> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.hashtagsurvival.net/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Survival of the Fest: What’s Good? - URL: https://www.hashtagsurvival.net/survival-of-the-fest-whats-good/ - Published: 2025-02-25T17:49:22.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-27T18:43:22.000Z - Description: Steam Next Fest! Let’s see what’s good, what’s bad, and what’s just plain weird. - Author: Jordan - Tags: Steam Fest, Gaming Another Steam Fest - one of three this year, I think - which means it's time to wade through the approximately 22,903,429,892,893 SURVIVAL games, TOTALLY SURVIVAL games, and ICANTBELIEVETHISISSURVIVAL games. Enough foreplay, let's dive in: --- ## Survival ### Arctis Ohh, I love the dynamic map and the art style. Also, the hunting gives me big Oregon Trail vibes. Really looking forward to checking out this demo during Next Fest. [**Demo**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/3182290/Arctis/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/7b/90/7b901793-9ce9-42df-a98e-002e75d6de84/content/images/2026/09/arctis.jpg) ### Away from Life I know this looks right up our alley (as basically the 100th incarnation of Stranded Deep), but I won't install this right now. This developer has been fading in and out about this game since mid-2022, going completely silent and resurfacing to say development isn’t dead. Examining the screenshots and trailer, I don’t see anything unique or interesting enough to bother with it. If the developer can maintain both development and communication—basically to where I feel like it’s not going to be a pump and dump—I’ll revisit this. [**Demo**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1755080/Away%5FFrom%5FLife/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) ### Road to Vostok I’ve been following this game for a couple of years now, and I’m genuinely thrilled that the developer finally launched a Discord server. For a while, he was all-in on Twitter - which still seems to be his main focus - which made keeping up with progress a pain. As a result, I mostly stopped following along, aside from the occasional website or Steam post check-in. (I have half a year of updates to catch up on, but that’s a me problem.) Touted as an ambitious Stalker-inspired survival title - which I’ll have to take at face value since I’ve never played any Stalker game - the one thing I can say about this developer is that he has a clear vision and is actively working towards it. That’s refreshing in an era where Reddit is flooded with "I WANT MAKE SURV GAME WHAT U WANT?!" posts every week. [**Demo**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1963610/Road%5Fto%5FVostok/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) ### Night is Coming Woof, I have been waiting on a demo for this Slavic-mythology-inspired society survival game forever. I really hope it does better than [*Gord*](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1351210/Gord/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net), that OTHER mythology/dark setting (I think?) colony sim that ended up being less than well received. [**Demo**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1011590/Night%5Fis%5FComing/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) ### Into the Dead: Our Darkest Days Poking around the store page - pictures and trailer - I’m getting a kind of blend of *This War of Mine* and *State of Decay*. Which isn’t a bad thing! Interesting: balancing survivors’ physical and mental needs. Less interesting: the developer’s focus on a ‘heart-pounding survival horror experience.’ LEAVE MY HAIR-TRIGGER JUMP-SCARE TERROR ALONE. [**Demo**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2239710/Into%5Fthe%5FDead%5FOur%5FDarkest%5FDays/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) ### Undefined Survivors It comes across as Sunkenland blended with Subsistence. On the plus side, there’s a Twitter, Discord, and YouTube account for the game, showing that development has been ongoing since at least the middle of last year. Community-wise, though, very sparse—with empty Steam forums and a largely empty Discord server. I’m going to give the demo a pass at this point, but I will keep an eye on the game. [**Demo**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2586430/Undefined%5FSurvivors/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) --- ## Not So Survival ### The Northern Path This looks adorable: frankly just like *Dredge* on ice. Or *Dredge* mixed with *The Red Lantern*, if you want to be super stuffy and specific. I genuinely hope the game not only does well but eventually makes it to Nintendo Switch because I bet it would be fantastic for that platform. [**Demo**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/3407450/The%5FNorthern%5FPath/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/7b/90/7b901793-9ce9-42df-a98e-002e75d6de84/content/images/2026/09/thenorthernpath.jpg) ### Harbor Assuming they can adequately balance PvP in this game - which is tricky, especially in a "free for all, anything goes" environment - this could be interesting for the pew-pew and strife crowd. I already envision *Last Oasis*\-style issues with groups hoarding resources and locking down map sections. But we’ll see. [**Demo**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2714930/Harbor/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) ### Surviving Ceres Parsing through the store page, this strikes me as less survival and more of a crafting and building simulation title. I see fewer meaningful choices and more of a mechanical balance between building, buying, selling, and killing things. Maybe it's good for folks who enjoyed *Satisfactory* and *Planet Crafter,* but with a heavier combat focus? [**Demo**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2810070/Surviving%5FCeres/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) ### Dune: Awakening Less Next Fest relevant than adjacent. No, I haven’t forgotten about *Dune: Awakening*; I just don’t care. Funcom stuck to what they knew and slapped on a pre-built fandom and world: honestly, not much different from how they built *Conan Exiles*, reliant on the lore and appeal of Conan. If you didn’t like Conan - wide as an ocean, shallow as a puddle - then you may not like this title unless the Dune universe holds more weight for you. Do I think it’s a survival MMO? No. It wants to play in that ocean (similar to Conan) but I don’t believe it brings enough mechanical depth to the table: just some typical video game fluff. Should folks give it 3-6 months before picking it up? Sure, but to be fair, I say that about all overly hyped games. In the end, I think it will be beloved, similar to Conan, by modders and builders - especially on private servers. (I have no idea if they will even have modding or private servers eventually. I haven’t followed it for fuck.) [**No Demo- but Character Creation and Benchmark Mode**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1172710/Dune%5FAwakening/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) --- ## Rapid Fire Name Drop [**Dark Moon**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/3407640/Dark%5FMoon%5FDemo/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net)\- This title was released to Early Access in January but offers a demo as part of Next Fest? Interesting. It's a top-down survival strategy title that visually reminds me of *Pioneers: Surviving Desolation.* [**Arctic Awakening**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1275550/Arctic%5FAwakening/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net)\- a narrative adventure/walking simulator. I'm only listing it here because it says your only companion is your **court-mandated therapy bot**, and if that's not a preview of 2025, I don't know what it is. [**RoadCraft** ](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2104890/RoadCraft/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net)\- This just seems like a fun time for anyone that likes big trucks and building shit. [**Rise of Shrooms**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/3344870/Rise%5Fof%5FShrooms/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net)\- A turn-based strategy game where you command an army of mushrooms called shroomies. Need I say more? [**Solasta II**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2975950/Solasta%5FII/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net) \- I think most of my friends will like this because it's a... \* *checks notes\**\- "Turn-Based Tactical RPG based on the SRD 5e ruleset." [**Chernobylite 2: Exclusion Zone**](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2075100/Chernobylite%5F2%5FExclusion%5FZone/?ref=hashtagsurvival.net)\- I heard great things about the first game and am excited to check out the second game without coughing up any cash! Drop a comment below with your thoughts and any demos you think I should check out!