What to play at the summer Steam Next Fest 2023
On June 19, 2023, the next Steam New Fest / Steam Next Fest started. The event, in which 1292 games participate (61 games, that is, about 5%, have the Ukrainian language), will last until June 26, 2023. But it is easy to get lost in such a number of demos, so we have selected for you the most interesting games of the festival, in our opinion. The games in the list are sorted alphabetically. Add your own options in the comments.
Bulwark: Falconeer Chronicles
An interesting city-building strategy from the author of the game The Falconeer (BAFTA Game Award 2021 for the best debut game), the events of which take place in the same universe. You have to build amazing fortresses on rocky islands in the ocean, controlling a small airship. There is no release date for the game yet.
Hoglands
Ukrainian 2D Tower Defense with RPG elements, inspired by the Middle Ages and the popular Kingdoms game series. The main character of the game is a noble boar, who is trying to protect his kingdom from the hordes of undead pigs, led by Count Porcula himself, and to find the cause of the plague that is spreading around the world. The player will have to build defenses to repel zombie attacks at night, as well as collect resources and rebuild settlements during the day.
House Flipper 2
Sequel to the wildly popular house flipping and selling simulator House Flipper (from 2 to 4.5 million copies sold on Steam alone, plus the game was released on PC Game Pass). The new game will have more renovation and repair options, new tools, smart home elements, and more. The demo asks you to renovate a house on a small tropical island. The full version of House Flipper 2 should be released by the end of 2023.
Jusant
A demo of the climbing action/adventure Jusant appeared a little earlier than the start of the summer Steam Next Fest 2023, but only for a few days, so we will add this game from French Don’t Nod to our list. The vertical gameplay and mysterious ruins conquered by the heroine (or is it the hero?!) of the game are really impressive.
Laysara: Summit Kingdom
A city-building strategy with a very interesting twist. You are building a city somewhere high in the mountains of Tibet. Huts cling to the slopes, bridges over chasms, Buddhist mandalas, and yaks as the driving force of the economy. Such an “Island”, but Tibetan. Laysara: Summit Kingdom looks pretty sweet and should be out by the end of 2023.
Little Kitty, Big City
A game about a cat that fell out of an apartment window and wanders the streets of a small Japanese town. You can drop objects on the floor, you can hide in a box, and meow – the perfect game. Little Kitty, Big City is not as big and bright as Stray, but it’s also very cute. The cat has to return home, communicates with other animals in the city, and sometimes gets into trouble. Little Kitty, Big City is released sometime in 2024.
Lies of P
Interpretation of the story of Pinocchio by the Korean Round 8 Studio. Lies of P is a souls-like in a steampunk setting with gadgets and a bunch of unusual weapons. An interesting feature of the game is the lie system, the impact of the player’s actions on the world, which can lead you to three different endings. Of course, the demo contains only the first levels of the game. Lies of P is released on September 19, 2023.
Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew
Strategy with elements of stealth from German Mimimi Games, authors of Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun and Desperados III. The gameplay is the same as Desperados, but in a Pirates of the Caribbean setting (no, without the movie license), with new characters, skills, and magic. The release of the game on August 17, 2023, is just over two months away.
Station to Station
A very cozy and meditative minimalist railway puzzle in a voxel world that is hard to take your eyes off. We are building a railway network, satisfying the needs of the population, and enjoying the scenery. Station to Station should be released by the end of 2023.
The Invincible
For the new Steam Next Fest, the studio Starward Industries has prepared a completely new demo version, which contains a completely different fragment of the game than that demo released a month and a half ago. And after its passage, we put The Invincible in the Top 3 most anticipated games of 2023. It has the spirit of the original novel by Stanislav Lem, an interesting story and style. Be sure to try it.
Viewfinder
An amazing surreal puzzle in which you can replace reality using photos and drawings in any style. Everything depends only on your imagination. The demo features the beginning of the game and a fragment from the middle. Viewfinder comes out in a month, on July 18, 2023.
Wizard with a Gun
A top-down shooter with elements of survival. Visually and in terms of some gameplay elements, Wizard with a Gun resembles Don’t Starve. But there are magic guns and an interesting story about the end of the world and cowboy magicians trying to turn back time. Wizard with a Gun should be released by the end of 2023.
In fact, these are just a tiny fraction of the interesting demos to be found at Steam Next Fest. It’s very cool that the fashion for demo versions is back, because, as they say, it’s better to try it yourself once than to see it 10 times or hear it 100 times. As a reminder, 1292 games are participating in Steam Next Fest, so we 100% missed something. Add your findings in the comments, and we will then add them to this article as a separate list.