Game editions: Standard, Deluxe, Ultimate

Most games launch in more than one edition at different prices. The names change from publisher to publisher, but the structure is almost always the same.

Standard Edition — the base game. Everything needed to play it from start to finish, and nothing else.

Deluxe Edition — the base game plus extras. Usually cosmetic items, in-game currency, a digital soundtrack or artbook, and often a few days of early access before the official release.

Ultimate Edition (also called Gold, Premium or Complete depending on the publisher) — the base game plus the season pass or the planned DLC, plus whatever the Deluxe includes. The most expensive, and the one that actually adds gameplay rather than decoration.

Two more you will see. Game of the Year and Complete editions appear a year or more after launch and bundle the base game with everything released since — usually the best value on an older title. And Collector''s Editions are physical: a statue, a steelbook, an art book. You are buying an object, not more game.

Which game edition should I buy?

Start with the Standard edition unless you have a specific reason not to. You can almost always buy DLC later if you end up wanting it, and most players never use the cosmetic extras that Deluxe editions are built around.

Deluxe is worth it in one case: you specifically want the early access, or the in-game currency matters in that particular game.

Ultimate is worth it when the season pass contains real content you know you will play, and the bundle genuinely costs less than buying the game and the DLC separately. Do that arithmetic before you commit — sometimes it does not.

And if the game is not new, check whether a Game of the Year or Complete edition exists first. It is often cheaper than the Standard edition was at launch and contains more.

Browse our games, and if you are not sure which edition of a specific title gives you what you want, call 16280 and ask before ordering.