I’ll be honest, I was not the type of gamer that enjoyed demos. They made me feel rushed and a bit lost being tossed straight into the gameplay. I’m glad I gave them another chance recently, because my opinion completely changed after playing some really fun ones.
Steam Next Fest happened this month and I stopped counting how many demos I played at around number 20. The truth is that even though there were many that I disliked, the ones I did like made me SO hyped for their releases!
So let’s get to the list! Here are 8 demos I loved playing this month, with the earliest releases first.
1. Babbling Brook
Release: Coming to Steam on November 3rd.
Sculpt sand to create winding streams through lush forests and rolling meadows. Babbling Brook is a cozy & relaxing indie game about messing around with water and sand.
I found this game while browsing the long Next Fest list and I was pleasantly surprised when I realized what I had found: a super relaxing game where you’re simply creating a river (and sometimes helping some rubber ducks get to the ocean). This might just be the coziest game on this list!
2. Winter Burrow
Release: Coming to Steam, Xbox and Switch on November 12.
Winter Burrow is a cozy woodland survival game. Explore, gather resources, craft tools, knit warm sweaters, bake pies and meet the locals.
This game caught my eye ever since I first saw it on the Nintendo Indie World showcase back in August this year, and I finally got around to playing the demo during Next Fest. I love the idea of having a survival game that doesn’t look super stressful or tense, and the contrast with the fact that you can bake pies and knit for your survival.
3. UMAMI
Release: Coming to Steam on November 17.
Solve cozy, food-themed 3D puzzles in a hand-painted world. Tinker, rotate and organize woodeen blocks to discover satisfying little scenes full of cute animals, gentle logic, and soothing sounds.
I wishlisted UMAMI right away when I watched the trailer during the Indie Fan Fest last month, but I’ve got to say that I worried it might turn out to be that sort of puzzle that gets too difficult for me – the 3D elements looked pretty complex! But I’m glad to say that this wasn’t the case at all. There were two levels in the demo, and the fact that they provide you with a picture of the final piece helped me solve the puzzles without feeling any frustration.
4. Sheepherds!
Release: Coming to Steam in Q4 2025.
Sheepherds! is a cozy co-op party game where you and your sheepdog buddies guide colorful flocks through beautiful landscapes to collect their wool. There’s no time limit: bark, run, and play together — or take on challenges to win even more rewards!
I never miss a chance to complain about not seeing enough couch co-op games releases so I was so pleased when I found out that Sheepherds! was, in fact, a couch co-op game! I played this demo with my partner and both of us had a blast, even though I might have gotten a little worked up when he accidentally let some of the sheep go… My only point of complaint is that they didn’t have a Jack Russell Terrier, which is my dog’s breed! But I think I can let that major oversight go since the game offers so many other breed and customization options to choose from.
5. Familiar Findings
Release: Coming to Steam (PC and Mac) in Q1 2026.
Summon and study witches’ familiars in this charming creature collection game. Gather dragons, spirits and more in your quest to complete your magical grimoire. Watch them enchant your screen without intruding while you work, study or relax. With over 100 variations there’s a favourite for everyone!
As a Mac user, the truth is that I never used a bottom of the screen game – I tried Rusty’s Retirement briefly but it just didn’t work very well. It was a nice surprise that Familiar Findings performed great in my old Macbook. I love creature collecting games and I thought the mechanic where you fuse the familiars (which is how the creatures are called) in order to discover new ones was pretty original. I’m still not sure if bottom-of-your-screen games are my thing, but I might give this one a go when it releases.
6. Dogpile
Release: To be announced.
Dogpile is a roguelike deck builder about merging cute dogs into bigger dogs. Play dogs, get money, customize your dogs with special Traits, refine your deck, PLAY MORE DOGS! DOGS!
I mentioned Dogpile in my 5 very unusual demos from Steam Next Fest post. This game is like Suika Game meets Balatro meets cute and quirky dogs? There was only one deck available in this demo but I played the game for several runs, for about 100 minutes! I’m anxiously waiting to hear about when it will come out.
7. Crashout Crew
Release: To be announced.
Time to clock in at DE NILE SHIPPING, the world’s “most efficient” warehouse! Work together in online co-op with up to 4 players to fulfill orders of increasingly chaotic, physics-based boxes. Time is money, and safety is no concern… just try not to crash out!
Crashout Crew is an upcoming game from AggroCrab, the developers of PEAK. It was really chaotic to drive a forklift without crashing into other people, with difficulty ramping up as new obstacles appear in the warehouse. A shout out to the GoodGameLobby for streaming our session, and to my friends from The Cozy Gaming Club who I also played with!
8. Pancito Merge
Release: To be announced.
Drop, stack, and merge colorful pan dulce into bigger, tastier treats in this cozy puzzle adventure! With charming visuals and simple gameplay, it’s a sweet celebration of Mexican baking, perfect for quick sessions and high score chases.
Another one that is a Suika Game-like, Pancito Merge has a fun twist: as you merge pastries to form bigger ones, you get customers dropping by your shop to buy them (and when you do so, they disappear from the stack/bag). I love playing games where I get to learn more about other cultures, and the fact that the game calls itself a celebration of Mexican baking was la cereza del pastel for me. 🙂
Final thoughts
What’s your opinion on demos? Have you played any good ones recently?
Thank you for reading,
-Luna
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