Steam Next Fest Brings Thousands of Demos and New Indie Games to Explore

Steam Next Fest is underway, offering players thousands of fresh game demos to discover. With so many options, one writer decided to focus on demos they were already looking forward to.

Among the standout demos is "Screenbound," a 5D platformer where you control a character in a 3D world and their version on a 2D Game Boy-like device (the Qboy) simultaneously. It releases September 10. "Truck-kun is Supporting Me from Another World?!" is a fast-paced, funny driving game with anime vibes, arriving at the end of July.

Another highlight is "Virtue and a Sledgehammer," a walking sim where you search for your sister and can smash things with a sledgehammer — the writer's favorite demo so far. Other demos include "Backyard Baseball" and "Kick," a slice-of-life game about a young soccer fan dribbling to school.

New indie releases include "The Last Salvage Squad," a 2.5D shooter with Virtual Boy-inspired visuals, available on Steam, Switch, and Switch 2. "Copa City" is a soccer management sim focused on matchday logistics, but it feels rushed and contains placeholder text. "Thank You For Your Application" lets you review job candidates and manage your own life, offering commentary on late-stage capitalism.

Upcoming games feature "Catto's Post Office," a cute cat delivery game; "Flesh Made Fear," a survival horror PS5 port; and "ReStory: Chill Electronics Repairs," a repair shop sim due in summer 2026.