Gabe Newell promises plenty of game demos at Steam Next Fest: "Oh f***, some of those look pretty good"

Valve will launch the demo-filled Steam Next Fest this week, letting Steam users try many upcoming games with no strings attached, as Gabe Newell confirmed at the PC Gaming Show.

Newell touched on a few of the demos coming to Steam Next Fest – which will run from Wednesday, June 16 through Tuesday, June 22 – including Sable, Tiny Thor, Undead Citadel, Rogue Lords, and hundreds of others. "Oh fuck, some of those look pretty good," Newell said of the featured games, which is pretty high praise from the boss of Valve.

Given the overall decline of game demos, Steam has been one of the most (that is, one of the few) demo-rich storefronts for several years. Various events and sales have buoyed demos in the past, but with Steam Next Fest, formerly the Steam Game Festival, Valve is aggressively offering hundreds of demos alongside dev-led livestreams to help players get a feel, literally and figuratively, for just some of the games on the horizon.

Personally, I was especially delighted to see Sable among the Steam Next Fest lineup. I'm willing to bet that developer Shedworks is bringing the same demo I got to play last week, and if so, Steam users are in for a real treat.

"Maybe it was the floaty, atmospheric trailers, or maybe I just didn't pay close enough attention, but I never thought Sable would be such a full-fat, open-world experience," I said in my Sable preview. "I would've stuck around for the art and music alone, but Sable is so much more. I can't wait to see what else it has up its crimson sleeve."

There's sure to be plenty to see at Steam Next Fest. While we wait for the festivities to begin, you can get a preview of the game lineup on the event's announcement page.

Kudos to our friends at PC Gamer for another great show. Our very own showcase is up next: here's how to watch the Future Games Show Powered by WD_Black.

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.