It’s a busy time on Steam with the Women’s Day Sale on and free demos to download and try out. Paula wrote a Women’s Day Sale article with discounted games that we have reviewed; you can find that article here.
Meanwhile, with the Women’s Day Sale on Steam, a few of the games I’ve been curious about have demos that are available to play and I decided to take a brief look at some of them and bring you my thoughts. Let’s have a look at nine demos you can try out now.
Potions: A Curious Tale
Potions: A Curious Tale is an upcoming adventure and crafting fantasy game in development by Stumbling Cat. We play as Luna, a young witch who is visiting her grandmother and learning how to be a witch. We collect resources, explore enchanted lands, solve puzzles, connect with the characters we meet and, of course, brew potions.
Besides combat, we’ll have to use our wits to avoid danger, to trick, charm and scare opponents into dropping valuable items. If you’re a fan of crafting fantasy sims, Potions: A Curious Tale will probably intrigue you. Potions: A Curious Tale is expected to be released on March 7th, 2024. Meanwhile, you can check out the demo.
Copycat
Copycat is a narrative-driven adventure game in development by Spoonful of Wonder. The game tells the tale of Dawn, a newly adopted shelter cat, whose tentative friendship with her new owner, Olive, is threatened when a jealous stray copycat steals her place in the household. Dawn finds herself once more on streets and, while traversing alleys and rooftops, reexamines her relationship with Olive and the meaning of love and home.
Despite the somewhat bleak themes, Copycat looks gorgeous, with a sense of humor. There is a sense of wonder about Dawn. I was not fond of the common problem I have with narrative-driven games – the illusion of choice – you have to follow a particular storyline and pace. You can check out the demo now while waiting for the entire game to be released later this year.
Tell Me Your Story
Tell Me Your Story is an upcoming puzzle game by RedDeer.Games. It is a colorful and lighthearted dive into Grandma Rose’s extraordinary stories, along with Amelia’s, by solving cozy puzzles. The art style is once again reminiscent of A Little to the Left in the best possible way.
I was really impressed by Tell Me Your Story, and after playing the demo, it quickly climbed to the top of my most anticipated games of 2024. I liked that while we got no explanation of the puzzle, there was hardly any confusion on what to do – the puzzles were logical, intuitive, and cozy.
Leila
Leila is an upcoming point-and-click puzzle game about Leila as she ponders her past and present and the life choices she made along the way. The game is gorgeous visually, with hand-drawn animations and a central area resembling a shadowbox. At least the puzzles in the demo are of the hidden object variety but still different enough to stay exciting.
It’s evident from the demo that this is not a game that will hold your hand or that you’ll breeze through. It takes some time to figure out what you’re looking for and then to find it, but not annoyingly so that you’ll get stuck and bored. All in all, Leila will be another great game that I’m looking forward to. The demo is available now on Steam, with the entire game expected to be released later this year.
Mizi No!
Mizi No! is an upcoming free puzzle game by DU&I, developers of my beloved Virtual Cottage. In Mizi No! Our job is to reassemble broken objects that our cat has knocked over. The premise is simple, and the objects in the demo are not overly complicated, so it would be interesting to see if the finished game has any difficulty settings or challenge progression.
The premise is similar to A Little to the Left, and the artwork also reminds me of that game. This is a good thing – A Little to the Left is a brilliant game, and I am always hungry for more of the same style.
The Demo for Mizi No! is available now to try on Steam, with the game expected to be released later this year.
Lost Twins 2
Lost Twins 2 is a dreamy platformer in development by Playdew. In the game, we play Abi and Ben on their journey as they move across platforms, solve puzzles, swap tiles to create paths, overcome obstacles to reunite, and find their way home. Lost Twins 2 looks gorgeous – it features soft painted backgrounds with characters in the style of the old classic hand-drawn animations. The animation and movements are fluid and responsive.
It’s similar to Forgotten Anne but a much more cheerful version. I was actually strongly reminded by the Trine series. From what I’ve seen in the demo and read about the game – Lost Twins 2 is focused on exploring and puzzles. There are no timers and no enemies to defeat. The game will be very well suited to young players and adults. The demo for Lost Twins 2 is available now on Steam, and the game is expected to be released later this year.
Dreadwinter
Dreadwinter is an upcoming single-player fantasy coffee shop RPG by Vogy Bear. In Dreadwinter, we wake up in a cozy apartment above a coffee shop named “Dreadwinter.” We are told we have seven days to change our lives – whether turning the coffee shop into a thriving business or exploring the world.
We explore Dreadwinter and its secrets, including nighttime supernatural clientele and a sleeping dragon in the backroom, Lunara, the Timeless Town, where Dreadwinter is based, meet new friends and quirky characters, and make some excellent coffee. Dreadwinter has a demo out now, with the game expected to be released later this year.
Vivaland
Vivaland is an upcoming life sim game in development by Hive5 Interactive. Vivaland: Dream House is the build mode for Vivaland, and it was released as a free game on March 1st, so strictly speaking, it’s different from a demo. However, having played it and seeing how limited the build choices are, I think it’s appropriate to consider it a demo. As time progresses, they will add more options.
At first glance, the game feels and behaves like the Sims. It looks more realistic, too. The music was a bit grating for me, but you can always turn it off. Roof resizing was a nightmare, which I eventually gave up on. But even with that, I am curious about Vivaland and will check it out when it comes out later this year.
Lightyear Frontier
Lightyear Frontier is an upcoming open-world farming adventure on a planet on the galaxy’s edge in development by FRAME BREAK and Amplifier Studios. It features a beautiful world as the background for our adventures, with mysteries and secrets galore. We have everything we need to build a thriving farm – tools, resources, and a versatile mech.
The demo showcases the single-player mode, and let me tell you, the game is beautiful, and the movements are smooth and responsive. The whole game will have a multiplayer mode, allowing cooperative gameplay with up to 3 friends. I am not a big fan of farming sims, but I eagerly await Lightyear Frontier‘s release.
The demo for Lightyear Frontier is out now, with the full game expected to be released in early access on March 19th, 2024.