A celebration of upcoming games, Steam’s next Fest is where I find most of the games I wind up playing. Getting the chance to dive into demos and try out all sorts of different games, especially ones outside my usual genres, is fun! This time around I tried out nine demos, and am sharing the four that stuck out to me the most. Do any pique your interest? Let me know, and maybe I’ll play it on stream!
Vasilisa and Baba Yaga
An adventure game based on the Russian folktale “Vasilisa the Beautiful”. A scary story about the journey to the mistress of the forbidden forest for magical powers.
The first game added to my wishlist this NextFest! I loved the artstyle in this one and the soundtrack is beautiful, based on folk songs from central and southern Russia. I wasn’t expecting full voice-over for the narrator and thought that a nice touch! Walking does feel a little slow, but you’re a child and it gave me a chance to appreciate the environments more.
I’m always worried about having to sneak past… anyway, or otherwise avoid danger but the patterns are easy to recognize and there’s just enough time that even if your reflexes are a little slower, you will still get by when trying to sneak your way past something. Combat via your doll is fun – the high-energy soundtrack really makes it. Currently a bit difficult to tell when you’re taking damage, but they’re going to be adding a vibration in to assist with that.
Surprising nobody, I like the pretty art game based on folktakes with some horror elements!
Paper Trails
Paper Trail is a top-down puzzle adventure about leaving home, set in a foldable, paper world.
Winner of over 25 awards and nominations, it’s easy to see why some people are calling it game of the year. Paper Trails is a truly innovative puzzle game, using space in a way I simply haven’t seen before. Good fun for the whole family with a gorgeous art style which reminded me of Wytchwood [here] a little bit!
I’m not going to pretend to have been very good at this game – I didn’t finish the demo, puzzle games and I traditionally are not friends until I find a guide somewhere – but I did enjoy it! I’ll be keeping an eye on this one for when it releases and I can reference a guide for when I inevitably get stuck. I want to play through and see the story, I also don’t find spending 5+ minutes on a puzzle relaxing. My brain is tired and wants to rest.
Recommend checking it out, especially if you like puzzle games and a laidback atmosphere.
Ailuri
Ailuri is a 2D platformer, level based game with hand drawn art. Explore levels at your own pace, survive against the dangers of the world and rescue other creatures in this heartbreaking story.
I was tearing up in the intro to this game, so that heartbreak comes in right at the start. On the flip side… wow is our character adorable! I haven’t played a platforming game in quite some time – this one was fun for me! The controls were easy to grasp, which was great as I usually struggle with remembering what all the different buttons do, and if I didn’t get something right away I figured it out within a few tries!
Did find out the hard way that there’s a breath meter but with the save points being so frequent, it really didn’t feel so bad! Get ready for feelings, maybe some tears, and a stunning game world that reminded me of a storybook in all the best ways. Added bonus: there’s co-op!
The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood
The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood is a thought-provoking narrative experience from the creators of The Red Strings Club. Featuring a richly diverse cast of characters, Tarot-like card creation, divination, and a branching story that spans time and space, The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood explores themes of identity, community, and personal responsibility in a beautifully hand-crafted universe.
This one’s neat. It came recommended to me by the same friend who clued me in to Cozy Grove and Strange Horticulture (among others), so I should have known it was going to be right up my alley butttt I hesistated! I didn’t try the demo at all the last time it was available, not thinking it was in my wheelhouse despite it sounding like it should be. Well, ding dong, I was wrong – I played the demo and immediately added the game to my cart.
You’re playing as Fortuna, a fortune teller one year two-hundred of a thousand-year sentence to exile. Banished from the coven and removed from your tarot cards, you reach out to a behemoth and enter into a pact to restore your power. But power always comes with a price.
I’m interested in the story, absolutely, but also think doing the tarot readings is fun, and getting to make your own cards is neat! The choices you make when sealing the pact with your forbidden familiar also have a direct impact on gameplay, so choose wisely! Or, you know, choose what’s most interesting to you – play your way!
Until next time, stay cozy!
The Cozy Cauldron 