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Steam Next Fest: October 2025 Edition
- Thread starter Branded
- Start date
Perrott
Member
I've installed (but haven't yet played):
- Pathologic 3
- Painkiller
- Reanimal
- Skate Story
- Marvel Cosmic Invasion
- Lumines Arise
- Ball x Pit
- Goodnight Universe
- Sleep Awake
- Quarantine Zone: The Last Check
- The Berlin Apartment
- Servant of the Lake
- Tingus Goose
Branded
Member
Images link to store pages.
Beneath - No idea how this ever ended up on my wishlist because after playing it for 2 minutes it became clear that this is another undercooked asset-fest. Horrible performance and clunky movement instantly made me quit.
Painkiller - Bit of an odd one I'll admit. I mean it has a very strong presentation, looks super clean as well. The performance is solid and the gameplay, generally, seems right up my alley. Yet the way it handles co-op, or rather forces it, is a weird choice. You're either stuck with bots or have to contend with real players. There's no true 'singleplayer'. Now I don't mind that per se but I can see this being a big turn off for many. I am still hyped for the full release, especially with the prospect of playing a boomer shooter in co-op with a friend on hard difficulty but I'm not going to be surprised if it fails horribly for 3D Realms.
Directorate Novitiate - Awful title aside this B-tier looking game actually seems well put together. It's TEMU Tomb Raider with Max Payne and magic. Definitely shot up my wishlist now. I couldn't beat the boss though... Seemed far too spongy.
Tides of Tomorrow - Looks nice but it's all just cutscenes and the writing is super clunky. Might be one to pick up in the future on a sale but not really in the mood for this kind of thing right now.
Beneath - No idea how this ever ended up on my wishlist because after playing it for 2 minutes it became clear that this is another undercooked asset-fest. Horrible performance and clunky movement instantly made me quit.
Painkiller - Bit of an odd one I'll admit. I mean it has a very strong presentation, looks super clean as well. The performance is solid and the gameplay, generally, seems right up my alley. Yet the way it handles co-op, or rather forces it, is a weird choice. You're either stuck with bots or have to contend with real players. There's no true 'singleplayer'. Now I don't mind that per se but I can see this being a big turn off for many. I am still hyped for the full release, especially with the prospect of playing a boomer shooter in co-op with a friend on hard difficulty but I'm not going to be surprised if it fails horribly for 3D Realms.
Directorate Novitiate - Awful title aside this B-tier looking game actually seems well put together. It's TEMU Tomb Raider with Max Payne and magic. Definitely shot up my wishlist now. I couldn't beat the boss though... Seemed far too spongy.
Tides of Tomorrow - Looks nice but it's all just cutscenes and the writing is super clunky. Might be one to pick up in the future on a sale but not really in the mood for this kind of thing right now.
Little Mac
Member
Haven't tried any of these on my Steam Deck yet but they look kinda cool …
store.steampowered.com
store.steampowered.com
store.steampowered.com
Goodnight Universe on Steam
From the creators of Before Your Eyes — You are Isaac, a 6-month-old baby, developing mysterious psychic powers. What you want most is to be loved and accepted by your family, but a secretive tech corporation wants you for their own.
Constance on Steam
Constance is a 2D hand-drawn action adventure featuring a paintbrush-wielding artist, striving to escape from a colorful but decaying inner-world, created by her declining mental health.
Rue Valley on Steam
Rue Valley is a narrative adventure about a man trapped in a time loop, surrounded by a colorful cast with complex emotional stories, each hiding unexpected secrets. Dealing with mental challenges, the main character must delve into the anomaly to uncover its enigmatic origins.
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Heisenberg007
Gold Journalism
Came here to create a thread on this xD Thanks for beating me!
So what's everybody liking so far?
I downloaded but haven't tried yet:
So what's everybody liking so far?
I downloaded but haven't tried yet:
- Cairns
- Jackal
- Constance
John Bilbo
Member
Thick Thighs Save Lives
NeoGAF's Physical Games Advocate Extraordinaire
Will be trying the new OPUS Prism Peak demo.
Branded
Member
Dark Light: Survivor - One of the most clunky Survivorlikes I've played in a while. Mind numbingly boring as well. Avoid.
Tears of Metal - A Dynasty Warriorslike but with Roguelike elements and stylized visuals. Everything about this should be right up my alley but so far I found it to be a bit underwhelming. I'll keep it on my radar but I'm not really rushing to get it on day one.
GODBREAKERS - This is a melee focused action Roguelike and honestly... it might end up as one of my new favourites! I love the clear UI and overall presentation. It's nothing that will blow you away but at least everything is clearly visible and easy to grasp. There seems to be plenty of customisation and meta-progression upgrades as well. The fact that is has co-op is the cherry on top. The default keybindings were pretty bad though so I quickly changed them and that's when everything clicked. Really looking forward to this now and comes out later this month!
LORT - Another Roguelike that has some good aspects to it but are overshadowed by the bad. I simply do not care for map design where it's literally almost a flat surface with some trees and objectives scattered about without any care put into it. The combat itself wasn't that engaging either so I see no reason to play this over something like Risk of Rain 2.
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Shockwave_Fox
Member
Downloaded Reanimal and Little Nightmares 3 demos.
Played a bit if Reanimal and love it already - enjoyed killing myself and getting soft locked in the boat as I tried to explore.
Interested to see how LN3 is.
Played a bit if Reanimal and love it already - enjoyed killing myself and getting soft locked in the boat as I tried to explore.
Interested to see how LN3 is.
drotahorror
Member
This nextfest is kind of shit. Most of the good demos have already been out and weren't even part of Nextfest.
ultrazilla
Gold Member
"ROLLA"!
It's a "Godzilla-like". Really fun! Mindless destruction. Great stress relief!
"The Legend of Khiimori"
This one came out of nowhere and has very strong "Ghost of.........." vibes. Incredible graphics and some really good animation/physics work. Could
be a sleeper hit imo.
"G Rebels"
Just wow. Think G-Police mixed with Blade Runner. Very impressive demo.
"Space Squad"
A fun 2D action/shooter and sci fi adventure! Very fun!
It's a "Godzilla-like". Really fun! Mindless destruction. Great stress relief!
"The Legend of Khiimori"
This one came out of nowhere and has very strong "Ghost of.........." vibes. Incredible graphics and some really good animation/physics work. Could
be a sleeper hit imo.
"G Rebels"
Just wow. Think G-Police mixed with Blade Runner. Very impressive demo.
"Space Squad"
A fun 2D action/shooter and sci fi adventure! Very fun!
Holammer
Member
Tried a few.
A "strategic match-3 roguelike", unlike regular Match-3 puzzles games you have very limited moves. Pretty good.
Retro racer developed by the guy behind Nitro on the Amiga, a decent clone of Sega's Hot Rod for its time. It's all right, I'm biased, but I would have used a pixel artstyle instead of the clean vectors.
Avoid, poorly made Vampire survivors style action roguelike. Needs some time in the oven.
Arcade game with 1983 era style art. I loved it, but there's only one level. Not much of a demo.
A "strategic match-3 roguelike", unlike regular Match-3 puzzles games you have very limited moves. Pretty good.
Retro racer developed by the guy behind Nitro on the Amiga, a decent clone of Sega's Hot Rod for its time. It's all right, I'm biased, but I would have used a pixel artstyle instead of the clean vectors.
Avoid, poorly made Vampire survivors style action roguelike. Needs some time in the oven.
Arcade game with 1983 era style art. I loved it, but there's only one level. Not much of a demo.
MagiusNecros
Gilgamesh Fan Annoyance
Only recommendation I can really make is Ground Zero. About an hour long and it has 2 different paths(Beach/Park) you can take to boost playtime a bit more. Very nice classical Survival Horror game reminiscent of RE/PE/Dino Crisis/Galerians. Very atmospheric.
A bit before Nextfest and I think the Horror Showcase Motorslice also put out a demo which is also really good. And deserves a bit more exposure.
Most of the demos though are just variants of Vampire Survivors, Roguelites, Extraction Shooters. Not a lot to be excited about right now. A lot of the cool games aren't going to happen until 2026/2027.
A bit before Nextfest and I think the Horror Showcase Motorslice also put out a demo which is also really good. And deserves a bit more exposure.
Most of the demos though are just variants of Vampire Survivors, Roguelites, Extraction Shooters. Not a lot to be excited about right now. A lot of the cool games aren't going to happen until 2026/2027.
Ishma3L
Member
Death In Abyss
Reminds me of Devil Daggers and Star Fox 64. I'm sure if you ask the dev, there is an influence there. Either way, from what I gather, you are an underwater space ship that's battling waves of enemies in what I can only describe as my perfect nightmare - a pitch black deep ocean in which visibility in all directions in limited. Think of Ecco the Dolphin's last level: Welcome to the Machine.... the final boss; That's what I think of when I play this.... that and Devil Daggers....... and Star Fox.
I had a good time with it.
Reminds me of Devil Daggers and Star Fox 64. I'm sure if you ask the dev, there is an influence there. Either way, from what I gather, you are an underwater space ship that's battling waves of enemies in what I can only describe as my perfect nightmare - a pitch black deep ocean in which visibility in all directions in limited. Think of Ecco the Dolphin's last level: Welcome to the Machine.... the final boss; That's what I think of when I play this.... that and Devil Daggers....... and Star Fox.
I had a good time with it.
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ssringo
Member
Thanks for this. It didnt show for me when scrolling through demos but is 100% the kind of game Steam should be recommending me.
Was very impressed with G-police!
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ssringo
Member
Didn't see it in Next Fest but there's a demo and it has a release date of this month. Edit: they added the release day as I was typing this.
It's a fixed camera survival horror but it's not scary, more of a creepy imagery and implications kind of thing; perhaps it goes harder in the full game. The fixed camera is both top-down and side scrolling depending on the area and combat can take place in both. Combat is done with melee swings, a melee throw (boomerang skateboard!) and with ranged weapons. Right stick 'soft' locks onto enemies for direct targeting while "grenades" have a general aiming mechanic. There's also a "stealth" mechanic where you hide your face with a hood to get by certain encounters but it doesn't get much use in the demo and I'm not sure if it'll even affect the game much outside of very specific scenarios. The game isn't hard but it's unforgiving and since you only have autosaves, you can easily find yourself in a very bad situation with no healing and very little life to deal with a bad situation. Hopefully there is something to address this in the full game (like manual saves). It's kinda weird and I rather like it!
Also not in Next Fest but they have demos and release this month are these 2 classic survival horror style games. Just giving a bit more visibility.
It's a fixed camera survival horror but it's not scary, more of a creepy imagery and implications kind of thing; perhaps it goes harder in the full game. The fixed camera is both top-down and side scrolling depending on the area and combat can take place in both. Combat is done with melee swings, a melee throw (boomerang skateboard!) and with ranged weapons. Right stick 'soft' locks onto enemies for direct targeting while "grenades" have a general aiming mechanic. There's also a "stealth" mechanic where you hide your face with a hood to get by certain encounters but it doesn't get much use in the demo and I'm not sure if it'll even affect the game much outside of very specific scenarios. The game isn't hard but it's unforgiving and since you only have autosaves, you can easily find yourself in a very bad situation with no healing and very little life to deal with a bad situation. Hopefully there is something to address this in the full game (like manual saves). It's kinda weird and I rather like it!
Also not in Next Fest but they have demos and release this month are these 2 classic survival horror style games. Just giving a bit more visibility.
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Plague Doctor
Member
Thanks for getting this thread going as I was looking for it last night. Man, I fucking love Nextfest and helps me purchase games on release I would have never given a second look to otherwise.
Any Lunacid/KF likes?
I only see this which played before and enjoyed:
This was fun to as a GZDoom Spaghetti Western. Love the cheese and the live action 2D animations for enemies.
Any Lunacid/KF likes?
I only see this which played before and enjoyed:
This was fun to as a GZDoom Spaghetti Western. Love the cheese and the live action 2D animations for enemies.
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Plague Doctor
Member
This was cool. Roguelike FPS Dungeon delver. The rogue like quality is unlocking classes and knowledge. No meta progression in stats. You got to level up on your own.
StereoVsn
Gold Member
Yep, had it on my wishlist for a while. Time to try out the demo!
StereoVsn
Gold Member
Ooh, Menace I had on my wishlist as well and Sword Hero looks pretty interesting. Good picks!
Magic Carpet
Gold Member
Been playing Ball X Pit for the past 2 hours. I really like it though I"m not sure how the upgrade path works.
The Ethreal ball was great as it shoots the balls past the enemies into the back wall then they start bouncing around the back side. Great until the boss shows up and all your balls are stuck in the back.
What is the point of the town building other than getting new characters? I don't yet understand what's what in this game but It's kind of addicting anyway.,
The Ethreal ball was great as it shoots the balls past the enemies into the back wall then they start bouncing around the back side. Great until the boss shows up and all your balls are stuck in the back.
What is the point of the town building other than getting new characters? I don't yet understand what's what in this game but It's kind of addicting anyway.,
ultrazilla
Gold Member
This one is promising.
"Another Day Off"
I love the pseudo 2D/3D pixel/polygon look
The graphical style reminds me a bit of the long in development "Replaced" NO DEMO FOR REPLACED YET
"Another Day Off"
I love the pseudo 2D/3D pixel/polygon look
The graphical style reminds me a bit of the long in development "Replaced" NO DEMO FOR REPLACED YET
touchfuzzy
Gold Member
Been playing Ball X Pit for the past 2 hours. I really like it though I"m not sure how the upgrade path works.
The Ethreal ball was great as it shoots the balls past the enemies into the back wall then they start bouncing around the back side. Great until the boss shows up and all your balls are stuck in the back.
What is the point of the town building other than getting new characters? I don't yet understand what's what in this game but It's kind of addicting anyway.,
I loved the demo in the last Next Fest and the full game is out tomorrow!
IbizaPocholo
NeoGAFs Kent Brockman
NanaMiku
Member
This one was marketed as multiplayer story driven game. Did you meet other player shadow?
Tides of Tomorrow - Looks nice but it's all just cutscenes and the writing is super clunky. Might be one to pick up in the future on a sale but not really in the mood for this kind of thing right now.
Branded
Member
Let It Die: INFERNO - Truly awful in every way. It's about the ugliest game I have ever seen as well. Couldn't even be bothered to finish the tutorial.
Jackal - A Hotline Miamilike that's marred by poor level design/signposting and, for some reason, has a 'feature' where after killing everyone you have to go back in a level to pick up a random body and drop it off at a location. Literal chore to play. I also like how body ragdolls can spaz out during combat so you get the impression the enemy is still alive. Brilliant. Easy skip.
A.I.L.A. - I was going to be super witty and simply write A.S.S. (based on the first few seconds) but this actually turned out to be quite decent and provided some neat puzzle/spooky sequences. The overall production value isn't that strong but as an indie horror game I think it will be worth picking up.
Branded
Member
Yeah you see other players' echoes or whatever. Basically you 'follow' someone (so it really is '1v1' at any point) and their choices will impact yours, to an extent. So they might choose to open up a shortcut or consume precious resources and that will have an effect on your playthrough. I think this ultimately provides only the most meager of branching paths but I could be wrong of course.
The writing itself was just horrid kindergarten level though so I was immediately put off and couldn't really invest in its premise to begin with. The first character you meet talks to you as if you're a toddler.
Yeah I loved what I played during the previous Next Fest but I completely forgot about it. Just checked and it's releasing today! I'm off tomorrow so looking forward to getting some runs in.Been playing Ball X Pit for the past 2 hours. I really like it though I"m not sure how the upgrade path works.
The Ethreal ball was great as it shoots the balls past the enemies into the back wall then they start bouncing around the back side. Great until the boss shows up and all your balls are stuck in the back.
What is the point of the town building other than getting new characters? I don't yet understand what's what in this game but It's kind of addicting anyway.,
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Wildebeest
Member
A fun take on a crazy golf with an arcade style.
Walliwallipaloo
Member
Next Fest - also known as Game Industry Boogaloo: The Deadening - It's Dead, Jim Part Deux - Screwhead Edition.
Null hype.
Null hype.
The Skull
Member
Wildebeest
Member
Oh my god. I'm sure that was unintentional. So rude.Can't unsee
Shubh_C63
Member
This is straight up the world's second "strand type" game.
Pimpollo818
Member
Constance - mediocre metroidvania featuring girl w/purple hair. I think it's getting brownie/social points b/c of that. The meat and potatoes of its mechanics though are bland/nothing special.
Holammer
Member
Looked like yet another Star Fox clone, but the first level was a beautiful homage to Starblade.
Digging game where you collect resources to feed your egg (?). Very cozy.
Arcade platformer with very chunky pixels. I liked it.
Cool concept, but I'm not really digging it.
Roguelike, hard to put my finger on what made it feel bad.
Cutesy Action Roguelike like Vampire Survivors. Select one of 20 Pokemon rejects and Survive 15 minutes, the other rejects can be found as striker characters. Mechanically complex and it grew on me.
I got bad vibes fast, the game features an asynchronous multiplayer mechanic and I felt how it railroaded me from step one, it literally does a "press F to pay respects" early on. Alt+F4.
Digging game where you collect resources to feed your egg (?). Very cozy.
Arcade platformer with very chunky pixels. I liked it.
Cool concept, but I'm not really digging it.
Roguelike, hard to put my finger on what made it feel bad.
Cutesy Action Roguelike like Vampire Survivors. Select one of 20 Pokemon rejects and Survive 15 minutes, the other rejects can be found as striker characters. Mechanically complex and it grew on me.
I got bad vibes fast, the game features an asynchronous multiplayer mechanic and I felt how it railroaded me from step one, it literally does a "press F to pay respects" early on. Alt+F4.
NeverYouMind
Member
Painted in Blood - Horror themed old school FPS with great controls and visuals.
Marvel Cosmic Invasion - Simple beat 'em up with Marvel heroes fighting bug hordes and MODOK.
P.S. I played a lot of demos during this fest but the quality of these stood out.
Marvel Cosmic Invasion - Simple beat 'em up with Marvel heroes fighting bug hordes and MODOK.
P.S. I played a lot of demos during this fest but the quality of these stood out.
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JayK47
Member
I like how one of the reviews complains that her ass is too big. Now I am interested.
Directorate Novitiate - Awful title aside this B-tier looking game actually seems well put together. It's TEMU Tomb Raider with Max Payne and magic. Definitely shot up my wishlist now. I couldn't beat the boss though... Seemed far too spongy.