Steam Next Fest checklist for indie developers (2026-2027)

Next Fest is the biggest free visibility a pre-release game gets on Steam, and you only get one. This is the whole run of it as a checklist: what Valve requires, when each deadline lands, and the things that decide whether the traffic becomes wishlists. Tick items as you go. Your progress is saved in this browser, and the Print button gives you a paper copy.

Next Fest dates and deadlines

Every edition starts and ends at 10am Pacific. Review deadlines are the ones that catch people out: they fall three to five weeks before the festival.

Edition	Registration closes	Submit for review	Press preview	Festival
October 2026	31 Aug (closed)	14 Sep for press, 28 Sep latest	from 8 Oct	19-26 Oct
February 2027	10 Jan 2027	25 Jan for press, 8 Feb latest	from 11 Feb	22 Feb - 1 Mar
June 2027	25 Apr 2027	17 May for press, 31 May latest	from 3 Jun	14-21 Jun

In the October 2026 festival? Registration and review are behind you, so start at Store page broadcast below. Your store page broadcast for the festival week is on us: free broadcasting for Next Fest games.

The checklist (36 items)

Items marked Required are Valve's rules. The rest are what separates a festival that moves wishlists from one that does not.

0 of 36 done

8+ weeks out

Before you register

0/4

Confirm you are eligible. Your base game's store page is published and public, the game will not release before the festival ends, and the demo is not a prologue or "chapter 1" of something already on Steam.RequiredMake sure this is the edition you want. A game can take part in only one Next Fest, ever. If the demo or store page will not be ready in time, the next edition is the better bet.RequiredRegister in Steamworks before the deadline: 10 Jan 2027 for February, 25 Apr 2027 for June.RequiredPut every deadline below in your calendar. The review cut-offs arrive weeks before the festival does. Steam events calendar.

~6 weeks out

Store page and trailer

0/4

Have at least one public trailer on the base game's page. Valve builds the Next Fest trailer only from trailers on your page and will not take a separate video. It pulls them about six weeks out: 8 Sep for October, 18 Jan for February, 3 May for June.RequiredLead with gameplay. The first two trailers play before your screenshots and Steam cuts the microtrailer from the first one, so the first video should show the game being played.Finish the store page: capsules, at least five 1920x1080 screenshots, short description and tags. Store page checklist.RequiredMark at least four screenshots "suitable for all ages", or the game can be left out of some placements.

5 to 3 weeks out

Demo and review

0/6

Submit the demo build and store page for review five weeks out to be live for the press preview: 25 Jan for February, 17 May for June.Three weeks out is the hard deadline to be in the festival at all: 8 Feb or 31 May. Reviews take 3 to 5 business days and Valve asks you to allow 7.RequiredGet the demo's own store page reviewed too, even if it only appears as a button on the main page.RequiredEnd the demo on a hook and put a wishlist prompt on the last screen. Players who finish a demo are the warmest leads you will get all week.Plan your one demo email. Steam lets you email wishlisters once about a demo, at a time you choose within two weeks of the demo going live. Time it so it lands during the festival.Write down your baseline: wishlists per day for the two weeks before, so you can tell afterwards what the festival did. Reading broadcast statistics.

2 weeks out

Store page broadcast

0/6

Pick the account that will stream. It must be non-limited ($5 spent on Steam, ever), own the game, and hold the Broadcast Live permission. Broadcast setup checklist.RequiredWhitelist it on the store page, not only on an event. An account whitelisted through a broadcast event only shows between that event's start and end times. For an always-on page, use Edit Store Page, Special Settings.RequiredGenerate the RTMP token at steamcommunity.com/broadcast/upload, set the base game's App ID (never the demo's), and switch visibility from Friends Only to Public. Step by step.RequiredChoose what plays: a gameplay loop or trailer cut that reads with the sound off. Choosing a source video.Loopcast can do thisTest the broadcast now, not on opening day. Valve asks you to test before the festival, and a new stream can take up to 5 minutes to appear on the page. Troubleshooting.Loopcast can do thisDecide how it stays on air for all 168 hours. A home PC sleeps, updates and crashes, usually at night, which is daytime for half your visitors. Broadcasting during Next Fest.Loopcast can do this

11 days out

Press preview

0/5

Check the demo is live for press if you made the early review deadline. Preview opens 11 Feb or 3 Jun.Email the creators and press you want with a key and one sentence on why the game fits them. Preview week is when they choose what to cover.Draft your festival announcement as a Steam event so followers and wishlisters see it on day one.Schedule posts for opening day, the weekend and the final day.Start the store page broadcast a day early so it is live and checked before the festival opens at 10am Pacific.Loopcast can do this

7 days

Festival week

0/7

Set the demo live at least 30 minutes before the start, as Valve recommends.RequiredCheck the store page from a logged-out browser every morning: is the broadcast showing, is the demo button there.Keep the broadcast running through nights and the weekend. Your visitors are in every time zone.Loopcast can do thisAnswer every demo review and discussion thread.Fix crashes fast and post a patch note. An update event shows players the game is alive.Keep an eye on the broadcast chat, or appoint moderators. Moderating broadcast chat.Log wishlists every day in Steamworks.

the 2 weeks after

After the festival

0/4

Decide whether the demo stays up. A demo that keeps converting is worth leaving live.Compare wishlists before, during and after, and write down what moved them.Keep the store page broadcasting until launch if it earned its place. Broadcasting before launch.Loopcast can do thisPick your next beat: a themed fest that fits your genre, or your release date. Calendar and launch checklist.

Why the store page broadcast matters that week

During the festival your store page gets more visitors than in almost any other week before launch, and most of them decide in seconds. A broadcast puts a live player at the top of the page, above the screenshots, so the visitor sees the game moving before they scroll. Steam also shows a Live tag on the game wherever it appears in the store while the stream is on.

The broadcast only works for the hours it is actually on air. That is the whole case for running it from a server rather than a desk: broadcasting during Next Fest goes into it, and broadcasting a demo covers the App ID trap that hides a demo stream.

What a festival broadcast costs

The festival is 168 hours. Loopcast bills per minute on air, and 10,080 minutes is exactly that, which is the $5 pack. Every new account also gets a 7-day free trial of 10,080 minutes, so a first festival can run entirely on the trial. The trial clock starts when you verify your email, not when you sign up, so verify close to the start. If you start a day early to test, as the checklist suggests, a $5 pack covers the overlap. Pricing.

The Steam Next Fest checklist for indie developers