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The best games under $40, ranked for value

Forty dollars is still well under a new release, and it puts the biggest games ever made comfortably in range. Ranked by value-per-dollar, priced live, with one honest pick to skip.

By Stephen V.Deal hunter & value analystPublished August 7, 2026How we pick

#ad— Penny & Pixel is reader-funded. We earn a commission when you buy through our links, at no extra cost to you. It never changes a pick or a verdict. Full disclosure.

A controller and a stack of coins — best games under $40

Forty dollars is the ceiling of "budget" — still well under a full-price new release, but high enough that the very biggest games ever made are all in range. This is the tier where hundred-hour RPGs, prestige open worlds and full-length co-op epics sit comfortably, because the games that launched at seventy dollars have had time to fall.

The order is value-per-dollar: how much genuinely great game you get for the forty. Every pick reliably sells at or under forty dollars, priced live and date-stamped, and the list ends with a pick to skip. If your ceiling is lower, work down through under $30 and under $25; for the genre cut, see cheap open-world games.

The short answer

Quick picks

#GameBest forValuePrice
01
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

PS4 / PS5

One of the greatest RPGs ever made — and since August 2026 every owner of the base game gets both huge expansions free, so the plain disc is now the complete game for less than half the price of a new release. The best value-per-dollar big game money can buy.

Best big RPG for the money
9.6/10
Value
$24.95Amazon
02
Red Dead Redemption 2
Red Dead Redemption 2

PS4 / PS5

A staggering open-world western that launched at full price and now sells for a fraction of it. One of the best-looking, most detailed games ever, cheap.

Best AAA epic on a budget
9.3/10
Value
$15.54Amazon
03
Divinity: Original Sin 2 — Definitive Edition
Divinity: Original Sin 2 — Definitive Edition

Xbox One / Series X|S

One of the deepest RPGs ever made, and one of the best co-op campaigns anywhere. Higher up-front cost, but the hours-per-dollar are absurd.

Best deep RPG value
8.8/10
Value
$26.00Amazon
04
God of War (2018)
God of War (2018)

PS4 / PS5

A landmark single-player action epic that now sells in the budget PlayStation Hits range. Twenty-hours-plus of top-tier AAA for under twenty dollars.

Best cinematic action game cheap
9.1/10
Value
$21.95Amazon
05
Horizon Zero Dawn: Complete Edition
Horizon Zero Dawn: Complete Edition

PS4 / PS5

A gorgeous open-world with a killer hook — robot dinosaurs — plus its expansion, for a fraction of a new AAA release. Huge value for a modern AAA game.

Best open-world value
8.9/10
Value
$34.99Amazon
06
It Takes Two
It Takes Two

Nintendo Switch

A full-length, wildly inventive two-player co-op adventure — and only ONE person needs to own it thanks to the Friend's Pass. Unbeatable value for a pair.

Best two-player adventure
9.2/10
Value
Check price →
07
Resident Evil 2
Resident Evil 2

PS4 / PS5

A remake so good it became the template for the series. Tense, replayable survival horror that now sells for around twenty dollars.

Best horror on a budget
8.7/10
Value
$23.49Amazon
08
Cult of the Lamb
Cult of the Lamb

Nintendo Switch

A roguelike crossed with a village-builder, wrapped in a razor-sharp cartoon style. A lot of clever game for around twenty-five dollars.

Best genre mash-up
8.4/10
Value
$24.99Amazon

#ad · Live prices from the Amazon Product API, as of October 20, 2026. Where we have no verified live price, we show none — we would rather leave a gap than print a number that has rotted.

In detail

The picks, in full

01
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

Best big RPG for the money

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

PS4 / PS5 · Physical

Open-world RPG100+ hrs1 playerPhysical
9.6/10
Value

One of the greatest RPGs ever made — and since August 2026 every owner of the base game gets both huge expansions free, so the plain disc is now the complete game for less than half the price of a new release. The best value-per-dollar big game money can buy.

Pros

  • 150+ hours with the expansions, which are now free for every owner
  • Best-in-class side quests
  • Free PS5 upgrade

Cons

  • Combat is merely okay
  • Slow, dense opening hours
  • The expansions are a free download, not on the disc

Don't buy this if…

…you have little time — this is a genuine hundred-hour-plus commitment.

$24.95View on Amazon

Price as of October 20, 2026. Prices change — Amazon's is the one that counts.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

02
Red Dead Redemption 2

Best AAA epic on a budget

Red Dead Redemption 2

PS4 / PS5 · Physical

Open-world60+ hrs1 playerPhysical
9.3/10
Value

A staggering open-world western that launched at full price and now sells for a fraction of it. One of the best-looking, most detailed games ever, cheap.

Pros

  • Extraordinary detail and story
  • Enormous world
  • Sells far below launch price now

Cons

  • Deliberately slow, heavy controls
  • Big install size

Don't buy this if…

…you want a snappy, fast game — RDR2 is a slow burn that asks for patience.

$15.54View on Amazon

Price as of October 20, 2026. Prices change — Amazon's is the one that counts.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to Red Dead Redemption 2

03
Divinity: Original Sin 2 — Definitive Edition

Best deep RPG value

Divinity: Original Sin 2 — Definitive Edition

Xbox One / Series X|S · Physical

Tactical RPG80+ hrs1–4 playersPhysical
8.8/10
Value

One of the deepest RPGs ever made, and one of the best co-op campaigns anywhere. Higher up-front cost, but the hours-per-dollar are absurd.

Pros

  • Enormous, reactive, systems-driven RPG
  • Excellent 4-player co-op campaign
  • Endless build variety

Cons

  • Costs more up front than most picks here
  • Steep learning curve

Don't buy this if…

…you want something quick or simple — this is a dense, demanding tactical RPG.

$26.00View on Amazon

Price as of October 20, 2026. Prices change — Amazon's is the one that counts.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to Divinity: Original Sin 2 — Definitive Edition

04
God of War (2018)

Best cinematic action game cheap

God of War (2018)

PS4 / PS5 · Physical

Action-adventure20–30 hrs1 playerPhysical
9.1/10
Value

A landmark single-player action epic that now sells in the budget PlayStation Hits range. Twenty-hours-plus of top-tier AAA for under twenty dollars.

Pros

  • Superb combat and story
  • One long, seamless camera shot
  • Budget-priced now

Cons

  • Fairly linear
  • A slow first couple of hours

Don't buy this if…

…you only like open-world sandboxes — this is a focused, guided adventure.

$21.95View on Amazon

Price as of October 20, 2026. Prices change — Amazon's is the one that counts.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to God of War (2018)

05
Horizon Zero Dawn: Complete Edition

Best open-world value

Horizon Zero Dawn: Complete Edition

PS4 / PS5 · Physical

Open-world RPG30–40 hrs1 playerPhysical
8.9/10
Value

A gorgeous open-world with a killer hook — robot dinosaurs — plus its expansion, for a fraction of a new AAA release. Huge value for a modern AAA game.

Pros

  • Striking world and combat
  • Includes the Frozen Wilds expansion
  • Very cheap now

Cons

  • Stiff facial animation in cutscenes
  • Climbing is on-rails

Don't buy this if…

…open-world checklists bore you — Horizon has plenty of map icons to clear.

$34.99View on Amazon

Price as of October 20, 2026. Prices change — Amazon's is the one that counts.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to Horizon Zero Dawn: Complete Edition

06
It Takes Two

Best two-player adventure

It Takes Two

Nintendo Switch · Physical

Co-op adventure12–15 hrs2 playersPhysical
9.2/10
Value

A full-length, wildly inventive two-player co-op adventure — and only ONE person needs to own it thanks to the Friend's Pass. Unbeatable value for a pair.

Pros

  • Constant fresh mechanics, never repeats itself
  • Free Friend's Pass for player two
  • Genuinely great start to finish

Cons

  • Strictly two-player — no solo
  • Story is corny

Don't buy this if…

…you don't have a reliable co-op partner — there is no single-player mode at all.

Check price on Amazon →

No buyable offer at the last price check (October 20, 2026). We show nothing rather than a stale number.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to It Takes Two

07
Resident Evil 2

Best horror on a budget

Resident Evil 2

PS4 / PS5 · Physical

Survival horror8–10 hrs ×21 playerPhysical
8.7/10
Value

A remake so good it became the template for the series. Tense, replayable survival horror that now sells for around twenty dollars.

Pros

  • Superb tension and pacing
  • Two campaigns for replay value
  • Runs and looks great

Cons

  • Genuinely scary
  • Combat is deliberately scarce

Don't buy this if…

…horror stresses you out — RE2 is built to keep you on edge the whole time.

$23.49View on Amazon

Price as of October 20, 2026. Prices change — Amazon's is the one that counts.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to Resident Evil 2

08
Cult of the Lamb

Best genre mash-up

Cult of the Lamb

Nintendo Switch · Digital code

Roguelike / sim15–25 hrs1 playerDigital
8.4/10
Value

A roguelike crossed with a village-builder, wrapped in a razor-sharp cartoon style. A lot of clever game for around twenty-five dollars.

Pros

  • Two great genres that feed each other
  • Superb art and tone
  • Regular free updates

Cons

  • Combat gets repetitive
  • Management can feel like busywork

Don't buy this if…

…you want a pure action game — half of this is base-building and management.

$24.99View on Amazon

Price as of October 20, 2026. Prices change — Amazon's is the one that counts.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to Cult of the Lamb

The honest part

What to skip

Skip · A full-price new release you could wait one cycle on

Forty dollars is close enough to a new release that the temptation is to just pay a bit more and buy the shiny thing at launch. Resist it. A brand-new game at forty or sixty dollars will be a third to a half cheaper within a year, like clockwork, and it will be the exact same game.

The forty dollars on this page buys a stone-cold classic with the discount already baked in — often two of them. Unless you genuinely need to play something the week it launches, the patient buy is always the better value.

Buy instead: Any pick on this list.

What forty dollars should buy you

At forty dollars the question is simple: is it enormous and is it great? Padding does not survive at this price. Here is what we weighed.

Two classics for the price of one new game

The strongest move at forty dollars is often to buy two of the cheaper picks rather than one full-price release. The Witcher 3 alone is 150-plus hours with its expansions, now free for every owner; pair it with almost anything and you have a year of gaming for the price of a single launch title.

The biggest single games, minus the launch tax

Games such as Red Dead Redemption 2 and God of Warlaunched at full price and now sell for a fraction of it — the exact same prestige game, later and cheaper. This is the whole argument for patience.

Co-op that only one person pays for

It Takes Twois a full-length two-player adventure where only one of you needs to own it, thanks to the free Friend's Pass. Split between two people, its real cost is halved — some of the best co-op value anywhere.

Time it against the calendar

Even at this tier, seasonal sales push prices lower. If a major event is close, a $38 buy can become a $25 one — check when games go on sale, or buy now if the live price is already at its usual floor.

How we picked

We don't test games in a lab

Most "best cheap games" lists just re-rank the same store page. We don't, and we won't pretend to run a test lab we don't have. What we do: compile the real current and historical-low prices, the actual playtime and replay data, and the sale cycle — then do the value math and tell you what to skip. The full method is on how we pick. Everything here is checkable.

Questions

Frequently asked

01Are these really under $40?
They reliably sell at or under $40, and most sit well below it — the $40 ceiling is deliberately generous so the biggest games all qualify. The live price on each pick shows the current Amazon figure, and we link the sale calendar so you can decide whether to wait for a deeper cut.
02What's the best value game under $40?
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt — one of the greatest RPGs ever made, with both large expansions now free for every owner, for a fraction of forty dollars. The hours-per-dollar are unmatched at any price.
03Should I buy one $40 game or two cheaper ones?
Usually two cheaper ones. Forty dollars buys several of the all-time value greats together, and variety beats a single big purchase for most budget buyers. See best value games for the most game-per-dollar picks to pair up.

Keep reading

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Sources

Where this comes from