Steam Next Fest has begun, with thousands of free game demos available to try over the next week before the tri-annual demonstration celebration comes to a close once more. We’ve already rounded up some of the must-try titles to check out before things wrap up at 5 AM AEDT on Tuesday, 13 February, but there are plenty more demos where that came from. Namely, great Aussie and NZ-made titles that we think are worth a look.
If trawling through the many pages of Steam Next Fest demos to find your next local favourite isn’t your vibe, I’ve got you sorted. Here’s a roundup of all the Aussie and NZ titles with demos running during the event! What’s more: this is a running list, so if you’re a local dev with a demo live during Next Fest or have spotted more, let us know in the comments so we can add them in!
Australian and NZ Steam Next Fest Demos
Bears In Space
Bears In Space is a fast-paced bullet-hell FPS from Ipswich-based Broadside Games that loads you up with an “outrageous arsenal” to mow down oil-thirsty robots with. You play a spacefarer who finds his DNA slammed together with that of a she-bear and must embark on an adventure packed full of robotic destruction and a whole lot of Aussie humour. In our preview of Bears In Space, David described the game as “a strange, smooth, extremely fast-paced experience that is – and as a former Brisbane boy, I say with all the love in my heart – exactly the kind of game you’d expect from a team based in Ipswich.” You can check out the Steam Next Fest demo here before it launches on 23 March, 2024.
Small Town Emo
If you grew up anywhere around the glory days of the mid 2000’s, and having depressing song lyrics as your Messenger status as a kind of bat signal for your crush resonates with you, Small Town Emo might just be the game for you. This story-driven “bootleg” GameBoy walking simulator set in 2007 follows a small town emo from NZ as he navigates dealing with the massive gay crush he has on his best mate. Complete with pixelated GameBoy-style graphics, this short but sweet experience by NZ developers Fnife Games is sure to drum up nostalgia for some. You can play the Steam Next Fest demo here, ahead of a 2024 release.
Copycat
Copycat is a “wholesome, narrative-driven game about rejection, belonging, and the true meaning of home.” Follow Dawn, a newly-adopted shelter cat who develops a bond with her new owner, only to find herself ousted from her home by a stray ‘copycat’ who takes her place. This fully voice-acted title sees Dawn find out what home truly is and explores the human-pet bond in a reflective, emotional, and hopeful tale that’s perfect for booting up and cuddling on the couch with your pet while you play. The Steam Next Fest demo is available here.
Abiotic Factor
Abiotic Factor sees you venture into a survival crafting experience with to six players in an underground research facility. With enemies invading your workplace via portals and an arcane military sect indiscriminately shooting whatever it comes across, you must navigate the chaos to plan your escape. In the meantime, make the complex filled with dangerous entities your home alongside fellow scientists. You can check out Abiotic Factor’s Steam Next Fest demo here ahead of release on 3 May.
Arco
Arco is a tactical action game where your choices change the course of the story. Explore beautiful pixel art landscapes on your adventure guiding four heroes on their quest for revenge. Slay monsters, battle warriors, and fend off colonisers across an enchanted world with turn-based strategy-style gameplay. Arco is set to release this year, but you can try the demo here for now.
GRIST
Go back to your text-based roots with Grist, a sci-fi digital boardgame. Take on the role of a Starship Captain infected with the cybernetic plague and in search of a cure. Recruit crewmembers, explore the worlds amongst the stars, and set your team on missions to recover tech and artefacts. With a card deck at your disposal during combat, uncover the secrets of the cyber-plague and above all else, survive. You can try out the Grist Steam Next Fest demo here.
Matchmaker: Dungeon Heart
Matchmaker: Dungeon Heart comes with the tagline: “Defend the dungeon, date the monsters.” The title is described as a narrative-driven dating and romance sim with match-3 gameplay, and sees you raised from the dead to protect the dungeons. You’ll train with the inhabitants of the dungeon (who are, of course, monsters), but the looming threat of powerful forces isn’t all that’s in the air – you also might find yourself falling in love. Play the Matchmaker: Dungeon Heart Steam Next Fest demo here, and if you like it pop it on your wishlist before it launches some time in the first quarter of 2024.
Brews & Bastards
Brews & Bastards is a boozy 1-4 player co-op dungeon crawler set in an over-the-top fantasy tavern. Travel below the Muneshine Tavern into a bevy of brewery-themed dungeons and battle against outlandish bosses while in search of the stolen Brew Stone. Choose your fighter from a lineup of dubious class-based heroes with differing playstyles and experience an ever-growing challenge…and maybe some magical brews along the way. You can try the Steam Next Fest demo here, before the game goes into early access some time this year.
Diets and Deities
NT-based studio Larrikin Interactive presents Diets and Deities, a rhythm cooking game incorporating music and recipes from diverse cultures around the world. Play as Nephele, the first deity created in a millennia as you battle against the fast food franchise that has taken over the universe. Reawaken corrupted deities using music and cooking, with 16 recipes inspired by each culture you’ll encounter along the way. Working alongside First Nations creatives, explore cultures from Australia, Bali, Brazil, and China. Diets and Deities releases on 21 February, but the Steam Next Fest demo is here to give you a taste (no pun intended) now.
Cryptmaster
Cryptmaster is a bizarre dungeon-crawling adventure where your words have the power. Interact with the world around you and complete quests by typing or saying any word you can think of, with a range of different solutions based on what word you choose. With a strange world of underground kingdoms filled with talking doors amongst other weird and wonderful friends and foes, your spellcasting takes on a whole new meaning in this game. With a range of gameplay mechanics such as critter collecting, card-based combat, and rap-battles, Cryptmaster promises an absurd adventure like no other. With a 2024 release window, you can try out the Steam Next Fest demo for this title here – given the sheer amount of awards and nominations it’s been bestowed so far, this NZ-made title looks like a fun one.
Spelly Cat
Spelly Cat tasks you with solving word puzzles in randomly generated levels to rescue your owner and get fed – the most important goal for any pet cat, of course. Combining word games, jigsaws, mazes, and block puzzles, explore 12 worlds in a challenging, all-ages title set to launch Q1 2024. Play the Steam Next Fest demo here. Whether the empty food bowl that serves as your call to adventure was actually empty or just had about three pieces of kibble missing is anyone’s guess.
Servonauts
Think Overcooked, but set in a servo in space. Servonauts is described as an “absurd” couch co-op party game for up to four players, where you must work together at a galactic servo in chaotic conditions. Keep your interstellar oil baron CEO happy, serve customers, and overcome whacky conditions. Servonauts doesn’t have a set release date or window just yet, but you can try the Steam Next Fest demo here right now.
Have any of these Aussie and NZ-made Steam Next Fest demos caught your eye? Or have you found another local gem with a Next Fest demo up for grabs? Let us know!
Image: MAXART Games / Spoonful of Wonder / Broadside Games / Kotaku Australia
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