Next Fest October 24 Roundup #4

From monster hunters and wonderland explorers to pedestrian slayers and long-armed thieves—ten demos to play.

It's day four, AIIG's last roundup for Steam Next Fest's October edition! Preparing and producing these dispatches takes some work, so thank you for the support—the comments, the shares and restacks, the likes, and even just opening the emails! 

Hopefully, you have some free time this weekend to try a few demos. They might disappear after next Monday, so don't delay! Tomorrow, I'll share the master list of games I collected for this Next Fest with all email subscribers.

Now, onto the final ten picks!*

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Voin (Steam link)

Battle the monster legions of a demonic plague, cleansing the world and restoring order. Or die trying. Voin is a fast-paced first-person combat game where you blend visceral and bloody combat with magical buffs and attacks. Play as a wizard's special creation, a super warrior able to deal heavy damage, make enormous leaps, and take on hordes of creatures in hack-and-slash battles. Try out different builds during combat runs, and recover special weapons and powers you can use in future attempts. 

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Luma Island (Steam link)

Disregard your old life and explore Luma Island. Search forgotten caves, complete interesting puzzles, and explore the island's history. Starting with your humble caravan, build a dream farm and sell your wares to the local townsfolk. Go fishing, forage flowers, befriend a pet and smelt metal. Whichever profession you prefer, you will have quirky islanders to inspire you to create and build your new life in this adorable world.  If you enjoyed the laid-back style of Stardew Valley and the enjoyment of cave diving like Core Keeper, Luma Island is your next destination.

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Pedalverse (Steam link)

Sports games are still a rarer sight among indie game releases, particularly ones that show the polish and detail that gamifying a real-world activity often requires. This makes Pedalverse a very pleasant surprise: a realistic-looking offroad mountain biking game where you tear through diverse terrains across different seasons. Stunning day/night transitions add to the immersion and challenge as you explore a large open world, executing stunts and high-speed chases as you endure the fluid weather system. As a bonus, you can also dynamically switch to a high-speed drone to scope out trails.

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Tranquil Isle (Steam link)

Have your little island paradise without worrying about a complex management system. Enjoy the lo-fi, calming atmosphere and reach milestones that give you more decorations and buildings to make your isle more idyllic. Tranquil Isle works on a point system: when you have created your perfect little island, you can either start a new one or see how many points you have made. Like Tiny Glade and Townscraper, relax by clicking away from your stressful day in your island heaven.

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Across the Wonderlands (Steam link)

Some games defy proper description, like a cooking-themed third-person survival craft game inspired by the surreal and colourful magic worlds of Lewis Carroll's Alice novels. In Across the Wonderlands, you explore a colourful world, smashing everything for ingredients to cook new dishes, which you use for combat against the hostile creatures you discover in the game's dimensions. There's crafting and base-building, and up to four people can play together. This looks like a conventional survival game. But everything between the lines suggests it really isn't.

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My Arms Are Longer Now (Steam link)

Being blessed with long arms could be seen as an unfortunate mutation… Or you could devise the perfect heist by being the sleight-of-hand criminal mastermind! Pinch your way into the pockets of unsuspecting targets, coiling through levels to grab the most expensive objects and cash in. Be careful; a hardboiled Australian detective is out to catch you, so make sure you don't wrap yourself up in your stretchy limb. It may be odd but strangely amusing.

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Beyond Astra (Steam link)

Grand strategy is all about the big view, but what if you can take it all the way down to planetside? A few 4x games have done this before, but even so, Beyond Astra's scope is breathtaking. Start as a civilisation on a planet, building on the surface, then fly among the stars to make friends or conquer. There's no loading: the game zooms from your terrestrial cities up to a galactic view where you can run things on a massive scale. It has hundreds of visitable worlds, ships, and stations in a dynamic and detailed universe, rivalling the ambitious spirit of its fan base.

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Turbo Live (Steam link)

Parents always told you to look both ways before crossing the street, but they never told you about the maniacs wanting to run you over. Turbo Live is a time trial game where you help a group of luckless pedestrians to stay out of oncoming traffic. That, or you can participate in crushing them! This game is not only co-op—it has a unique chat feature that lets audiences participate in the carnage (and is particularly tailored to streamers). It sounds grim but looks delightfully fun.

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The Axis Unseen (Steam link)

Hunt down mythological nightmare creatures in a vast, mysterious, open world with bizarre and unnerving places. But the world's intensity is light compared to your task, armed with a bow, knife, and little else. The Axis Unseen is a stealth game where you brandish a bow and knife as your weapons. There is no hud. The information you need is on the bow, on your character's tattoos, or by looking at your gear. Walk smartly, making sure the wind isn't giving you away or that you make noise walking on rocks. Stalk your prey, which includes vicious and intimidating monsters, and use their energy to upgrade your abilities. Hardcore but still accessible, this game looks unique.

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Sorry, We're Closed (Steam link)

Michelle is having a bad day. A demon has cursed her in an effort to force her into love. To escape its clutches, she must explore her neighbourhood with her powerful third eye, seeing a supernatural parallel realm where monsters want to attack you. Sorry, We're Closed is a modern spin on classic survival horror: fixed camera angles to intensify the tension, limited health and ammo, and a lingering feeling that you are the meat everything else is hunting. Peel away at different realities, making choices along an intense story with multiple endings.

*AIIG's impressions are based on gameplay footage and descriptions, not playing the demos, and actual experiences may vary. There may be bugs or undercooked ingredients.