steam next fest is like an hour and a half away from ending so i think now is the perfect time to highlight a few of my favorite demos. oh yeah.

elation for the wonder box 6000 (digital tchotchkes, q4 2024)

the preview was barely 10 minutes long but this guy-who-tells-people-in-real-life-about-how-he-has-been-banned-from-a-video-game-forum simulator is still my most anticipated game of the year.

judero (talha and jack co, to be announced)

a hand-crafted, action-adventure ode to celtic folklore aesthetically reminiscent of that shitty stop-motion charles manson musical a bunch of rockstars made back in the aughts. looks and feels like playing with action figures and i love it.

reka (emberstorm entertainment, august 2024)

i wish i was a peasant girl learning witchcraft from baba yaga.

tactical breach wizards (suspicious developments, august 2024)

so fun and well-written it helped me briefly forget my disgust for the overt militarization and special ops wet dreams so common in modern games.

one btn bosses (midnight munchies, coming soon)

a simplistic tempest-like that feels like all the best parts of an mmo raid.

grunn (sokpop collective, 2024)

deftly captures that weird state between dream and nightmare. lots to see in the demo as you tend to the upkeep of a mysterious village.

pinball spire (apparition games, coming soon)

i like it when games mix pinball with other genres, especially when they soften the inherently rough edges of the typical pinball experience with power-ups and the like.

glyphica: typing survival (aliasblack, q3 2024)

something special for freaks like me who love the thrill of typing. more please.

lushfoil photography sim (matt newell, coming soon)

meditative, comforting, awe-inspiring, visceral.

the crush house (nerial, august 2024)

on the fence about this one, but it has the potential to say something important about the parasocial evil lurking behind the facade of just about every reality television show. we’ll see.

threshold (julien eveillé, coming soon)

very short prequel to the full game but i still can’t get my character’s labored breathing out of my head. curious how starting country will “influence difficulty” and “determine fate” of the game’s hellish, industrial setting.

thank goodness you’re here! (coal supper, august 2024)

the best thing to come out of the united kingdom since an independent ireland.