Explore upcoming games, and try out free demos!

Steam Next Fest is back! Starting from June 15–22, 2026 (10 AM Pacific Time), with this Next Fest featuring over 4,000 demos. It’s both a paradise and a nightmare for completionists. Some demos will disappear from public access once the event ends, so make sure to prioritize the games you want to play! If you’re unsure, here’s a list of the 10 games that have stood out so far.

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1. Mistfall Hunter

If you’ve been waiting for a soulslike extraction game with real production value, Mistfall Hunter is your answer. Set against a gritty Norse aesthetic, it blends soulslike combat with the mechanics of extraction games like Dark and Darker. Think dungeon-diving with permanent consequences and a deeply satisfying loot loop. The demo already packs in multiple maps, distinct character classes, an auction house, a party-based resource scavenging system, and unique boss encounters. It’s been the most-played demo of the fest, and it’s easy to see why.

Planned Release Date: July 29, 2026

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2. Empulse

From 1047 Games (the studio behind Splitgate), comes Empulse a 6v6 FPS that feels like a spiritual successor to Titanfall 2’s beloved multiplayer. The movement system is exceptional, giving players freedom to wall-run, grapple, and jetpack their way around arenas with a fluidity that’s rare in the genre. The signature twist is P.A.I.N.T. bombs, which can be used offensively, defensively, and for mobility depending on the situation. Toss in controllable mechs as round objectives and you’ve got a multiplayer shooter that feels genuinely fresh. Given that 1047 recently reclaimed full creative control of their projects, Empulse reads like a team with something to prove… and they’re proving it.

Planned Release Date: June 24, 2026

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3. Order of the Sinking Star

Jonathan Blow, the mind behind Braid and The Witness is back! Puzzle game fans should treat this like a must-play. Order of the Sinking Star spans four interconnected worlds and reportedly houses over a thousand hand-crafted puzzles. The demo only offers a taste, but the quality is immediately evident: these are layered, clever puzzles that respect your intelligence.

Release Date: TBD

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4. Silver Pines

A horror metroidvania with Twin Peaks energy, developed by a five-person Swedish-Norwegian team whose members previously worked on Helldivers 2 and Yoku’s Island Express. Silver Pines casts you as an explorer uncovering the rotten secrets buried beneath a quiet American town, and unlike many genre peers, the stakes feel real: limited inventory, scarce resources, and encounter design that makes every door a small gamble. Published by Team17, this is one of the more polished and atmospheric offerings of the fest.

Release Date: October 8, 2026

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5. Well Dweller

Solo developer Kyle Thompson (Islets, Crypt Custodian) has taken a sharp tonal turn with Well Dweller, a 2D metroidvania that replaces his previous bright, bouncy style with something darker and more unsettling. You play as a tiny bird armed with a matchstick, navigating a twisted fairy tale world full of ability-gated exploration and the satisfying backtracking-as-reward structure the genre does best. The shift in tone from Thompson’s earlier work is striking, and the demo suggests this could be one of his most ambitious releases yet.

Planned Release Date: Sometime in 2026

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6. Sprawl Zero

A love letter to the boomer shooters of the early 2000s, Sprawl Zero blends Quake’s kinetic movement with early DOOM’s visual identity into something that feels genuinely buttery to control. The standout mechanic is the chunky grav gloves, a magnetic fist system that creates satisfying physical interactions with enemies, and the environment. It’s a brisk demo, perfect for a quick hit, but the smooth feel of the gunplay and the crisp aesthetics make a strong case that Sprawl Zero deserves a spot on your radar ahead of release.

Release Date: TBD

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7. SAND: Raiders of Sophie

SAND was one of the surprise hits of Summer Game Fest, and the demo delivers on that initial excitement. You traverse a massive desert wasteland piloting a customizable walker-mech, scavenging ruins and getting into scrappy, chaotic firefights with rival crews; all while the literal ocean of sand beneath you serves as a constant threat. The demo leans into the player-driven adventure fantasy: hop off your mech, raid an abandoned structure, engage in a messy shootout, scramble back to safety. It has the scrappy, diesel-punk energy of a game built by people who genuinely love this setting.

Planned Release Date: June 22, 2026

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8. Rivage

For fans of Blue Prince and the particular pleasure of a spatial puzzle that slowly stops being confusing and starts making perfect, devastating sense. Rivage is the demo to play. It’s quieter and more contemplative than its obvious influences, trusting players to sit in confusion for a while before doling out the next revelation. Crucially, the demo doesn’t overstay its welcome: it gives you exactly enough to become obsessive about what comes next, without spoiling the full experience. Rare restraint.

Planned Release Date: August 13, 2026

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9. Iron Nest: Heavy Turret Simulator

Iron Nest earns its subtitle. You are in control of a colossal turret in a dieselpunk world, and the demo commits entirely to the absurd, tactile joy of that premise. You plot coordinates on a map, fiddle with pressure gauges, adjust levers and knobs, and finally unleash a massive projectile into the horizon. It’s the kind of game that sounds niche until you’re twenty minutes in and completely absorbed. Simulator fans will find a lot to love, but the distinctive aesthetic and the sheer commitment to the bit make Iron Nest stand out even for players who don’t typically gravitate toward the genre.

Release Date: Q3 2026

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10. Penguin Colony

Sometimes the best demo in Next Fest is the one that asks the least of you. Penguin Colony is a cozy walking sim in which you play as a penguin quietly observing human behavior… and yes, it is exactly as charming as it sounds. There’s no fail state, no threat, no pressure: just slow exploration and the gentle comedy of watching people do strange human things from a very low vantage point. It’s the perfect palate cleanser between everything else on this list, and proof that Next Fest still has room for games that just want to make you feel good.

Planned Release Date: Sometime in 2026

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Don’t Sleep on It

Steam Next Fest ends on June 22, 2026, and most demos will disappear from public access when it does. All ten of these are free to download right now, there’s no reason not to at least give your top picks a spin before the window closes. With over 4,000 demos in the mix, the ones listed above represent some of the most consistently praised and most distinctive offerings of the event. Get them on your wishlist at minimum; you’ll thank yourself later.