Steam Next Fest 2023

This post was a bit delayed as I was slow out writing it out.  But in the middle of June was Steam Next Fest 2023.  Steam Next Fest is a  push to show off smaller indie video game companies and their upcoming releases (though most are "releasing" into early access).  That said myself and some buddies grabbed about 20-25 demos each and started seeing if there was anything in the set that we might want to wishlist and watch.  This post will be some quick thoughts on each of the games I tried out.

Before we begin, I tend to look at roguelike games, deckbuilding games, turn based rpgs, and co-op games so you will see a decent amount of those on this list and was often one of the key factors in me deciding to check out a game.  I also put these (for the most part) in the order I played them in.

Shogun Showdown - This was the game that I started with.  It is a turn based combat game with rogue-like and deck building elements.  All of these keywords were big wins in my book.  It plays by having a battlefield with a limited number of spaces.  Your character can be moved, attack, or queue up attacks and try to kill the enemies who spawn while dodging their blows.  The limited number of spaces reminds me of a board game called BattleCon where positioning is key and indeed the demo did show that was the case here as well.  I don't know that I would call it a deckbuilding game, as at least from what I played, you more have a "hand" of skill cards that have cooldowns on them, rather than cards you draw from a deck.

Overall it was an interesting game with some cool concepts but not one I think I would end up picking up.  It did not end up getting added to my wish list.

Quasimorph - The second game I looked at was Quasimorph.  This game piqued my interested due to being a turn based combat extraction shooter. For those who do not know me, Escape from Tarkov is one of my favorite video games and I have logged a large number of hours in it.  The Extraction genre is one that I have come to really enjoy.  Turned based combat also is a favorite of mine.

This game didn't have the greatest tutorial setup, but I started to get the hang of it.  It did have the promised turn based combat and an extraction aspect to it.  But unfortunately, it never hooked me.  The scifi-ish setting didn't really grab me and ultimately I put it down after about an hour.  When playing ag ame of this style, I think I would instead look to Zero Sievert (even though it is not turn based).  

Ultimately, this one did not end up getting added to my wish list, but my feelings aren't much more defined then for whatever reason it just didn't hit.  If the turned based combat and extraction shooter sounds interesting, it might be worth you checking out!

These Doomed Isles - Lately, I have been playing a lot of Against the Storm.  These Doomed Isles felt vaguely like that but a bit more tower defensy.  The building of your city with limited use cards was fun and I would be curious to see how the different gods and pantheons play.

This game remained on my wishlist is one I can definitely see myself picking up once released.

En Garde! - I looked at this game as it promised some swashbuckling action!  And it did deliver on it!  You mix and combo various stabs, parries, and interacting with the environment to fight off enemies.  I was playing on mouse and keyboard and it felt like it might be better played on a controller, but otherwise I did have an enjoyable time.  But overall I determined it just wasn't a game I wanted to continue with.  While it was fun and the environement specifically gives you a lot of options to mix things up, the main loop didn't grip me.  It ultimately did not remain on my wishlist.

Rogue Voltage - This game had some very interesting machine setups.  You drag components into your space, connect them, and when certain things occur they fire off.  It had the potential for amazing combos, the timeline aspect was very neat, and the demo was quite fun.  But as a roguelike style game, there was a LOT of constant shifting of your machines that I am not sure I would enjoy playing it long term over and over. Each battle you were having to constantly swap your inputs and outputs to setup each turn.  

For now this one has remained on the wish list for the novel machine connection mechanism.  But we will see if it remains there.

Tamarak Trail - This game had some very interesting dice crafting mechanisms.  I was attrociously bad at it and was not able to figure out how to excel at the game.  I don't think I made it even to the first boss.  Even with the tutorial and tooltips, I think I was probably missing some key aspect that keeps you alive.  

It remained on my wishlist for the novel dice mechanism, but it is one I am still wary on.

Wizard With A Gun - This game felt very much like a Don't Starve game with some magic.  I didn't play a ton of Don't Starve, mostly because at the time there was no coop.  This game advertised having coop, but sadly it didn't appear to be in the demo available, which is a shame.  Playing coop is likely how I would play this game and some friends and I had downloaded it to try the coop out.  

All in all, this one is still on my wish list, but I am not sure if when it does come out if I will pull the trigger or not.

Starsiege: Deadzone - A buddy who plays a lot of Escape from Tarkov with me, saw this extraction shooter and we figured we would give it a chance.  We had previously played Escape from Tarkov, Expedition Argatha, The Frontier, and Marauders together.  Overall Starsiege: Deadzone added some abilities that each person could bring in.  However we only saw 3 options; too few in my opinion.  The shoot felt okay, but wasn't spectacular.  Additionally, we could not for the life of us find the extraction zone!  We played 4 or 5 rounds but never got to extract.  

All in all, It was a fine game, but didn't do anything well enough to make me pick it over the previously listed games.  It did not remain on my wish list.

We The People - I gave this game a look because it was a post apocalyptic modern day setting.  The world has gone to shit due to what appear to be zombies and you fight against them.  As shown in the below screenshot, the guns looked good too!  That said this is the first game that I would classify as bad versus just not for me.  It is either very, very early in development or a cash grab as there is hardly anything to do it in the demo and the game is very janky.  Movement feels off, the zombies feel off, and the other survivors stood there and did nothing.  It did have some cool attachment systems but navigating through them were a chore.  The gunplay was fine, but also nothing amazing.  

All in all I barely played 20 minutes of this which was spent on a tutorial like level.  There did not seem to be anything more to the demo.  It did not go on the wishlist and I don't recommend this game.

Blackout Protocol - I had seen some rumblings of this game before and it looked like many other top down shooter games.  But it was one that supported co-op and a buddy and I wanted to check it out.  Despite my not high expectations this was a great demo!  We had a blast fighting through the enemies, checking out new weapons, and rolling on the random traits you could gain.  We played through the full demo twice (which is only 2 levels) and each felt fun and unique.  There were multiple classes, multiple gun types with multiple traits on the guns, and enhancements you could get each round.  Additionally, there was a roguelike progression element that you could use to unlock new weapons and traits for the next run.

Its one of the games that I wish was on Game Pass as I am sure I would play the hell out of it for about a month or two and then probably move on and never look back.  That said this one did stay on my wish list to see what the price ends up being when it releases.  If me and a buddy or two dive into it and it isn't too pricey, I could easily see it being worth the price.

Tales and Tactics - This game was probably the biggest turn around for me.  I have been playing a lot of Team Fight Tactics over the last 2 years and seen a few roguelike autobattlers.  One was very exciting but had no content despite being listed as a full game.  Others are still in EA so I have been wary to try them yet.

That said, this is also by the team that did the great Slay the Spire mod.  I was very excited to see what it would be like.  And man my first few hours with this game really soured it for me.  I was not sure what I needed to do to improve, how to overcome the randomness of the game.  

But I was frustrated enough that I kept at it.  One of my friends had finally succeeded and we were trying to see if other builds were viable.  I was finally able to succeed and noticed that I could then unlock some roguelike content.  This was different from my friend who had not had these options his first time succeeded.  And I will say the roguelike content excited me enough to keep playing and I succeeded 3 times in a row.  I am not sure why it was locked away at first, but the roguelike content was a huge part of what got me super excited to see where this game ends up.  It is very high on my wish list now!

Thronefall - This game is a tower defense game where you have a leader who can run around and help defend.  You have to balance your economy generating buildings and their protection via towers and unit producing buildings.  Whatever you still standing at the end of the night produces you some currency and you fortify up and try to defender another night.

Thronefall was a fun take on the tower defense genre and had some interesting decisions between what to pick when .  The game had a good difficulty ramp up throughout the scenario I played and I barely held on to win on the last night.  

Ultimately though, this game just isn't one I would see myself playing a lot.  I think if you enjoy tower defense games (which I only moderately do) then this is definitely worth the check out for something a little more casual and straight forward, while still have a lot of interesting decisions.  But for me it ultimately did not stay on my wish list.

Spells and Secrets - This game got looked at because it was a roguelike, coop, magical school set game.  Coming off of Hogwarts Legacy I saw this and was quite excited so when I saw they had a demo for Next Fest I was in.  I downloaded it and soon learned the coop was local only which was a bummer.  I got into the game and there is some cool interactions that I definitely think would be super fun working together with another player versus having to try to setup the combos on your own.  I got through the tutorial section and beat the first part of the dungeon and was working my way through the second when it crashed.  I reloaded the game and unfortunately lost all the progress I had in the second dungeon (I was on the final boss).  I played through it again and had exactly the same thing happen.  So I have not been able to progress any further or check out any of the roguelike sections yet.  One thing I will say is there doesn't appear to be a save system when you are in a run which is unfortunate.

For this game I am not sure how I feel.  I really wish it had online coop as I think that would greatly benefit it. Being able to do combos with another player seems like it would be a lot of fun.  I think the bones of a good game are there but there definitely needs to be some more development on it.  It is still on my wish list as I watch to see if it develops into a more refined game.

Stellaris Nexus - I have played quite a bit of Stellaris.  It is probably one of my favorite RTS games, so I was curious to see what Stellaris Nexus was.  

From my hour or so tutorial game, I have gathered that it appears to be Stellaris, converted to a turn based game, and simplified up.  There were classes ships that had a rock paper scissors type fight instead of the building of custom ships.  There was a resource that allowed you to take actions and that controlled how much you could do per turn.  There was also a deckbuilding system that drew cards that allowed you to do specific actions only when they were in your hand.    

All in all it was not a bad game, but I would prefer to play actual Stellaris to it. However, if Stellaris looks too daunting, then give this a shot!  It did not unfortunately remain on my wish list.

Hammerwatch II - I did not play Hammerwatch 1.  This game was a top down action RPG that seemed okay.  I went through the demo content rather quickly and nothing in it really set its hooks into me.  

Ultimately this one did not stay on my wish list.

BattleBit Remastered - Lastly, and hidden at the bottom because it wasn't really part of Next Fest, I played BattleBit Remastered.  Think Roblox meets Battlefield meets Squad.  It is a chaotic mess of a shooter game with so many features you would not expect per the graphics.  My friends and I jumped in and didn't stop playing this.  Highly recommend if you are looking for a large team vs team battle game!

There were also a few games I downloaded the demos for but did not get to and they have since removed their demos.  These included:

• Gord
• One Lonely Outpost
• Remore: Infested Kingdom
• Mythforce
• Arc Seed

I also have a few that are still installed that I haven't played yet:

• Broken Roads
• Cyberknights: Flashpoint
• Jumplight Odyssey
• Norland: Story Generating Strategy
• Rogue Command