Steam is getting some big upgrades for game demos
Valve has introduced some changes to Steam that should make it easier to find and install playable game demos. In a new events blog post, Steam said the “Great Steam Demo Update” was based on developer and player feedback, with new functionality that makes demos behave more like standalone games hosted on the platform.
For one, demos can now have a store page that’s completely separate from the main game, allowing developers to display demo-specific content like trailers, screenshots, and supported features. These pages will also display buttons to both install the demo and visit the main game’s store page, and allow players to leave demo-specific reviews.
And if a demo becomes available for a game that users have on their wishlists, or from a developer that they follow, those users can now be notified via email or mobile alerts. Demo listings can also now appear on the same lists and category pages as free games, such as the “New & Trending” section of Steam’s homepage charts. Alongside free games, users may see demos appearing more frequently as Steam says it’s made “some changes to the thresholds” in order to “better balance them with paid products.”
Other new features in this update include the ability to add demos to Steam libraries without immediately installing them, allowing demos to be installed even if the user already owns the full game, and making it easier to remove demos by right-clicking on them. When the demos are uninstalled they’ll also be removed from the user’s library.
The visibility changes introduced in this update may resurface older demos on user accounts, with Steam saying “We’ve tried our best to clean up the demos that we expect you don’t care about anymore, but we may have missed some.”
Amusingly, Steam added a note in the “infrequently asked questions” section of the blog for users who don’t know that Steam’s demo icon is based upon the Compact Disc, not a dinner plate. Am I so old that we’re really at the point of modernizing the save icon / floppy disk gag?
Valve has introduced some changes to Steam that should make it easier to find and install playable game demos. In a new events blog post, Steam said the “Great Steam Demo Update” was based on developer and player feedback, with new functionality that makes demos behave more like standalone games…
Recent Posts
- Which Amazon Fire Stick do I need? A simple guide to the key differences
- Stellar Blade’s slick-looking sequel is officially called Blood Rain
- How much data does your favorite messaging app collect? New study shows 90% of messaging apps now include AI that puts privacy at risk
- More than a decade later, the team behind N++ is back with a multiplayer sequel
- If Vampire Survivors and Spelunky had a baby, it’d be Messhof’s Blood Dungeon
Archives
- June 2026
- May 2026
- April 2026
- March 2026
- February 2026
- January 2026
- December 2025
- November 2025
- October 2025
- September 2025
- August 2025
- July 2025
- June 2025
- May 2025
- April 2025
- March 2025
- February 2025
- January 2025
- December 2024
- November 2024
- October 2024
- September 2024
- August 2024
- July 2024
- June 2024
- May 2024
- April 2024
- March 2024
- February 2024
- January 2024
- December 2023
- November 2023
- October 2023
- September 2023
- August 2023
- July 2023
- June 2023