The 50 most-played Steam Next Fest demos include 7 incremental games, 4 AI disclosures, and only one instance of haystack slop
Ten years ago, this list would have shocked most PC gamers.
The 50 most-played demos from last week's Steam Next Fest have been unveiled by Valve, revealing a pattern of casual co-op games and incremental titles. Among the 50, seven were incremental games, including 10 Million Pixels and Unharvest 15 lighthearted or comedic co-op games, like Dude, Trust Me, Oar Some Adventures, and Banana Airways.
Additionally, three survival games and three "cozy" games were among the top picks. The only game published by a traditional blockbuster publisher was Tropico 7, an Ubisoft release. Teach My Little Sister How To Drive, one of the four games with AI disclosures, features an LLM-powered NPC that cost its developer over $1,000 a day.
The list, topped by the asymmetric party game Worst Class Ever, reflects the current gaming landscape, which contrasts sharply with the games that dominated five years ago. Notable titles from the past, such as Norco, Death Trash, Sable, Unpacking, and The Inheritance of Crimson Manor, are still popular today, showcasing the growing influence of Roblox and user-generated content on Steam.
Written by urgent.news from PC Gamer's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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