5 Initial Impressions From February 2023's Steam Next Fest

The tri-annual event known as Steam Next Fest has just had its first pass for 2023, in which players were given the chance to try out a large variety of game demos. It can be hard to choose which games to play, but luckily, most demos don’t take more than thirty minutes to experience. With these demos, players get their first impression of upcoming games, letting them know whether or not they want to add these titles to their Steam Wishlist.

For February 2023, I was able to squeeze in five different game experiences. While only two really showed strong potential, they all were pretty decent overall. However, I can see why they are just demos as they still have quite a bit of work before they are ready for release. Let’s dive into what impression February 2023’s Steam Next Fest left on me.

PLANET OF LANA

This 2D side-scroller puzzle adventure game is one of the more impressive titles I tried out this past week. Thunderful and Wishfully Studios definitely seem to be on the right track with this one! In this game, you aren’t really given a story, but rather an implied narrative where you need to head through a strange, hostile world of mechanical creatures. You have a small companion with you on this journey who is able to help with the trickier puzzle moments by following your instructions. The demo itself was only about twenty minutes long, but it provided a first look at the basic controls, intriguing puzzle designs, storytelling style, and the overall experience that can be expected from the finished game.

I’m really looking forward to when Planet of Lana releases in Spring 2023 on PC via Steam, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S after playing their demo.

PARANOID

This horror game from the creatives over at Madmind Studio is a new take on the scary experience this team can deliver. The demo for this title leads you through a full segment of a level where you need to infiltrate a group who may, or may not, have information on the person you are looking for. During this level, you are shown the basic controls of the game and experience quite a few oddities with brutal moments mixed in. From shadow men chasing you down to fighting through a number of bad people, this segment of the game leads you through some really confusing moments that leave you wondering which version of the event was real. It doesn’t help that you have whispering in your head throughout the experience, so you never really get a moment to take a breath and collect your thoughts, which is exactly what I’d expect from a game with a driving focus on a paranoid lead character.

Despite some dropped frames and a strong need for optimization throughout this game, this demo has me excited for PARANOID to release during Halloween 2023 on PC via Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.

WORLDLESS

Delivering a unique Metroidvania is a hard task to complete these days, but it seems Thunderful, Coatsink, and developer Noname Studios were able to rise to the challenge. Given a silent protagonist, the demo starts off by showing you how much of the game is available to you in the demo. Only being able to head in one direction, it seems like there will only be a short experience, but you actually end up going through quite a bit. After getting a proper experience with the platforming and controls, as well as unlocking the ability to dash in the air, you will happen upon your first few combat encounters. This is where you find out the game is a turn-based combat title with a small twist. Enemies will typically deliver either a physical or magical attack and you can block against one or the other, so learning your opponent and what they do to signify which attack they are using is a big part of the game. You then have a time limit put over you to signify how long your turn is, which you can then either attack with magic or physically as well.

It was a bit of a short demo, but it was enough to show the challenge this game will deliver. All-in-all, the game seems pretty good and is one to consider checking out when Worldless releases later in 2023 on PC via Steam and the Xbox consoles.

URBO

Creating a neat puzzle experience where you have to build the best, most populated city is Door 407. In this game, you aren’t really given any instructions and are just sent to work on your first village. The demo ends after you finish building this village on three different platforms. Using the matching system puzzle mechanic, the way to grow your village is by getting three or more similar buildings lined up. These buildings are differentiated by the size they are and when you combine enough of them, they go from taking up three tiles to just one tile while being upgraded to the next building size. You can continue this system as long as your skills allow you to. The building size you are given is randomized, but it seems the starting village tiles you have to work with are preset and even slightly filled in to either hinder or help begin the process.

It is a simplistic, quiet puzzle game that seems like it would be a fun time killer once URBO releases in Q2 of 2023 on PC via Steam.

THE LAST CASE OF BENEDICT FOX

Blending together the Lovecratian-style horror and exploration with a 2D side-scrolling action game is Rogue Games and Plot Twist. The demo for their game takes you through the escape of a location as your character gets caught snooping around a location. Here is where you come across your first few enemies, which means you get to learn how combat works in this game, which can be utilized to be either aggressively or defensively used. From there, you find yourself in a mansion looking for clues. Here you get a taste of what finding information and key items is like, as well as item interactions as you can find key interactions on some items when examining them as well. Of course, it isn’t long before this part of the game sends you into the depths where the game gets more and more maddening.

If you like exploration and platforming titles, then this is a game that will meet your marks. Personally, I am looking forward to The Last Case of Benedict Fox releasing on April 27th for Xbox Series X|S and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store.