Steam Next Fest's October edition begins October 19 and runs for one week. The useful part is the playable demos: you can try upcoming games before deciding which ones deserve a place on your wishlist.

Valve's press preview began October 8. That earlier access is separate from the public festival and does not mean every participating demo is already available to everyone.

October 19 start times

The public event starts at 17:00 UTC on October 19: 10 AM PDT, 1 PM EDT, 6 PM BST and 7 PM CEST. In Sydney and Melbourne, that is 4 AM AEDT on October 20.

Next Fest ends October 26 at 17:00 UTC. By then, the UK and Central Europe have changed clocks: the finish is 5 PM GMT and 6 PM CET. US times remain 10 AM PDT and 1 PM EDT, while Sydney and Melbourne finish at 4 AM AEDT on October 27.

Choose demos by what you want to test

Participating games must have a publicly playable demo when the festival begins. A demo can still arrive earlier or use its own access window, so check the individual game's announcement rather than assuming every download starts and ends with Next Fest.

Game Pelt's Epic Seven Steam demo article covers one example already available, including its progress reset. That reset belongs to Epic Seven's preview; it is not a universal Next Fest rule.

Start with a small shortlist. Test whether the controls, combat or pacing actually suit you, then add the games you want to revisit. A festival appearance is a chance to try a build, not a review score or a promise that its final release is close.

Developer streams remain optional

There is no central official Next Fest livestream in the current format. Developers can run their own broadcasts in a separate tab, and Valve plans a most-played-demo wrap-up on October 26. Use those streams to inspect a game, but keep your own demo impressions separate from popularity.