The October edition of Steam Next Fest is here to let players get hands-on with games they’ve been looking forward to or discover new favorites to look forward to. There are quite a lot of games competing for your time so we put together this list of seven Steam Next Fest demos to check out. Some of these are just ones that have caught our eye and others are games we’ve actually played ahead of public release. As always, you’re here for the games, so let’s cut right to the chase.
Enshrouded | From the indie developers of Portal Knights, Enshrouded is a new survival action RPG for 1 to 16 players, set in a vast abandoned realm corrupted by a mysterious fog. Players must vanquish punishing bosses, build grand halls, and upgrade their hero to withstand the mist and uncover the secrets of the kingdom’s downfall. The sizeable demo gives players a few hours to explore the lands of Embervale and check out the fighting, building, and survival mechanics. Enshrouded is slated to launch into Steam Early Access in Q4 of 2023 and until October 16 you can get a feel for what to expect.
Reveil | It’s October so we obviously had to include a horror game on this list. Step into the shoes of Walter Thompson and relive his worst memories in Reveil, a narrative psychological horror experience that strives for the tone of Alfred Hitchcock or Stephen King stories. We got some early hands-on with the demo for Reveil to experience about thirty minutes of gameplay. The demo doesn’t show much of the horror of the game but it does tease some of the numerous intractable puzzles and the trippy circus-themed visuals. While we still have to wait and see how the narrative shapes up, Reveil has enough interesting ideas on display to put this on your radar.
RoboCop: Rogue City | Inspired by the iconic 1987 movie, RoboCop, the new game from Teyon puts you in the shoes of the famous part man, part machine police officer cleaning up the streets of Detroit. After roughly an hour with the game, I was surprised at how the game caught my attention. Not just for RoboCop fans, the game captures the energy of 80s action movies from the patented dialogue exchanges and narrative events to the debris-filled shootouts. It’ll be interesting to see how long the game holds that charm across a long runtime but we’ll find out soon. RoboCop: Rogue City is scheduled for a full release on November 2 for PlayStation, Xbox, and PC.
Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley | From Norwegian developer Hyper Games, Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley is a story-rich musical adventure game. As Snufkin, you will distract police officers, pull out signs, and knock over misplaced statues as you restore nature and the inhabitants’ homes while putting an end to the industrious Park Keeper’s plans. Experience a beautifully crafted and quintessentially Nordic game, brought to life with stories, emotions, and a melancholic atmosphere, set in the vivid and beloved world of Moomin, created by renowned Finnish author Tove Jansson. Until October 16, you can explore the first parts of the game’s story in an intriguing and alluring area called Wild Country.
The Thaumaturge | From publisher 11 Bit Studios (developer of This War of Mine) comes a hotly anticipated RPG developed by Fool’s Theory, The Thaumaturge. The art of the thaumaturge involves peering deep into the human soul. In the demo, you can play through the prologue and meet the titular thaumaturge, Wiktor Szulski, and a couple of his demon friends, the Salutors, as well as get an introduction to the game’s investigation and combat mechanics. The Thaumaturge is set to release on December 5 so if you enjoy the demo, make sure to add it to your wishlist on Steam. Console versions for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S are planned for early 2024.
United 1944 | There are a lot of WWII first-person shooters hitting the market but United 1944 from Novarama is a bit different as it has an emphasis on crafting and building. In the demo, you can play two different game modes, classic 16v16 Domination and the recently revealed Survivor. This new mode is a solo or squad-based free-for-all where the goal is to survive. Use all the building and crafting mechanics at your disposal to create an outpost and fight for control over the city map. For more details, you can watch the overview video above but if you’re reading this before the 16th, then just download the game and try it for yourself. United 1944 is very much a WWII shooter but with intense encounters that can feel more like Rust than Call of Duty in gameplay. The only real gripe is that the game needs to have higher player counts to be fully playable as there were no active Domination servers when I played it.
Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom | To round out the list, we have a true wild card. Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom is a self-aware arcade platformer that pays homage to classics like Super Mario 64 and Crazy Taxi. Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom tells a tale of ecological redemption as you save people from the wicked oil company. This all equates to you playing as a windup car zipping across bright levels completing bizarre tasks for random people. The game is soaked in internet humor and while the jokes might not always land, I did find myself chuckling a few times during the demo. Some of the references are left field and are best when experienced naturally as you play so give this game a go for a quick laugh or two.
Of course, that is our selection of games to check out but seven is a narrow slice of the demos available. We tried to add some good variety to the list but we obviously couldn’t cover everything. If there are games you’ve played that you want other people to check out, then leave them down below in the comments.
