Steam Next Fest Flooded With 8,200 Demos as Players and Developers Voice Concerns

Steam Next Fest's demo lineup has surged from about 4,500 last June to 8,200 this edition, a jump widely attributed to the spread of AI tools. Players have labeled the flood of AI-assisted and unfinished demos "AI slop," while the developers of The Drunkard Goddess's Gambit canceled a planned 20-minute public demo and switched to closed invite-only testing over cloning fears. Publishers now face higher screening costs, and the community is calling for AI labels and review mechanisms on the platform.