Getting your indie game noticed by the gaming community can be a tough task. However, if your game can enter in the Steam Next Fest, it can open a lot of opportunities for you. Here are a few simple steps on when to place your game in the event.
When Should Your Game Enter Into Steam Next Fest?
The most important factor of entering your game into Steam Next Fest is that you can only place it into the event once. It may be tempting to promote your game straight away a year or two away, but timing is absolutely key. You’ll want to place a demo into the Steam Next Fest once you’re close to releasing the full product.
There are a few reasons for this. First, it will remain in the headspace of those who play your game’s demo. They’ll be more aware of the concept of your experience and will be liklier to purchase the full title if they’ve enjoyed your demo and remember their time.
Second, placing a demo into Steam Next Fest a few months before the game’s official release will get the press’ attention. If they know a rough release estimate or even better, a release date, they can prepare coverage for your title. If your game is an open world RPG, for example, they can assign writers to review the experience and then get others to cover guides for quests.
Cloutboost agrees that you should release your game close to launch. It says that it “maximizes visibility” for the product and like we previously said it keeps “your game [..] fresh in players’ minds.”
Before you enter your game into Steam Next Fest, however, make sure you have a press kit. Have some standout screenshots that highlight the characters, cutscenes, and gameplay in a detailed manner and can be easily used as a featured image.
Also, include a logo (with a clear background) and additional information like the release date, developer, and a brief overview of the unique gameplay your game offers, etc, so potential writers and content creators know what they are getting.
Is Your Demo Enticing Enough?
As previously mentioned, you only have one shot to impress gamers on Steam Next Fest, so you want to make sure your demo gives a good overview of what your title can offer. Take a look at HASTE: Broken Worlds, one of the most-played demos during the February 2025 Steam Next Fest titles.
The demo for HASTE: Broken Worlds runs incredibly smooth and shows off around 30 minutes to an hour of gameplay. It lets players get an idea of the high-speed platforming concept but doesn’t give too much with one level (or shard as the game calls it). The Steam page also explains how much the demo offers, setting expectations for players and the media.
As a result of the outstanding demo and clarity that the developer Landfall provided on Steam, it has received coverage on Polygon, IGN, and other websites (including my upcoming article on Destructoid).
It’s also important to choose the right tags for your game. You’ll want to blend a mixture of unique tags and genre tags. For example, HASTE includes “fast-paced” as a tag, in addition to “3D platformer” and “Third person.” Add 20 tags (which is the maximum amount you can use) to gain as much traction to your game as possible.
“Our initial tagging placed Norland under ‘Simulation’ rather than the more fitting ‘Strategy,’ causing it to miss out on prominent exposure in the ‘Strategy’ section during Next Fest,” said Indie Wolverine. “Catching such details early can lead to a significant boost in visibility and conversions.”
Get the Correct Attention
For a Steam Next Fest demo to go well, you should communicate about your game to the right audiences. First, come up with a list of your game’s direct influences and similar titles in the genre. Go on YouTube and then search which content creators have covered the title. For example, if your game is a retro-inspired turn-based RPG, you might want to look up who covered Sea of Stars.
If your game is like Sea of Stars, you may want to contact content creators who cover a lot of RPGs on YouTube like Happy Console Gamer, JRPGLife, and Backlog Battle. If you successfully indicate what your game’s hook is in a press email or a trailer, they may be interested in covering your title if they think they can grab the attention of their viewers.
However, you’ll want to make each message you send out as personal as possible. It lets the content creators know you’ve watched their content, and it doesn’t look like a AI wrote your message. “Personalized pitches tailored to each outlet or influencer are far more likely to generate positive responses,” said Cloutboost.
If you go to the YouTube channel page, and then click “more” in the description box, you can usually find “View email address” near the bottom of the section above their URL. Once you’ve compiled a list of potential content creators to contact and you have a great demo to impress them with, you may be able to gain a bunch of wishlists and interest in your product during the Steam Next Fest event.
Giving early demo access to the press also provides more time for writers to cover your game in time for the Steam Next Fest event with an embargo in place. Rather than being rushed, they have enough time to give your game a chance.
What are your thoughts?