How the "Buy Now?" Verdict Is Decided (A Look Under Lowstamp's Hood)

You've probably had this moment: the game is sitting in your Steam cart, but you hesitate—"Is this price actually a good deal, or will it drop more if I wait a bit longer?" Lowstamp adds a one-line "Buy now?" verdict to every game to take some of that hesitation away. A lot of people have asked what exactly that verdict is based on, so this article lays out the reasoning in plain terms.

The key isn't the discount—it's the distance from the all-time low

Let's clear up one common misconception first. People often assume "70% off has to be cheap," but the discount off list price alone can't tell you whether a price is actually good. A game with an inflated list price might still be 70% off and yet have sold for far less in the past, while a classic that rarely drops might hit its effective all-time low at just 40% off. That's why Lowstamp looks at "how close is today's price to the all-time low" before it looks at "what percent off the list price is this."

The number that drives everything is "how much more expensive is the current price than the all-time low." For example, if a game once bottomed out at 20,000 won and now sells for 21,000 won, it's 5% above the low; at 23,000 won it's 15% above. The smaller that gap, the closer you are to rock bottom—and the more generous the verdict gets.

The five verdict tiers

Lowstamp's verdicts break down into five tiers. The higher up, the stronger the "now's a good time to buy" signal; the lower down, the more it's saying "you can afford to wait."

All-time low — The current price matches or beats the cheapest it has ever been on record. If it set a brand-new record today, we call it out separately with a gold ★ stamp. There's no guarantee it'll go lower, so if it's a game you've wanted, now's the time.
Near the low — No more than 5% above the all-time low. Think a 20,000 won floor with the game now at 20,800 won. Not a price worth waiting on indefinitely just to save a few hundred won.
Around the recent low — Within 15% of the all-time low. Buy now if you're in a hurry; if you can wait, a big sale might shave off a little more.
Solid discount — Some distance from the all-time low, but still 50% or more off the list price. The discount itself isn't bad, but the game has sold for less in the past.
Weak discount / list price — The discount is small (weak discount) or there's none at all (list price). Unless you're in a rush, you're better off adding it to your wishlist and waiting for the next sale.

The exact thresholds are: within +5% of the all-time low (near the low), within +15% (around the recent low), and 50% or more off the list price (solid discount). So you don't judge by color alone, the text label is what matters—color is just a supporting cue.

It's clearer with an example

Say a game with a 66,000 won list price has an all-time low of 16,500 won. If it's selling for 16,500 won right now, it shows up as "all-time low"—a clear buy signal—and at 17,000 won it's only about 3% above the floor, so "near the low." If that same game is 19,800 won (70% off the list price), the discount looks flashy, but it's 20% above the floor, so it stays at "solid discount." It's easy to be dazzled by that 70%, but it just means the game has gone cheaper before.

Conversely, a game that rarely goes on sale might be only 40% off the list price and still show up as "near the low" if that's about equal to its all-time low. What matters isn't whether the number is big or small—it's whether, for this particular game, today's price is close to the floor.

How to use the verdict when deciding to buy

If it's a game you genuinely want and will play right away, there's little reason to hesitate at "near the low" or better. When the gap from the floor is just a few thousand won, waiting months to save that much usually isn't worth it. On the other hand, for a game that's more of a "I'd like to try it someday," at "solid discount" or "weak discount" you're better off wishlisting it and waiting for a big sale.

Factoring in Steam's annual sale schedule makes the call easier. Valve sets the exact dates each year, but the general rhythm has been a Summer Sale in late June to early July, a Winter Sale from mid-December into the new year, and Spring and Autumn sales once each in between (these are rough estimates, not confirmed dates). If a game is only at "solid discount" and you're on the fence, check how soon the next big sale is and decide whether to hold out.

One thing to add: the all-time low is just the record so far—it doesn't guarantee a floor for the future. As a game ages, a new low can appear; conversely, a popular title may hold its floor without breaking it for a long while. So the verdict isn't a "definitive right answer" so much as a compass that tells you where today's price sits for this particular game.

To sum up, Lowstamp's "Buy now?" sorts games into five tiers by distance from the all-time low, not by how flashy the discount looks. When you find a game you want, check the verdict first: above "near the low," buy with peace of mind; below it, wishlist it and wait for a sale. Do that and you'll save money—and have fewer regrets.