Steam Next Fest marketing checklist for indie developers

Before you start

Check Valve's official Steam Next Fest documentation in Steamworks for the current dates, registration deadlines, and requirements. They change between editions, and the official page is the source of truth.

4–6 weeks before

Lock a demo build that represents the game well, even if it's short. A tight 15 minutes beats a buggy hour.

Get outside playtesters to play the demo cold and watch where they get stuck.

Refresh your store page: short description, first screenshots, and a trailer that shows gameplay in the first few seconds.

Make sure capsule art reads clearly at small sizes.

Plan whether you'll livestream on your store page, and when.

1–2 weeks before

Prepare a set of short gameplay clips (5–20 seconds each) you can post during the event.

Draft a week of social posts: an announcement, a 'demo is live' post, a few clips, a behind-the-scenes post, and a thank-you.

Write a Steam announcement/event post for your page.

Tell your existing community (Discord, newsletter, followers) the dates.

Reach out to creators who cover your genre, with a key and a short, specific note.

During the event

Post daily, with a different clip or angle each day rather than the same link.

Watch your demo's reviews, forum threads, and Discord, and fix critical bugs fast.

Reply to players. It's the best moment to build early fans.

Keep a running list of feedback themes.

After the event

Thank players publicly and share what you learned and what you'll change.

Decide whether the demo stays up.

Turn feedback into a short devlog: it's useful content and shows the game is alive.

Keep posting weekly so the attention you earned doesn't fade.