Hardware Ready Ready to Bench?
Steam Next Fest 2026. The Steam Next Fest of October 2026 starts right now, on October 19 at CEST Italian time, directly on Steam. To participate for free, simply open the page dedicated to the festival in the Steam store, select a demo, and start the download.
Valve indicates that the official opening of the festival is set for PDT (UTC−7). The indicated Italian time is obtained by converting the hour to CEST (UTC+2).
Steam Next Fest 2026: why it matters
The schedule provides a single moment of opening for the festival. The Next Fest will last one week and will be accessible from the Steam Next Fest page in the Steam store.
To download demos, you must select them within the section dedicated to the Next Fest on Steam. The Italian event page allows you to explore upcoming games, divided by genre, and add them to your Wishlist.
Opening a title’s card gives access to the full game page with the button to download the demo or to a page specifically dedicated to the trial version. The download command may appear in the center of the card or in the sidebar, depending on the settings chosen by the developer.
Some demos might be available even before the official start of the festival, as Valve allows developers to publish them in advance. However, the version must be playable to participate in the Next Fest.
Before proceeding with the download, it is advisable to check the system requirements, supported languages, and required disk space on the individual game cards. These elements vary depending on the game, and participation in the festival does not guarantee support for the Italian language or compatibility with all configurations.
What changes and what are the effects
Steam Next Fest offers the opportunity to try demos of unreleased games, allowing PC players to directly evaluate controls, pace, and features of upcoming titles before a potential purchase. The duration of the demos varies depending on the project.
Demos are free and do not require any paid subscription. Access to the trial does not include the full game.
Any developer livestreams will have a dedicated section on Steam, but Valve does not plan a single official livestream for the entire festival.
The festival will conclude on October 26 at CET Italian time, after the switch to standard time. The availability of demos after the conclusion of the festival will depend on the developers: a deactivated demo might no longer be launchable via Steam even if already installed.
Source and further reading on Steam Next Fest 2026: original article.
* Content created with the assistance of artificial intelligence systems.