Eight Must-Play Demos at Steam Next Fest (February 26)
Steam Next Fest is here, and that means over 4,000 demos to choose from and just a few days to try the best this celebration of in-progress projects has to offer. After several hours of testing, here are the eight demos (each about an hour long) you must try by March 2nd at 7 PM. There's something for everyone, from the controversial "sequel" to Disco Elysium to a skateboarding game featuring a train: here are the most interesting demos from Next Fest in February 2026.
Titanium Court
Do you enjoy British humor with a touch of nonsense? Then Titanium Court is the game for you. It's a hybrid between a match-3 game (where you connect three identical bricks to make them disappear), a turn-based strategy game, and a roguelike, all wrapped up in a fae-themed story that gets increasingly absurd with each playthrough. The pixel art graphics are extraordinarily inspired and give the game a really stylish feel.
Demo: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2364580/Titanium_Court/
Zero Parades for Dead Spies
The ZA/UM that will release ZERO PARADES no longer employs the minds that brought the Disco Elysium universe to life, and the reason for this requires several hours of testimony and legal battles that People Make Games sums up very well. Despite the controversy, if you're looking for smoky atmospheres and a morbidly fascinating dystopia, ZERO PARADES won't disappoint, picking up Disco's torch and doing something new with it, with a lot of potential. Try it before you send it to the gallows.
Demo: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2863680/ZERO_PARADES_For_Dead_Spies/
The Eternal Life of Goldman
Anyone looking for a proper 2D platformer with unique mechanics and an interesting subplot should try The Eternal Life of Goldman. Hand-crafted animations, bizarre enemies, jumping sections, and original combat complement a story that has a typical Metroidvania premise, but adds an extra layer of complexity thanks to a set of abilities that can be modified throughout the levels, allowing you to vary the protagonist's jumping speed and the attacks he can use. Try it for the art style, but stick around for the myriad of combinations the game has to offer.
Demo: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2254950/The_Eternal_Life_of_Goldman/
Scriptorium: Master of Manuscripts
Have you ever wished you could draw on a medieval manuscript instead of creating yet another useless graphic on Canva? Prepare to recycle your skills in the service of the devil, because in Scriptorium: Master of Manuscripts you've signed a contract with the satan and now you must miniate manuscripts to keep him happy. Clients will ask you for everything, from bestiaries to family portraits, and you'll have to create the images they ask for using the game's pre-drawn components. The instructions are sufficiently vague to unleash your creativity, and some results are truly hilarious.
Demo: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3119540/Scriptorium_Master_of_Manuscripts/
Denshattak!
Denshattak is a skateboarding game, but instead of a board, you control a Japanese train carriage as it performs crazy tricks at breakneck speed to take down mega-corporations and rival gangs. If this description hasn't convinced you, skip to the next demo; if it has, ignore the rest of this list and go try it out; it's pure madness.
Demo: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2524850/Denshattack/
Imagine Sisyphus Happy
Sisyphus is doomed to fail forever, right? So why not stream his ordeal to interact with the chat, make new friends, and earn some money? This is the premise of Imagine Sisyphus Happy, a management game where you have to carry the boulder up the hill while entertaining a livestream audience. The gameplay isn't terribly deep, but it has plenty of interesting ideas and a polished execution.
Demo: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3959020/Imagine_Sisyphus_Happy/
Arkheron
The chief creative officer of Diablo 3 and World of Warcraft left Blizzard in 2016 to found his own studio, and after nearly 10 years of work, Arkheron is the result. It features an isometric perspective, hack-and-slash gameplay (a la Hades), a complete lack of classes, and a PvPvE structure that will test your skills against both computer-controlled enemies and other players. The game takes place in a tower you climb, with each floor providing weapons and powers to build a different character each time, and the two teams that reach the top (of the 15 that start) face off in a 3v3 match. It's fast-paced, interesting, and needs players to refine its formula. Give it a try if you like Diablo and Hades and have always wanted to see what they would be like in PvP.
Demo: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3333850/Arkheron
Vampire Crawlers: The Turbo Wildcard from Vampire Survivors
Poncle has made his own Slay the Spire, and it's as addictive as Vampire Survivors. It's fast, clever, multifaceted, and mildly absurd: if you like card games, give it a try because it's both tactically deep and incredibly casual turn after turn. Cards can be powered up to create explosive combos, and there are so many characters to choose from, each with a different effect: when it comes out, it'll eat up millions of people's free time.
