Geoff Keighley, founder and host of The Game Awards, announced Wednesday morning a new project called The Game Festival. The festival will go hand in hand with the Game Awards to give players the opportunity to try out some new games that will be discussed in the show, with Steam acting as the digital venue.
The demos will only be available for 48 hours, but it’s an interesting move for the awards to give fans the opportunity to try them for themselves.
According to Keighley, the idea behind the festival is to digitally mimic the experience of a games fair or a consumer event like the E3.
“Now is the time to take the next step in The Game Festival, a fully digital approach to the consumer space,” said Keighley. “Let’s face it, not everyone can attend a trade show or consumer event. Designed from the ground up as a barrier-free event, the Game Festival extends the benefits of a physical event to the global gaming community watching The Game Awards. “
This first version of The Game Festival will feature over a dozen game demos on Steam. Here is a preview of the games for which free demos are available during the event:
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System Shock (Nightdive Studios)
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East (Pixpil / Chucklefish)
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Spiritfarer (Thunder Lotus)
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Take Off (SMG Studio / Devm Games / Team17)
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Röki (polygon tree house / United label)
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Chicory (Greg Lobanov)
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Wood Nickel (Brain & Brain)
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Haven (The Game Bakers)
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Heavenly Body (2pt Interactive)
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Acid knife (Powerhoof)
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The Drifter (Powerhoof)
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CARRION (Phobia / Devolver)
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Skatebird (glass bottom games)
The Game Festival starts on Thursday at 13.00. ET and ends on Saturday at 13.00. ET. Players can play all available demos on Steam during the festival. Steam also broadcasts the Game Awards in 4K, while the show will air live on Thursday night at 20:30. ET.
