.

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the developer BetaDwarf for giving away this game today and also to the game giveaway team, as always, for securing other ways to get free games, in this case a Steam key for a $20 game.

Useful Information not related to today's game giveaway:

The problems section that used to be posted here in the Game review is now included in the Game Discussion FAQ's thread; which you can find HERE.

I've updated the games section that used to be posted with the review. The thread is now called 'Weekly round up of game deals', formerly the games section of the weekly reviews. You can find the new thread (which I've posted in the sticky section of the game discussion forums to make it easier to find if you are perusing the game discussion forums) HERE.

If Minion Masters didn't appeal, you may find other games either free or for less than the price of a cup of coffee via the 'Weekly Roundup of Game Deals' thread which I've posted a link to above, or HERE.

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The free game over on Origin is still the excellent atmospheric Sci Fi RPG third person Shooter Mass Effect 2, but it will be ending very soon. If you've still not got a copy, this may be your last chance to get it free. It usually costs £19.99/$19.99 (though I paid the pre order price of over £30 prior to it's release back in January 2010) . You can get it HERE. Please note that you do require the Origin game platform to be able to download and install the game.

There are 784 games on sale over on Steam at the moment, with up to 91% off. Game prices range from as little as £0.12p and there almost 250 games and dlc less than $1/(£0.79p). You can find all of the deals HERE. If you spend more than $3 in the Indie Gala Store you'll also get a free copy of the atmospheric point and click horror adventure game 'Between Me and the Night' worth $14.99/£9.99. There's also an encore sale that ends on the 30th January over on the Humble Bundle site featuring loads of premium games such as Call of Duty Black ops III, F1 2016, RPG Maker MV, Project Cars, Tales of Zestria and a Bandai Namco sale that includes Dark Souls I, II, and III, God Eater 2, Dragonball Xenoverse, Tales of Symphonia, NARUTO SHIPPUDEN: Ultimate Ninja STORM 4 plus loads more. There's also lots of games on sale over on the Bundle Stars and Indie Game Stand (IGS) stores.

Giving your extra copy of Minion Masters away to friends

Go to your Steam inventory (via the button on the right of your profile page or from the drop down menu when you click on your Steam name along the top of the Steam client). You should see the game in the box called 'Your New Items', or in the area where it says 'All Steam Items'. If you've already collected lots of Steam Trading Cards, click on the down pointing arrow next to where it says ''All Steam Items'' and select from the drop down menu 'Gifts' You should now see any games you have in your inventory. Click on the game icon then in the right hand panel it will tell you when you can trade it. Usually it's 30 days after being added to your Steam inventory, however, if you wish to give the game away to a friend you can do so right away. The 30 day wait is only if you are going to trade it for other Steam items such as Trading Cards.

If you wish to swap/trade it for Steam cards or other items you can do so via the trading panel. If you're not sure how to trade, click on your friends list, select a friend you wish to give or trade the game to and click on the name to open up your friends profile. Then click on the button next to where it says ''Send a Message'' i.e. 'More' and select 'Offer a Trade'. This opens up the trade offer panel. On the left hand side just below where it says ''Your Inventory'' click on the down pointing arrow next to where it says ''Select an inventory to view items you can trade'' then select Steam. Once you've located the game click on it via the trade panel and it will be added to the right hand panel where it says Your Items. Then select from your friends inventory what Items you wish to trade the game for. Then make the offer. You will have to validate this via your Steam email and your friend will if accepting the trade have to do the same before any exchange is made. Or your friend can refuse the trade. Alternatively if you are going to give the game away you can do so by selecting the game in your inventory then click on the button in the right hand panel where it says ''Send Gift'' This will open up a new window and gives you the option of choosing a delivery method. You can either select Sending the gift directly through Steam or emailing the gift to your friend. If you elect to send it via Steam, check next to where it says Send my gift directly through Steam. You should then see a list of all of your friends. If your friend already owns a copy you will see written next to their name in orange that they already own the game. If they wish for a copy it will says so in blue. Select the friend you wish to give the game to then click on the green next button and fill in the presonalization information. Then click Send. The gift should then appear when your friend opens up their Steam client the next time.