Demos—post game demos here

[ZedClampet]

Okay, you two have talked me into it

I loved Plants v Zombies OG, but haven't stuck with another TD since, despite trying a bunch.



Did you guys ever play the L Game from Edward de Bono? First time I met Tetromino.

I didn't play "L" exactly, but we used to play a homemade version with a playing field made of dots in a grid, and you made your move by circling dots in an L shape. There were several variations of this.

 

[Pifanjr]

It's a lot of fun. I finished all there was at some point, but they've added more since then. The difficulty goes up as the areas become more difficult to build in, and you get increasingly more difficult enemies added to levels, but overall Normal wasn't overly difficult. I intend to go back once I've finished the entire thing and play on a higher difficulty. They did say that the difficulty of the more recent areas is higher than the first region.

Oh, now I know why I added Emberward to my library: you recommended it to me.

Specifically, you thought my daughter might like it. It's pretty different from the stuff she usually likes, but it won't hurt to see what she thinks of it.

Did you guys ever play the L Game from Edward de Bono? First time I met Tetromino.

I hadn't heard of it before. Seems like a more complex tic-tac-toe.

 

[ZedClampet]

Oh, now I know why I added Emberward to my library: you recommended it to me.

Specifically, you thought my daughter might like it. It's pretty different from the stuff she usually likes, but it won't hurt to see what she thinks of it.



I hadn't heard of it before. Seems like a more complex tic-tac-toe.

Yeah, I thought maybe you could play together. You could set out the blocks and she could put up the towers. The block part may be too advanced for her age. Not sure. It's hard for me to remember my kids at that age.

 

[Brian Boru]

Emberward

That is a totally cute game!

Looks like TD is not going to be a genre for me as I bounced off fairly quickly. But anyone who likes or wants intro to Tower Defense, give this a shot.

 

[ZedClampet]

World Crafter TD: Prologue on Steam

A highly addictive survival crafting tower defense game! Gather, craft, build turrets, shoot guns, and expand the land to defend against waves of enemies! The prologue for the full game, World Crafter TD!

store.steampowered.com

This was fun, but I didn't play long enough to be able to talk about things that you can unlock or how the enemies change, but basically you start off on an island block, build some defenses and then defend your block. You get can craft coins from the spoils of victory, presumably to unlock new defenses to craft and also to buy more island blocks. It's good enough to me that I put it on my wishlist.

 

[Pifanjr]

Monomyth on Steam

MONOMYTH is an immersive, first-person dungeon-crawling RPG inspired by the genre's late classics. Embark on a journey through a vast and highly interactive game world as you unravel the mysteries hidden beneath the ancient fortress of Lysandria.

store.steampowered.com

I think this game would benefit from giving the player a bit more information on how the game works. You get to put a bunch of points into attributes and skills at the very start of the game, but you have no idea what increasing a skill does. Your weapon has stats for how much damage it does, but you have no idea if you're even hitting an enemy when you swing at them. I happened to get access to two spells because I randomly clicked on some dots on a pentagram in an inventory tab, then spent 3 minutes figuring out how to actually get them into my spellbook.

I gave up after about 30 minutes walking through dark rooms and caverns without really knowing what I was doing.

 

[ZedClampet]

Monomyth on Steam

MONOMYTH is an immersive, first-person dungeon-crawling RPG inspired by the genre's late classics. Embark on a journey through a vast and highly interactive game world as you unravel the mysteries hidden beneath the ancient fortress of Lysandria.

store.steampowered.com

I think this game would benefit from giving the player a bit more information on how the game works. You get to put a bunch of points into attributes and skills at the very start of the game, but you have no idea what increasing a skill does. Your weapon has stats for how much damage it does, but you have no idea if you're even hitting an enemy when you swing at them. I happened to get access to two spells because I randomly clicked on some dots on a pentagram in an inventory tab, then spent 3 minutes figuring out how to actually get them into my spellbook.

I gave up after about 30 minutes walking through dark rooms and caverns without really knowing what I was doing.

That sounds pretty miserable.

 

[Pifanjr]

That sounds pretty miserable.

It's entirely possible the game has some really cool mechanics, but I did not have the motivation to try to find them.

You could pick up and stack boxes to jump to new areas though, I did like that.

 

[ZedClampet]

The Executive - Movie Industry Tycoon Demo on Steam

Shape the history of the Hollywood movie industry in this sandbox business simulation game. Create the movies you've always wanted to see, hire the best team, research cutting-edge technologies, and dominate the Box Office. Can you rise from a small studio to a Hollywood giant?

store.steampowered.com

Works well and goes in depth about making movies, but I'm not sure it does anything different from previous movie tycoon games. Releases on February 11th.

 

[ZedClampet]

Save 50% on Under The Yoke on Steam

Under The Yoke is a 2D medieval peasant life-sim. Make your mark in the Domesday book as you control a family of serfs through 250 years of English history. Cultivate your lands, craft goods and hone your reputation as you navigate the tumultuous Middle Ages. Your family’s future is yours to shape!

store.steampowered.com

eh, it's 4 am, and I wasn't in the mood for the tutorial. Looks like it would be okay, though

Keep Driving on Steam

An atmospheric management RPG about life on the open road. Pick up hitchhikers, work odd jobs, customize and repair your car, and map your route across the country. Use upgrades, skills and items to overcome challenges. And remember to take it easy. You’re young. You have time.

store.steampowered.com

not for me

 

[Zloth]

Solasta 2 made a video announcing their demo coming out on the 24th

View: https://youtu.be/hcPl36mRwDo?si=yPRhE2xmM56KouX_


Then released the demo this morning:

Solasta II on Steam

In a Mana-infused land, a dark force led by the enigmatic Shadwyn threatens Neokos. Bring your party of adventurers together across perilous realms in this Turn-Based Tactical RPG based on the SRD 5e ruleset. You make the choices, dice decide your destiny.

store.steampowered.com

 

[DXCHASE]

I think we have some people that play the Like A Dragon series, this game just released and has a demo and is actually quite fun. I dont personally own it yet, but from what ive watched, the pirate ship combat looks fun. You can board the ships after fighting and fight people. You can shoot rpgs from your ships too lol.

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii on Steam

Embark on an over-the-top, modern-day pirate adventure with an ex-yakuza, now pirate captain & his crew. Engage in exhilarating combat on land and sea in the hunt for lost memories and treasure.

store.steampowered.com

 

[ZedClampet]

Sort of a demo, there is an open playtest for a "brutal, 3rd person city builder". I'm just now firing it up...

Nested Lands on Steam

Nested Lands is a ruthless medieval RPG game featuring in-depth village building, large-scale social management and combats. Gather survivors, build a settlement, craft, master your skills, survive, and endure alone or in online co-op.

store.steampowered.com

 

[Frindis]

Maybe of interest for the RPG guys:

Gothic 1 Remake - Demo (Nyras Prologue) on Steam

Welcome to the Colony – an exclusive stand-alone prologue to the Gothic 1 Remake. Take your first step into the world of this genre-defining classic RPG by experiencing an entirely new story: the first day of a fresh inmate in the prison colony.

store.steampowered.com

 

[Frag Maniac]

Maybe of interest for the RPG guys:

Gothic 1 Remake - Demo (Nyras Prologue) on Steam

Welcome to the Colony – an exclusive stand-alone prologue to the Gothic 1 Remake. Take your first step into the world of this genre-defining classic RPG by experiencing an entirely new story: the first day of a fresh inmate in the prison colony.

store.steampowered.com

Is this similar to Skyrim style, or is it yet another one of those games that goes semi isometric during battles and places circles around enemy's feet? Also, are there any dragons to fight? I swear I saw a dragon peeking out at one point.

 

[Frindis]

Is this similar to Skyrim style, or is it yet another one of those games that goes semi isometric during battles and places circles around enemy's feet? Also, are there any dragons to fight? I swear I saw a dragon peeking out at one point.

I only played Gothic 1 for a couple of hours, but from what I remember it was basically hack and slash on enemies in third person with no circles. I would be shocked if there were no dragons to fight.

 

[DXCHASE]

Maybe of interest for the RPG guys:

Gothic 1 Remake - Demo (Nyras Prologue) on Steam

Welcome to the Colony – an exclusive stand-alone prologue to the Gothic 1 Remake. Take your first step into the world of this genre-defining classic RPG by experiencing an entirely new story: the first day of a fresh inmate in the prison colony.

store.steampowered.com

Just beat the demo. Looks and sounds amazing so far and im excited for the rest of the game. Voice acting is good and ran pretty decent on my rig (4080s/12900k).

Was at 60 fps at 3440, but i was doing their "Alkimia Overdose" setting, as soon as i went down to "ultra" i was easily hitting 85-100. So im thinking older rigs should be ok with some tweaks. But it is a demo w/o raytracing, fsr, dlss so hopefully itll get some optimization tweaks before release or at least run well with older rigs.

As for the combat? It needs a fair amount of work still imo. I understand it might be trying to capture old-style fighting, but it just feels bad especially switching from Avowed/KD2. Im not alone in the feedback so far on this, im not saying it needs to be overhauled, just tweaks with its blocking, riposting and movement.

Also, the animation for looting is slow, think it should be quicker. If you played it, you know what i mean.



Are we doing a steam demo fest thread? Or are we just going to put them here?



For rail-gun shooters and retro gamers (gun peripherals work with demo):

THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: Remake on Steam

THE HOUSE OF THE DEAD 2: Remake is a remake of the second entry in the well-known and popular rail-shooter series. Take on the lone role of a secret agent as James or Gary, or team up in co-op mode to neutralize the dangerous undead monsters standing in your way.

store.steampowered.com

Its...ok? I mean these "remakes" of classic rail shooters are never really great and never include an "Original" Mode of the games and have weird issues but its still House of the Dead 2 and a game that works with my light-gun, so i like it.

 

[Frindis]

Are we doing a steam demo fest thread? Or are we just going to put them here?

I noticed @ZedClampet made a thread about it, so perfect place for just that: https://forums.pcgamer.com/threads/next-fest-february-2025-discussion.147451/

 

[ZedClampet]

The reason I make a new thread for Next Fest is because so many of those demos are removed after NF is over. Hopefully most of the demos in this thread are more permanent.

 

[Pifanjr]

I tried the Factorio demo today. It's just the tutorial and I'm only at the fourth level (I think), but it's pretty fun. However, I think it's a bit too fiddly for me. I suspect I'll get annoyed at having to connect everything with pipes and conveyor belts pretty quickly.

 

[Frag Maniac]

I tried the Factorio demo today. It's just the tutorial and I'm only at the fourth level (I think), but it's pretty fun. However, I think it's a bit too fiddly for me. I suspect I'll get annoyed at having to connect everything with pipes and conveyor belts pretty quickly.

We have a district here on the east side called Factoria, and instead of impressing with technology, it's just a traffic jam every time you go there, especially at their Walmart. So I stay over on the west side and pretend our traffic jams are better.

 

[ZedClampet]

I tried the Factorio demo today. It's just the tutorial and I'm only at the fourth level (I think), but it's pretty fun. However, I think it's a bit too fiddly for me. I suspect I'll get annoyed at having to connect everything with pipes and conveyor belts pretty quickly.

Well, do you feel required to finish it? Just play until you can't stand it anymore. Then maybe you'll come back to it some day. I bet a lot of factory game fans have never finished it.

 

[Pifanjr]

Well, do you feel required to finish it? Just play until you can't stand it anymore. Then maybe you'll come back to it some day. I bet a lot of factory game fans have never finished it.

The problem is that the full game is €32, which is a lot of money for a game I might get bored with within a few hours. I'm definitely not as hooked as I was when I tried the The Planet Crafter demo, so I might as well just try some other demos or pick one of the many games from my backlog instead.

 

[ZedClampet]

Zombieville USA 3D on Steam

Zombieville USA 3D is a stylized arcade shooter combining retro gameplay with strikingly polished visuals. Fight through an endless undead horde in the bleak hellscape of suburbia! Choose your weapons, grab a friend, and see how long you can survive.

store.steampowered.com

Haven't tried it yet, but the full game, which released two weeks ago, is sitting at Overwhelmingly Positive with about 1200 reviews. It's both single-player and co-op. I like the cute cartoon graphics.

Edit; That was really fun. I put it on my wishlist.