Joseph Hooper @ PAX East

Already one of my favorite games of the year. Fun dialogue, active gameplay, and a reasonable time to beat.

Esoteric Ebb on Steam Esoteric Ebb is a single-player CRPG inspired by the freedom of tabletop adventures. Unravel a political conspiracy with your goblin sidekick. Roll dice in tense encounters. Become a cleric of legends...

Last but not least, Esoteric Ebb. I know a lot of people have been talking about it, but this is really the poster child for 2026 being the year of the CRPG. Love this more comedic take on the fantasy genre.
@chrisbodegard.bsky.social
@rawfury.bsky.social

store.steampowered.com/app/2057760/...

Wanderburg on Steam Drive your Castle on Wheels into battle in this minimalist medieval roguelike of roaming fortresses! Devour entire villages, build your modular arsenal of siege weapons and arcane machinery as you gro...

Wanderburg is just pure unadulterated fun. Probably the most satisfying gameplay loops of the week. Driving around on a castle on wheels blowing up other castles on wheels almost feels too addictive to be selling.
@randwerk.com
@sidekickpublishing.bsky.social

store.steampowered.com/app/3624140/...

Phonopolis on Steam Phonopolis is a story-driven puzzle adventure set in a hand-painted 3D world made of cardboard. Solve a wide variety of playful puzzles and help Felix end the Leader's oppressive influence in a resona...

Phonopolis is one of those games where every moment you're playing, you wonder how some team actually made this. Artistically one of my favorite games of the week for sure. I'm wishing @amanita-design.net all the success, because I want more stuff like this.

store.steampowered.com/app/1206070/...

ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies on Steam From the creators of Disco Elysium - The Final Cut comes ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies – an espionage RPG. You're a brilliant but tormented operant on one final desperate assignment. Gather your broken...

Lots of drama and competing feelings about this one. I highly suggest you look into and make your own decision on if you want to support it. Keeping all of the developer stuff aside, the game is good. CRPGs are showing up in 2026 in a big way.

store.steampowered.com/app/2863680/...

Titanium Court on Steam A surreal strategy game for clowns and criminals.

Look, I did my best in the video to explain what Titanium Court is. There's not nearly enough characters to do that here. Just know it's incredibly unusual and a lot of fun. Try it.
@apthomson.bsky.social
@fellowtraveller.games

store.steampowered.com/app/2364580/...

The Dungeon Experience on Steam The Dungeon Experience is a comedy first-person adventure about a low-level mudcrab chasing his dream of helping YOU experience the true bliss of Financial Freedom*

The Dungeon Experience was one of my favorite surprises of the week. It's a comedic parody on dungeon-crawler RPGs. Much needed with the news about the end of Smiling Friends this week 🥲.

@jacobjanerka.bsky.social
@sboxle.bsky.social
@devolverdigital.com

store.steampowered.com/app/994680/T...

Rune Dice on Steam Tactical deckbuilding in bite-sized sessions. Launch dice to create magical chain reactions. Choose from distinct hero classes with unique abilities. Build synergies between dice, relics, and runes to...

Rune Dice is the Suica Game roguelike fusion I didn't know I needed.
@runedicegame.bsky.social
@kwalee.bsky.social
store.steampowered.com/app/3542380/...

Call of the Elder Gods on Steam Journey to the far corners of the Earth and unearth ancient horrors in this Lovecraftian narrative puzzle adventure and sequel to 2020’s critically acclaimed Call of the Sea.

Call of the Sea was one of those great GamePass hidden gems, so now I can't wait for Call of the Elder Gods. The puzzles are pretty tough (positive) and the Lovecraftian story is right up my alley.
@coteggame.bsky.social
@kwalee.bsky.social

store.steampowered.com/app/2174380/...

The Mermaid Mask on Steam An impossible locked-room murder: Captain Mortuga lies dead beside an ancient cauldron aboard the world’s strangest submarine, crewed by sketchy suspects. A handcrafted point-and-click with sharp humo...

I've been trying to give P&C games a chance, and The Mermaid Mask makes it easy. Fun dialogue, great art, and creative puzzles are going to make this a great cozy game (even though it is about murder).
@sfbtom.bsky.social
@sfbdim.bsky.social

store.steampowered.com/app/1696770/...

SoulQuest on Steam Carve your path through hordes of enemies, defying the gods to seize the power of Morrigan, Goddess of Death, and retrieve the soul of your beloved! SoulQuest combines amazing gameplay with the unique...

SoulQuest is a character action game packed in a retro-coded game with a pixel art style. The combat was awesome, the platforming was terrible.

store.steampowered.com/app/2512450/...

One more video and one more thread of demos before Next Fest Wraps this weekend.
youtu.be/brVBrH_TO1A

P.S. I'm giving you all the answers to the test below in the hopes that you'll at least like the video and watch it for a minute (need those stats baby).

The "who are you" is actually hilarious 😂

Even the The Eternal Life of Goldman main menu music goes hard. My goodness.

My thread with my 10 favorites from this weekend - bsky.app/profile/th3h...

The Eternal Life of Goldman on Steam In this breathtaking platformer adventure, explore a vast hand-drawn Archipelago, inspired by ancient fables and depicted in classic frame-by-frame animation, and defeat a mysterious Deity.

The Eternal life of Goldman has been my favorite demo by far. I can't stop thinking about it. The platforming, art, and interesting story make this feel like a game specifically tailored for me. I need the release date NOW! @hollywood-animal.bsky.social pls.

store.steampowered.com/app/2254950/...

Denshattack! on Steam Flip, trick and grind your train in a fast-paced, off-the-rails ride through a colourful Japanese dystopia. Outmatch rival gangs, wreck a shady megacorp, and take back the tracks with nothing but skil...

AftI wasn't sure way to expect with @denshattack.bsky.social, but if you've seen my article over at @theindieinformer.bsky.social , then you know I'm a fan. I think I've played the demo about 10 times now? @fireshinegames.bsky.social has the stuff.
store.steampowered.com/app/2524850/...

REPLACED on Steam Expose the sinister secrets of Phoenix Corporation as R.E.A.C.H., an AI trapped in a human body. Set in an alternate 1980s America scarred by nuclear catastrophe, navigate a dark cyberpunk thriller in...

I'm not going to lie, with the delays to good to be true trailer, I was skeptical of @replacedgame.bsky.social. But after playing the latest demo, all my worry turned into excitement. This game is good y'all. @sadcatstudios.bsky.social made something special.
store.steampowered.com/app/1663850/...

Vampire Crawlers: The Turbo Wildcard from Vampire Survivors on Steam Deal world-ending combos and blitz through infested dungeons! Vampire Crawlers: the turbo wildcard from Vampire Survivors is a casual, turn‑based deckbuilder with roguelite elements. Master the Turbot...

@poncle.games has already proven their goated status time and time again. The deckbuilder take on @vampire.poncle.games is, unsurprisingly, a home run.
store.steampowered.com/app/3265700/...

Gambonanza on Steam Gambonanza is a turn-based chess roguelike, set on a tiny board with higher stakes. Master tactical twists, invest your winnings and discover new rule-bending Gambits, tile and piece combinations. Fac...

Okay, I kinda lied. Gambonanza is also one of my favorite surprises so far. Balatro + Chess turns out to be a fusion sent from heaven. @strayfawnstudio.bsky.social please keep cooking!

store.steampowered.com/app/3509230/...

Lelu on Steam Get your gears in motion for a captivating monochromatic adventure where you play as Lelu, a small but determined clockwork toy who has gained consciousness and found a taste for freedom!

Lelu might have been one of my favorite surprises to far. Love the classic action adventure gameplay and it's packaged in a charming art style. Love! Great job @jamierowan.bsky.social!

store.steampowered.com/app/3131340/...

LUCID on Steam Discover your own legend in LUCID. Platform through a crystalline world torn apart by calamity, absorb powerful abilities that expand movement and enhance combat against a diverse cast of enemies and ...

@matteblackstudio.bsky.social has been grinding for years now and it's paid off big time. The latest LUCID demo has came so far from when I played it at PAX West several years ago, but I'm happy that the core gameplay that originally sold me is still there.
store.steampowered.com/app/1717730/...

Forbidden Solitaire on Steam Forbidden Solitaire is a card-slashing horror game about unearthing the contents of a cryptic 1995 CD-ROM that should have never existed. From the creators of Ancient Enemy and Home Safety Hotline.

@greyalien.bsky.social modernized a classic card game and made it camp-horror (not sure if I used camp right there). Also has a hilarious @writnelson.bsky.social cameo (I think that was him at least, the video was tiny).
store.steampowered.com/app/3414580/...

cc: @nightsignalentertainment.com

Helix: Descent N Ascent on Steam Journey into the forgotten world of Helix, where ancient powers awaken within you. Unlock and combine embodied abilities to unravel the mysteries of a lost civilization. Descend into a tale that will ...

Badass Mongoose created a sick puzzle game with a really unusual art style. It completely caught me off guard and I really enjoyed it!
store.steampowered.com/app/2736370/...

RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike on Steam A coin-pushing dopamine machine. RACCOIN is a roguelike deckbuilder where you combine special coins with powerful items to trigger wildly satisfying combos. Stack shiny towers, spin the lucky wheel, a...

@raccoingame.bsky.social took a typically frustrating, stupid, and let's be honest, predatory arcade and made it an actually fun video game
store.steampowered.com/app/3784030/...

The Steam Next Fest 2026 Demos Worth Your Time YouTube video by CantPause

A lot of demos to play this week! I captured 10 of my favorites so far! (Hopefully) More coming soon!
youtu.be/OdyDDmoDUrs?...

Jill is too kind to me 😢

Denshattack! Hands-On Preview Throw logic to the wind.

Joseph Hooper (@th3hoopman.bsky.social) is a wickedly talented writer with such a strong voice. His latest preview on Denshattack was a wonderful combination of funny and insightful:
theindieinformer.com/2026/02/19/d...

The Eternal Life of Goldman Wows in Latest Steam Next Fest Demo I guess it's not too good to be true...

So I played the The Eternal Life of Goldman demo yesterday evening and I ended up enjoying it so much I basically wrote an impromptu novel last night
open.substack.com/pub/cantpaus...

I wrote another piece! Shout out @finruin.bsky.social and the @theindieinformer.bsky.social crew as always for giving me the opportunity.