Matt Fuller, 23 June 2023
Steam Next Fest is back, and with it comes a ton of new reveals, demos, and updates on a huge range of thinky games just waiting for you to try and enjoy. With the sheer number of games on display during the festival, it can be tricky to navigate through and find ones that tickle your fancy.
To help you find your way, we've put together a list of some of our personal highlights from Steam Next Fest that we think you should keep your eyes on. The festival runs until 26th June, so you have plenty of time to check out and download any demos that catch your eye.
Be sure to check back, as we'll likely continue to add games to this list as they come to our attention.
Viewfinder
Developer: Sad Owl Studios
Publisher: Thunderful Publishing
Platforms: Windows, PlayStation 5
Challenge perception, redefine reality, and reshape the world around you with an instant camera. Viewfinder is a new single player game offering gamers hours of interesting and fun experiences while uncovering the mysteries left behind.
Paquerette Down the Bunburrows
Developer: Bunstack
Publisher: Abiding Bridge
Platforms: Windows
The buns... you HAVE to capture them!! Think outside the bunburrow or get outsmarted by bunnies in this cute pathfinding-based puzzle game!
Cipher Zero
Developer: Zapdot
Platforms: Windows
A defunct world without a guide; glyphs without a manual. A minimalist logic game.
Escape From Mystwood Mansion
Developer: Lost Sock Studio
Platforms: Windows
In this first-person puzzle escape room game, you are trapped in the mysterious Mystwood mansion. Explore corridors and find hidden rooms while solving puzzles and deciphering codes to find a way out. Will you escape or linger to uncover the mansion's final secret?
Headlong Hunt
Developer: Toombler Games
Platforms: Windows
A puzzle game about capturing a creature. Learn to guide it and hide from it in simple yet surprisingly deep and satisfying ways.
Danger Ducklings
Developer: MassDiGi
Platforms: Windows
Join 2 cute but not-so-bright ducklings on their quest through over 100 fun and challenging puzzles! Conquer new modes, collect costumes, and explore different worlds on their journey to reunite with their Mother!
Siheyuan
Developer: We Are Muesli
Publisher: Fantastico Studio
Platforms: Windows
A single and local co-op action-puzzle game of few words, but lots of tiles. Move the falling blocks, pass them and pass them again to fill the grid, in this minimalistic test of coordination for 1-4 players of any age, inspired by the tradition of "siheyuan", historical courtyards of Beijing, China
Lovux
Developer: Mindlabor
Platforms: Windows
Lovux is a minimalist puzzle game where you try to break all glasses on the screen using different glass types and mechanics wisely. It offers a rich puzzle experience thanks to new mechanics added approximately every 15 levels.
Station to Station
Developer: Galaxy Grove
Publisher: Prismatika
Platforms: Windows
‘Station to Station’ is a minimalist & relaxing game about building railway connections. Grab your conductor’s hat and bring the voxel-art world to life through the magic of trains!
A Tiny Sticker Tale
Developer: Ogre Pixel
Platforms: Windows
A Tiny Sticker Tale is a cozy miniature adventure about changing the world, using the power of stickers!
Land Above Sea Below
Developer: Glasscannon Studio
Publisher: Skystone Games
Platforms: Windows
Land Above Sea Below is an atmospheric building strategy and puzzle game where you have to build your island from tiles in order to raise its height as much as possible, to avoid it getting flooded by the constantly rising sea level.
Stick to the Plan
Developer: Dead Pixel Tales
Publisher: Dead Pixel Tales, SpaceJazz
Platforms: Windows
A relaxing and charming puzzle game about Roberto, a dog who really loves loooooooong sticks with a plan in mind.
Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 To
Developer: Soft Not Weak, LLC
Platforms: Windows
Cast spells, be queer, & crash the biggest concert of the year! Spirit Swap is an action-puzzle game set in a lush, narrative-driven world of witchy demons.
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective
Developer: Capcom
Platforms: Windows
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective, the classic puzzle-solving mystery adventure directed by Ace Attorney creator Shu Takumi, is back! This long-awaited HD remaster features upgraded visuals and sound and new gallery content.
CrossOver: Roll For Initiative
Developer: Gaterooze, Ink, MicroProse Software
Publisher: MicroProse Software
Platforms: Windows
Defend your tabletop RPG paper character sheet from invading pixel enemies! Find matches in your tray of dice to power attacks to clear the evil from your shelf full of campaign books. Hardcore match-3 RPG puzzle meets action-strategy tower defence. Far from a casual game!
TactiCube
Developer: Kinky Rocks
Platforms: Windows
TactiCube is a puzzle and tactic game where you terraform your environment to put it to good use against an army of construction mechs. Anticipate, manipulate and terminate your opponents to free your kingdom from its evil queen.
Growth
Developer: VoodooDuck
Publisher: Assemble Entertainment
Platforms: Windows
Growth is a cozy, hexagonal-grid based soft-strategy game. Explore and populate a procedurally generated world by utilizing unique abilities of animals. Growth blends the beauty of cozy exploration with challenging navigation around obstacles.
Verne: The Shape of Fantasy
Developer: Gametopia
Publisher: Assemble Entertainment
Platforms: Windows
Become Jules Verne and adventure into the dangers that hide in Hemera, a fantastic parallel world built from his own imagination. Explore, solve puzzles and unlock the most coveted secret of the mighty Atlantis.
Vetrix Worlds
Developer: Vagabond
Platforms: Windows
The critically acclaimed Tetris-inspired VR Puzzle game is back with a feature-packed sequel! Enjoy the game alone with our Arcade and Campaign modes, or get social with our all-new Co-op and Competitive Multiplayer Online modes. Time to scratch that OCD itch of yours!
Golden Record Retriever
Developer: Hoochoo Game Studios
Platforms: Windows
⟪Golden Record Retriever⟫ is a rogue-like DICE building game in which a golden retriever kidnapped by aliens grows into a space hero by retrieving the golden records that have become a "space headache.”
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