Valve has launched Steam Next Fest and a lot of free demos are currently available for download. However, there are three games that you should definitely check out. These three games are Gothic 1 Remake, Dragonhold and Mecha BREAK.
By now, most of you are aware of Gothic 1 Remake. Developed by Alkimia Interactive, this remake aims to bring the first Gothic game to Unreal Engine 5. I’ve tried the demo and, to be honest, I was let down by it. Graphics-wise, it looks fine. However, the combat and character movement are really rough. They are borderline bad. So, I don’t know whether the devs will be able to fix this as the remake has already been in development for a long time. Anyway, you can download the demo from this link.
Dragonhold is a game that reminded me of Drakan. Dragonhold’s demo is a single-player riding RPG with base building. Players will soar through the skies of Aval, and dive into the deepest dungeons. They’ll also challenge wondrous creatures and uncover ancient mysteries. Moreover, they will be able to gather resources and return to expand their castle town and rebuild Dragonhold. You can download its demo from this link.
Finally, Mecha BREAK is a multiplayer third-person mecha shooter. This demo came out earlier today and already hit over 300K players. The full game will offer three unique game modes filled with high-octane ground and aerial combat. Players will choose from diverse classes, customize their appearance, and battle hostile mechs across treacherous terrain. You can get its demo from this link.
Oh, and Chernobylite 2 got a free demo. This demo is around 100GB in size. And no, I’m not kidding here. Still, I’m certain that some would love to try it. After all, the game will now have both third-person and first-person viewpoints. So, if you are interested in it, you can download its demo from this link.
These are the must-have demos I’ve found. However, I’m certain that some hidden gems have passed under my radar. So, be sure to share your favorite demos in the Comment section.
Have fun!

John is the founder and Editor in Chief at DSOGaming. He is a PC gaming fan and highly supports the modding and indie communities. Before creating DSOGaming, John worked on numerous gaming websites. While he is a die-hard PC gamer, his gaming roots can be found on consoles. John loved – and still does – the 16-bit consoles, and considers SNES to be one of the best consoles. Still, the PC platform won him over consoles. That was mainly due to 3DFX and its iconic dedicated 3D accelerator graphics card, Voodoo 2. John has also written a higher degree thesis on the “The Evolution of PC graphics cards.”
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House of the Dead 2 Remake also got a demo -> https://store.steampowered.com/app/3376690/THE_HOUSE_OF_THE_DEAD_2_Remake/
There is also a demo for The Talos Principle: Reawakened -> https://store.steampowered.com/app/3398520/The_Talos_Principle_Reawakened_Demo/
Demo for Total Chaos is available too https://store.steampowered.com/app/2208350/Total_Chaos/
Shhhh, we're showing our age. 😂
In a serious note, i thought exactly the same thing.
The first Drakan (for the PC….not the Ancient's Gate) was amazing for its time. Loved the music and Rynn. I guess since it had an attractive protagonist, there won't ever be a remake, eh?
Hahahaha exactly. Unless they uglify her to appeal to the 1% of the world population.
😂
I loved the first Drakan, the connection you felt to the dragon and the exploration and i always wanted to try the second game but that was for ps2 only and by the time i got a ps2, me being mostly a pc guy, i forgot all about it and used it mostly for Soul Calibur 3, God of war and all the good single player games that were for it at the time. I would love a Drakan remake
The voice acting in Gothic 1 Remake is awful. Just me?
Don't know anything about the game nor the original, but it's frequent on low budget games, don't be harsh on things like that, it costs a lot of money and i prefer when low budget devs focus on other more important aspects, we all know what happens when low budget devs have an obsession with presentation aspects, it ends being either a walking simulator, or and interactive movie with very few exceptions
I was a fan of Elex / Elex 2 so I'm fine with jank. Maybe it's just the high detail graphics that makes me expect better from the story tellers.
Nowadays with newer engines and asset markets unless you want full mocap animations, graphical fidelity is more reachable than good voice acting, especially for games with long scripts like RPGs
It's in the same style as the original.
Solasta 2 demo:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta_II/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1859620/BRUTAL_JOHN/
Duke Clone!!!
Gothic combat is as it should be. You aren't some skilled warrior to start. It felt like it should, because you are just a pleb.
There's hints about how it grows, similar to the style from the older games, if you complete the duel…
Nice one John. Downloading Gothic and Chernobylite2 demos, I like medival type games and already own Chernobylite1.