Author: CtrlAltNoob

Patch Notes – July 2026

Noob.exe 2.0.08.02

Happy August everyone! As July has come to a close I am taking a moment to reflect on the games – and the other things – that filled up my time and mind during this hot, hot summer month.

Video Games

Games played

Chants of Sennaar [finished]: I love this game. Chants of Sennaar is complete and I enjoyed the entire process – playing a game that felt so especially made for my brain, and recording it too. I didn’t expect to almost shed a tear at the end but it managed to come together nicely. It took a rare spot in my favourite games of all time list, and I am trying to be grateful for the experience rather than sad it is over, because I feel like I could have climbed another 100 levels of that tower if they were available to me.

Valheim [playing]: We spent this month expanding our operations. After successfully setting up a mining production line and securing our pigs with only a minor mishap (the great boar escape of 2026), we have ventured beyond the homely Midsummer and trekked over swamp, ocean and plains to settle into an abandoned village. Upcycling complete in the settlement dubbed Ravenhall, we now are neighbours with some merchants and are in the process of taming some Lox. After mistaking a tar pit for a hot spring, I aquired some new building materials and we have a few leads on what we would like to do next.

Baba is You [playing]: I solved one puzzle this month. I am stuck on around four more. I am very tempted to drop this one as I feel the only way I will progress is with a guide, and that isn’t really the vibe that I wanted for the game. I hoped it would be the type of game that would give me that hit of dopamine upon puzzle revelations, but more often it makes me feel dumb for not understanding why what feels like my perfectly reasonable logic is denied. I will give it one more shot and see how I feel.

Baldur’s Gate 3 [playing]: I have reached Act 3! I have 97 hours on my save file and I have heard that Act 3 is as big as the other two acts combined 😅. This remains probably the biggest game I have ever played. I hit an enjoyment wall near the end of Act 2 but now that is out of the way and I have made it to the outskirts of the city, I am eager to see wat Act 3 is all about. I just need a chunk of time with enough energy to completely immerse into the new, denser area now that I have a clearer understanding of what we are working towards.

Demos played

This month I only played 1 demo.

  • Sovereign Tower

Content corner

FOMO corner

Six One Indie Demo Days happened on 31 July and I have yet to have a chance to take a look. Considering I still have so many demos from Summer Game Fest season to check out and beyond, I still have a hard time accepting that I can’t cover everything the way I wish I could.

New to the Backlog

Game Services
  • Ps Plus
    • Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector
    • Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
  • Steam Giveaway
    • The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante

Backlog 2026 Progress

This month: ❌
Total: 5 of 31 complete ✅

Noob life

Other media | playing | watching | listening

Tabletop

Obsession [new]: I haven’t played many 4 player board games but Obsession is the latest. It is complex enough that we had a session specifically for learning the game, and during that session with only 3 playing and one teaching, we only made it half way through the game. You play as a stately family balancing your finances, reputation and staff to be the most enviable in Derbyshire. Unfortunately, I was playing the long game and got absolutely thrashed on points, but I like to think I could have made a comeback… This feels like the perfect game for a summers day, with breaks to step outside for a BBQ and a spot of Pimm’s.

Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion [ongoing]: We have reached scenario 5 of Gloomhaven with a success by the absolute skin of our teeth. It was clutch session and I believe it graduates us from the tutorial book of the campaign. I am playing the demolitionist and I named her Atom. I am still finding the game thoroughly enjoyable, deck building has just been introduced, and I really look forward to playing more.

DnD [ongoing]: DnD continues and we are making our way through a dungeon, likely approaching the climax of part 1 of the campaign. We now have a Dwarf Fighter named Ulrich that has joined the crew that we share, giving us a bit of balance to our party with someone who can make, and take, a hit.

Movies

The Prestige [prime]: I simply don’t know how I got this far in life without seeing this movie. Rivalry, more ‘oh shit’ moments than I can count, low key tragedy, beautiful pacing, twists and turns, irony, lingering on my mind. Just everything that I could want from a movie. I put it off because I wasn’t sold on the concept of rival magicians, but it is so much more than that. I urge you to watch it if you haven’t already and want to be absorbed for an evening. It is one of the good ones.

Books

The Courage to Be Disliked: How to Free Yourself, Change Your Life and Achieve Real Happiness by Ichiro Kishimi & Fumitake Koga [audiobook/finished]: I really did not enjoy this book, at all. I wanted to finish it just in case there was some lesson in there that was going to change my life, but so much about it rubbed me so much the wrong way that I would honestly find it hard to recommend to anyone.

Happy by Derren Brown [audiobook/finished]: I am only an hour or 2 into this one so far but it feels really promising. I already am onboard with a few of the ideas being talked about, and Derren reading the audiobook himself is the icing on the cake as his voice is so soothing and easy to listen to.

Events

Derren Brown – Only Human: Unfortunately I can’t say the same about this show as I did about the book. It was the first time I have seen Derren live on stage and my expectations were, maybe unfairly, high. He absolutely is the charismatic showman, but the tricks didn’t impress me, the theme didn’t feel cohesive and the squishy, overpriced venue didn’t compliment the experience at all. I went in expecting awe, but left feeling an unprecedented underwhelm.

Other hobbies | achievements

Farne Islands: If you are ever in the North East of England and you love nature, you absolutely must take a trip to The Farne Islands. If it is May-July (nesting season) then a landing trip to Inner Farne is an absolute must. You can see the puffins, guillemots and razorbills up close, and experience the fierce protective dive bombing of the wonderful Arctic Terns. It is a beautiful, special place.

Crochet: My bag is still ongoing.. it is taking a WHILE. But I did reach the colour change and I am hoping to get it finished next month so that I can begin making my smaller bag, so that I can finally start some other projects.

BJJ: I recieved my first stripe on my purple belt!

What’s Next?

I haven’t got anything else cooking currently, content wise, except the shorts series that I mentioned in last months post. I am going to try to prioritise that before I start recording anything else, as well as catching up on some IRL admin that I had been putting off. I wouldn’t expect anything ready to go by the time Chants of Sennaar finishes. However, I do think that my next Let’s Play could be Cocoon, provided that I can get the recording to work from the PlayStation.

Within games, I would love to make some good progress on Baldur’s Gate 3 now that I am in Act 3, which I would also like to balance with playing more demos. I am also going to aim for playing a shorter game each month, this month being Crow Country.

Finally also anticipating 2 cinema trips, for The Odyssey and Spider-Man, and have rented The Prestige audiobook from the library!

Stay safe and have a wonderful August ✌🏻

Let’s Play – Chants of Sennaar

Chants of Sennaar is a puzzle game that involves translating languages based on the interactions that you have with the world and the people in it. We play as a wanderer, exploring the tower, ascending our way through a variety of communities.

While the gameplay largely consists of learning the languages, there is also a lot of learning to be done about the way these different people live, interreact and perceive the world. Exploring the environments, taking in both the diegetic landscapes and the art direction itself tells a story beyond words.

From the moment that I played the demo I knew this needed to be a Let’s Play game, as the only thing more fun than solving these puzzles is sharing the thought process that leads us there. Whether you are playing Chants of Sennaar yourself or watching along, I hope your experience with the game is as beautiful as mine was!

Full playlist available on Youtube!

Patch Notes – June 2026

Noob.exe 2.0.07.01

Hi all! Let’s jump straight in shall we?

What is this?

I used to write monthly updates about my content and gaming, which I named Patch Notes, on my Buy Me a Coffee page. Creating these posts was always an interesting exercise for me. It encouraged me to be more mindful of my time and my progress, and often surprise myself at how much I did either get done, experience, or sometimes overestimate that I would get done in a month. Sometimes I find that I can blink and months have passed me by and the older that I get, time has become an unfathomable blur. Tangibly gathering what I have been up to helps with combating that feeling and reminding me what I did do in that time.

I have noticed that I really enjoy consuming monthly catch-ups myself, that is another reason that I started my Patch Notes in the first place. More recently, seeing Luna’s Monthly Logs and listening to No Small Games Indie Game Round Ups has stirred something in me that I want to join in too, so it makes sense to bring Patch Notes back, directly to the blog.

Although my streaming/video content is on (if I am honest, a pretty much indefinite) hiatus, I have still been getting up to plenty within the game space lately, and outside of it too. While I used to use these posts to share plans and set goals, the new format is just going to serve as record of the past and present. For now at least.

The first one is a little tricky because I don’t generally keep track of weeks, never mind months. So this post will likely be longer than average, but I am treating it as a bit of a start marker, then I know exactly where I am starting from next time!

Video Games

Games played

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden [playing] : I can’t say I am loving Banishers, but I am making my way through. The story and hauntings feel interrupted by traversing the sprawling world and repetative combat, rather than complimented by it. I have had to kill off my compulsive exploration in favour of getting through the game as quickly as I can before I lose interest. There have been some lovely plot twist moments, but I am currently not convinced that the narrative is going to make up for the lack of fun that I am having doing everything else. So far I am commited to seeing it through, I believe I am over half way so I should hopefully finish it off next month.

Valheim [playing]: Me and a friend are playing on a passive enemy, no build cost world of Valheim. My prior experience of Valheim was not complimentary, but I was always curious of the fun my friends were having in their shared server. Playing in this way is suiting me a lot better, having creative freedom to dive into stupid projects, while still having elements of progression through exploration, tools and upgrades.

This month we expanded our home base, creating a Central Portal Station to make our future travels easier, and a lovely homely tavern for all of our cooking, brewing and chilling needs.

Baba is You [started/playing]: I bought and started Baba is You on a bit of a whim, I am not sure if it was this month or last but I will include it anyway. It was supposed to serve as the game that you pick up when you have 10 minutes before you need to do something. And I can see it serving that purpose once I stop having this newly developed aversion to my PC. So far it is cool. It is difficult, as promised, and I am going to try to step away when I get stuck rather than jumping immediatly to guides. I currently have 32 dandelions. Wish me luck!

Chants of Sennaar [started/playing]: Gratefully recieved in the Tales from the Backlog Summer Swap. Chants of Sennaar has been at the top of my Wishlist since 2023 when I originally played the demo. I am now 2 hours in and absolutely thriving. I am certain that I would have finished it by now if I hadn’t made the spontaneous decision to record it. This is one of those legendary anticipatory status games, and seemed so made for me that it felt illegal not to share it in some capacity. More on that later.

Demos played

This month I played 8 demos, of which I wrote 4 impressions posts.

Content corner

All of the content that I have created recently has been on the blog. As well as the demo impressions above, here all of the posts I have published since dusting off my keyboard:

I also have 2 series cooking for YT. A shorts series named Backlog Log, where I do a quick video for every game that I tick off of my Backlog Resolutions 2026 list. And the Chants of Sennaar Let’s Play which will start going out once I have finished the full series! They are in the slow cooker on low, so I wouldn’t expect anything anytime soon.

New to the backlog

I have always been a low budget gamer, mostly due to life circumstances, but recently I have been dabbling in a few purchases!

Purchases
  • The Complete Inkle Library [Humble Bundle]
  • Baba is You
  • Summer Game Swap [Thanks to Dave Jackson for organising and Yorkie for my gifts!]
Game Services

One of the ways I managed to continue playing games through low budget times were through game services. Ps Plus, Game Pass, Epic Games free games, Prime Games etc. For the monthly logs I will just include any games that I gain access to that I am interested in playing.

Backlog resolution 2026 Progress

This month: ❌
Total: 5 of 31 complete ✅

Noob life

Other media | playing | watching | listening

Tabletop

Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion: My first foray into Gloomhaven. It has been a long time coming. It is probably the most classic board game that I have had the most curiosity about, and I am so impressed! From what I am told, Jaws of the Lion is a much more condensed, accessible campaign compared to the big one, and it feels like the perfect entry point. Mechanics feel intuitive, the system for difficulty scaling is impressive, and I look forward to seeing how it unfolds.

DnD: We have an ongoing campaign where I play a Sun Elf Wizard named Pandora. She is very magically competent, less so with people. Many accidental shenanigans later and we are level 4, divination subclass and I love her very dearly. We also have a Dwarf War Cleric named Hafthor, who finds Pandora as irritating as you would expect from a straight laced veteran, and a Dragonborn Druid named Akra, who turned into a giant badger and castrated a hobgoblin.

Movies

Disclosure Day: Oh no. This was a dissapointment. For the first third I was enjoying it, despite feeling like I was watching two different movies at once. Emily Blunt and Wyatt Russel together were great and I could have watched a movie just about them. But as it progressed, my dissapointment became so strong that I could write a full post in itself. To spare you that, I will just say that it was not for me.

TV/YT

I have picked back up the WoolieVersus Disco Elysium playthrough as some lovely background shenanigans while I crochet. I have been watching the playthrough for years at this point. I am 74 episodes in and it is nice to watch others enjoying the pace at as slow of a pace as I did, giving me a lovely comfort show to watch in the process.

Books

Why Can’t I Just Enjoy Things?: A Comedian’s Guide to Autism by Pierre Novellie [audiobook/finished] : I have become quite partial to non-fiction audiobooks. For context, I am diagnosed ADHD and on a waiting list for an Autism assessment. I was having a particularly strugglesome week and had a browse on my librarys Borrowbox in the self help section. While I often relate to neurodivergant stories, I don’t particularly enjoy learning about the topic and have avoided a deep dive for the longest time. I am so grateful to have stumbled upon this book. I have never ever heard my thought process explained so perfectly, in a way that I wouldn’t have even been put into words myself. I was in the midst of what I can now recognise as an autistic burnout and my new insight on the topic helped me not only name it but accept it and get through it. I highly recommend to anyone who is autistic, suspects they may be, or to anyone who knows anyone that is autistic. So, basically what I am saying is, everyone should give this a read/listen. The relatable commentary and dry humour was exactly the format that I needed to finally pursue the topic.

The Non-Designer’s Design Book by Robin Williams [paperback/ongoing]: I am 5 chapters in trying to read a chapter a week. Having dabbled in graphic design, both in my game content work and my day job, I have always been hyper aware of the gap in my knowledge of having no formal training. I stumbled upon this book and decided that it will be a nice entry into further studies that I hope to incorporate into my life. What I am loving about this book is how visual it is [insert surprised pikachu]. Each concept has multiple examples, compares and contrasts why one design is instantly more readable/attractive than another, and revisits the same designs in different context as further principles are explained.

Podcasts

I listen to a lot of Podcasts. I am only going to use this section to shout out new ones that I get into in the future, as I do listen to a lot of the same ones. But for the first post I might as well shout out my current regular rotation!

Current regular rotation:

  • Date with Us: A Dating Sim Podcast
  • Geeks & Grounds
  • No Small Games
  • Nostalgium Arcanum
  • Play Along Podcast
  • Tales from the Backlog
  • Underplayed
  • Watch Out for Fireballs!
  • There are more but some I have to dip out on for a while if I haven’t played the games!

New this month:

The Good, the Bad, and the Backlog: Unfortunataly no longer active, I have absolutely powered through the backlog of this show and they kept my spirits up through a tough month! Great fun, great banter between hosts and I am sad to have caught up with the episodes of the games that I have played.

Events

This won’t be a regular section but I have been to a few gaming adjacent events over the last few years and this will be a good space to talk about them!

BAFTA Games in Concert: I saw Disco Elysium and Ori on the line-up and knew immediatly that I had to go to this show. Whilst I was slightly distracted by the conductor being the doppelgänger of one of my training partners, to the point that I wondered how the heck I had missed that he moonlights as an orchestra man, the show was a wonderful environment to just sit back, relax and be absorbed in the sounds.

Slide 6 on the Instagram post shows the most goosebump inducing moment of the night for me and easily my favourite live music moment of my life so far.

I continue to find it jarring and, I hate to admit it but slightly unpleasant, when game music shows interweave gameplay footage and theming with live action footage of musicians. But other than that, it was absolutely worth going to and I hope to see more in the future (GIVE ME SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS, PLEASEEEE).

Other hobbies | achievements

Crochet: I made my first free hand/patternless crochet project, which was a pouch for my crochet hooks. I don’t quite have enough experience to know how to finish that neatly yet but it is fit for purpose! After a few small projects I wanted to try my hand at something bigger, so I am making myself a project bag. This will store my ongoing large projects, the next of which will be a smaller project bag, to store my ongoing smaller projects. It is coming along well!

Cycling: This month I bought a bike that actually fits me, did my first 9 mile bike ride, and my first gym commute (which is the reason I started learning, yay for reaching goals). I am still not great on the roads (or the paths really) but I don’t know how else I am going to learn other than just getting stuck into doing the commute. Considering I couldn’t even ride a bike in March and I am just learning at 32 years old, I am really happy with my progress! I have already seen more bikes I want to purchase…

What’s Next?

As I mentioned up top, I want to steer clear of turning this into a goal setting post, because everything I do now-a-days is subject to change and I am trying to be more flexible with my time. However, I would certainly like my Patch Notes to become a regular thing. I will continue to spruce up the format as I go to keep it as readable and digestible, yet scannable as possible. So if you have enjoyed this, thank you for reading and keep an eye out for a post at the start of each month!

Tidy Up – Demo Impressions

Someone get this Noob some rubber gloves.

Tidy Up

Developer: Debug Games

Release Date: Coming soon

A peaceful cleaning and organizing game where you explore different locations, collect trash, clean stains, and arrange items to turn mess into perfection.

In Tidy Up we are a cleaner hired to clean, tidy and square up some absolutely filthy spaces. The demo consists of two levels, a coffee shop and a garage. It is short and sweet and gave me the quick hit of dopamine that I long for when I play these types of games. In fact, the speed at which I could complete the tasks got rid of that feeling of ‘why am I doing this when I could be cleaning my real house’ that I sometimes get from playing cleaning games. It feels less of a simulator and more of a ‘jump in and out when you need a break’ type of experience, as opposed to Powerwash Simulator where some of the levels took so long that I was questioning my sanity about why I could not stop.

If it wasn’t obvious, I am partial to a compulsive cleaning game or two, and I found that this one hit the spot. It reminds me of my favourite part of House Flipper 2 – the beginning phase where you first walk into a disaster zone, wondering where the heck you are going to begin. You pick a task and soon enough, you have a fresh clean space and a job well done. Perhaps listening to a podcast or decluttering your own brain as you go.

I mentioned Powerwash Simulator, and that is because Tidy Up occupies a similar brain space, without actually feeling similar to play. I find the variety of tasks here in the Tidy Up demo almost more satisfying, likely because of the faster pace that I mentioned.

The game offers variable ‘difficulty options’, as in, you can customise how terrible of a state you want the environment to be in when you walk through the door. While this is nice to have, I do fear it could take away the potential for environmental storytelling that a game like this has (I’m looking at you Crime Scene Cleaner). That doesn’t have to be a negative, but it is something to be aware of, possibly expecting more of an arcade experience than a narrative. Having said that, a fun feature of the Tidy Up experience is straightening up the furniture, restocking areas and putting objects back where they belong. These little touches could be used in clever ways should the developers choose to!

I really feel like Tidy Up has a lot of potential. The length of the full game will depend entirely on the amount of maps available, and while I was praising the snappiness of the levels so far, I think the loop is fun enough to expand. I want office buildings, mansions, schools, hospitals, prisons, supermarkets, warehouses. One of every type of big building that exists, and plenty of smaller ones too.

Demo Length – 20 mins
At a glance
+ Snappy levels provide less worrying about whether I am wasting time doing virtual chores and more satisfaction from completing the jobs and seeing immediate results.
+ Dopamine babyyyyy.
+ A nice variety of tasks including bog standard cleaning, but also tidying up objects and restocking shelves.
+ UI/UX meant I always knew what I needed to do.
+ Lofi mess to chill to.
+/- The ability to customise the mess is a nice feature. There is just something about it that makes me unsure, like I would rather have the intended experience first.
+/- I wouldn’t be expecting a huge game. It does have the potential for expanding scope but that doesn’t guarantee anything.

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Indie Showcase – Steam Next Fest 2026

Here you can find all of my coverage of the games taking part in the Steam Next Fest June 2026.

Check back often to see the latest posts!

More from previous Festivals

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Desktop Explorer – Demo Impressions

Step aside logic puzzles, there is a new contender in town.

Desktop Explorer

Developer: Recurring Dream

Release Date: 17 Jul 2026

Rummage through the abandoned profiles of an old PC to unravel an inherited mystery. What secrets hide in this eerie adventure of cryptic games and outdated software? Who was using this computer? And what happened to them?

Desktop Explorer is what I want to call an OS exploration game, but not like any other I have played. The entire premise of the demo revolves around solving the puzzles on the system, incrementally unlocking new folders and using the files within to solve the next puzzle. They are presented to you through a light horror adventure, laterally unravelling the presumably real life mystery of your uncles amnesia/history/life.

The immersive nature of the OS threw me at first, as puzzle solutions can and will be found throughout the functions of the programmes themselves. Every solution had me feeling like a tech genius, despite – or should I say, especially because of – the brain scratching moments that had me starting at the screen, browsing back and forth wondering what on earth I was supposed to do. The information is there for those lightbulb moments and I feel that is all that you should know going into this game.

After seeking out logic puzzles for the last while, Desktop Explorer is an absolute breath of fresh air and I can’t say I have played anything else like it. I was thoroughly invested in this demo both mechanically and narratively and I highly recommend checking it out for yourself.

Demo Length – ~1 hour
At a glance
+ Excellent puzzles
+ Diagetic puzzles
+ Diagetic hints
+ Immersive
+ Engaging story
+/- Doesn’t feel hand holdy
+/- Disturbing enough. Not too scary (yet)

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Noob’s Picks – PC Gaming Show 2026

The PC Gaming Show delivered. I now have 7 more demos installed and countless more games on my radar. As always, I have narrowed it down to my 10 favourite reveals of the show!

The games are featured in alphabetical order.

Ascenders: Beyond the Peak

Developer: Ludogram

Release Date: Q3 2026

ASCENDERS: BEYOND THE PEAK is a turn-based exploration roguelite where survival is vertical. Lead a team of alpinists to recover ancient artifacts from cursed peaks, prepare your expedition, evolve your climbers, master rope mechanics, and face H.P. Lovecraft-inspired horrors within the mountain.

Wishlist Ascenders: Beyond the Peak on Steam here. There is also a demo available!

Carcass Clad

Developer: Wrong Organ

Release Date: To be announced

A visceral co-op tank horror game from the creators of MOUTHWASHING. Featuring weighty physical controls, crew the Yksiö with a team of 3. Fuel is limited and ammo is scarce. The city’s saint, long since laid to rest, walks again – gilded and defiled.

Wishlist Carcass Clad on Steam here.

Hack 95

Developer: Village Studio

Release Date: To be announced

Time travel to 1995 in this card-based computer hacking voyage. Take down an evil tech startup and shadowy government agency to become a god to the freaks and geeks of cyberspace. All while being helped by an incontinent virtual pug.

Wishlist Hack 95 on Steam here, and there is currently a demo available!

Locator: The Search for Abigail

Developer: Empty Exhibit

Release Date: To be announced

A Geoguessr-inspired narrative detective puzzle game set on an alien planet. As the Cartographer, you must gather and examine clues to locate missing archaeologist Abigail Lidari and uncover the fate of an ancient alien civilization.

Wishlist Locator: The Search for Abigail on Steam here.

Rivage

Developer: Exnilo Studio

Release Date: 13 Aug 2026

Rivage is an immersive sci-fi puzzle adventure set aboard the A.R.E.S. space station trapped in a space phenomenon. Wake up as Miranda, forced to explore, solve intricate puzzles to unravel the fate of your missing crew.

Wishlist Rivage on Steam here. There is also a demo available!

Signet City

Developer: Jump Over the Age

Release Date: Coming soon

From the creator of Citizen Sleeper, SIGNET CITY is a first-person fungalpunk RPG. You are a parasite, in a city where strange technologies and radical ideas are taking root. Grow into and through its inhabitants, uncover and change their stories, and witness the terminal season of the signet city.

Wishlist Signet City on Steam here.

Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions

Developer: Fat Alien Cat, Nomo Studio

Release Date: 11 Jun 2026 – Early Access

Join the ESS Starseeker crew to explore strange new worlds, working together with friends to complete planet-wide objectives before the station journeys on to new planetary destinations. Collect and unlock powerful tech to help the crew tackle the perils of space!

Wishlist Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions on Steam here.

Star Trek: Outposts Unknown

Developer: Magic Fuel Games

Release Date: 2026

Lead your crew across strange new worlds in this narrative driven outpost builder! Research, explore, and build as you face a mysterious cosmic force that threatens a new ally. Your adventure awaits, Captain!

Wishlist Star Trek: Outposts Unknown on Steam here. There is also currently a demo available!

There Are No Ghosts at the Grand

Developer: Friday Sundae

Release Date: Q4 2026

Inherit a crumbling English hotel and restore it by day—while battling ghosts by night. With a sardonic cat, a talking power tool, and a twisting supernatural plot, this is a musical mystery unlike any other. Will you be able to hold it together while everything around you falls apart?

Wishlist There Are No Ghosts at the Grand on Steam and play the demo here.

Vampire: The Masquerade — ETERNAL WHISPERS

Developer: Flyos

Release Date: Coming soon

Vampire: The Masquerade — ETERNAL WHISPERS is a narrative-driven CRPG set in the World of Darkness. Awaken from decades of torpor into a dark-modern Montreal consumed by political intrigue, buried secrets and personal horror.

Wishlist Vampire: The Masquerade — ETERNAL WHISPERS on Steam here.

The indie showcases of Summer Game Fest 2026 delivered so thoroughly that I think I am going to be working my way through the games all the way up to the Game Awards season!

We are rich in choice, surrounded by creativity and I can’t wait to see how all these games do at release and beyond.

Watch the full showcase here.

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Noob’s Picks – Wholesome Direct 2026

How is it possible to pick only 10 games from so many lovely games featured at the Wholesome Direct 2026? I want to say it isn’t but somehow I have narrowed it down to the top 10 that caught my eye this showcase!

The games are featured in alphabetical order.

Beastfolk Barber

Developer: Safe Flight Games, GameWorks Ventures

Release Date: To be announced

In Beastfolk Barber (code name: Project Salon), you’re a barber in a city full of beastfolk. Chat with your customers, style their look, help them see something new in the mirror… and in themselves.

Wishlist Beastfolk Barber on Steam here.

Croakwood

Developer: Texel Raptor

Release Date: Coming soon

Welcome to Croakwood, a relaxed town-building and management game where tiny frogs settle into life in the wild woods. Design and create structures, plan and decorate your town, explore an ancient forest filled with secrets, and guide a charming frog community as it grows.

Wishlist Croakwood on Steam here. There is also a demo available!

Design and Conjure

Developer: Tiny Kiwi Games

Release Date: Coming soon

Join Dalia, the Nature Witch, on a heartwarming journey to restore her hometown. Tidy spaces, design magical rooms, solve gentle puzzles, and soothe magical creatures affected by mysterious corruption bringing warmth and peace back to the town. 🌸

Wishlist Design and Conjure on Steam here, and there is currently a demo available!

Dressmaker

Developer: Cozy Lives

Release Date: September 2026

Become a dressmaker! Choose fabric, cut out patterns, and sew them all together to satisfy (or sabotage!) townsfolk in this cozy crafting game inspired by real dressmaking.

Wishlist Dressmaker on Steam here.

Fields of Mistria

Developer: NPC Studio

Release Date: 5 Aug 2026

Start your new life! Build the farm of your dreams as you discover a world brimming with possibilities. Magic, romance, and adventure all await you in this nostalgic farming / life sim RPG!

Wishlist Fields of Mistria on Steam here.

Fourleaf Fields

Developer: BEHEMUTT

Release Date: To be announced

Welcome to the tiny world of Fourleaf Fields, a cozy farming life sim where you’re no bigger than a carrot. Grow towering crops, care for tiny farm bugs, and uncover a web of secrets fueled by gossip – solo or online with friends!

Wishlist Fourleaf Fields on Steam here.

Momento

Developer: Fat Alien Cat, Nomo Studio

Release Date: 6 Jun 2026

Momento is a cozy room decorator with a twist: the choices you make play out over the course of a lifetime! Decorate your room, choose which items are important to you, and discover how the objects you choose will alter the course of the story, in a winding ode to the power of everyday things.

Wishlist Momento on Steam here.

Moonlight Peaks

Developer: Little Chicken

Release Date: 7 Jul 2026

Welcome to your new vampiric life in the magical town of Moonlight Peaks. Raise mystical crops, learn spell-casting and potion-making, and befriend – or even romance – the local werewolves, witches, and mermaids in this heartwarming supernatural life-sim. Eternity awaits!

Wishlist Moonlight Peaks on Steam here. There is also currently a demo available!

Tiny Delivery

Developer: Sinica

Release Date: Q3 2026

Tiny Delivery is a cozy adventure about a small robot courier with a big job and questionable methods. Heartfelt moments, hidden secrets, and a little chaos – all in one route!

Wishlist Tiny Delivery on Steam here.

Toem 2

Developer: Something We Made

Release Date: Q3 2026

Step back into the shoes of a curious photographer and set off on a brand new adventure all about uncovering hidden details, helping friends along the way, and documenting the world’s little wonders in TOEM 2, the sequel to the acclaimed TOEM.

Wishlist Toem 2 on Steam and play the demo here.

I feel like this showcase truly featured something of the wholesome variety for everyone. If I have any impressions on the demos I will be sure to post them in demo impressions and on the Summer Game Fest 2026 page!

Watch the full showcase here.

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Noob’s Picks – Story Rich Showcase 2026

The inaugural Story Rich Showcase is presented by Fellow Traveller, the folk that bring us the LudoNarraCon each year, which happens to consistantly be my favourite steam event. The curation is top class and catered to my tastes, so here are the top 10 announcements that I struggled to narrow down!

The games are featured in alphabetical order.

A Line Held Tight

Developer: Humble Grove

Release Date: Q4 2026

Tensions both political and personal are rising at the Brightworld mining colony. In this dynamic sci-fi visual novel you must decide where your heart and loyalties lie if you’re to shape the future and save yourself.

Wishlist A Line Held Tight on Steam here. There is also currently a demo available!

Am I Nima

Developer: HO! Games

Release Date: 8 Oct 2026

Am I Nima is a psychological-horror game where you must convince your mom that you really are her daughter. Combine words together in your brain and use them to talk. Get her to trust you.

Wishlist Am I Nima on Steam here. There is also a demo available!

Apple Crumble

Developer: Happy Broccoli Games

Release Date: 2026

It’s your grandma’s 84th birthday party and nobody is trying to murder her. Stop suspecting your family members, and don’t worry about the strange man in your bedroom. A new creepy-cozy mystery thriller from the creators of Duck Detective.

Wishlist Apple Crumble on Steam here.

Burn-9

Developer: 14 Hours Productions

Release Date: 2026

14 Hours Productions reveals Burn-9, a spy thriller where you’re not the spy. Safe behind your screen, guide the last survivor of an elite black-ops team in a desperate attempt to salvage a mission gone horribly wrong. Burn-9’s demo is available to play now.

Wishlist Burn-9 on Steam here. There is also a demo available!

Desktop Explorer

Developer: Recurring Dream

Release Date: 17 Jul 2026

Rummage through the abandoned profiles of an old PC to unravel an inherited mystery. What secrets hide in this eerie adventure of cryptic games and outdated software? Who was using this computer? And what happened to them?

Wishlist Desktop Explorer on Steam here. There is also currently a demo available!

Detective Turner: If Looks Could Kill

Developer: Riker

Release Date: 2027

A text-driven noir murder mystery where you literally read the room. Search for clues in the text, photograph evidence, and interrogate suspects to solve the murder of fashion icon Margot Voss.

Wishlist Detective Turner: If Looks Could Kill on Steam here.

Duppy Detective Tashia

Developer: Spritewrench

Release Date: 8 Jun 2026

Help Tashia unravel the case of a heinous murder and find her cell phone in this point & click, mystery adventure based on Caribbean folklore!

Wishlist Duppy Detective Tashia on Steam here. There is also currently a demo available and you can read my full impressions here!

The Hearth & Harbour

Developer: Saltstone Studios

Release Date: 2026

Transform a run-down restaurant and build a new life for yourself in this management RPG. Decide what kind of restaurant you want to create and what kind of person you want to be. As a storm brews outside, every choice you make has consequences.

Wishlist The Hearth & Harbour on Steam here.

The Telwynium

Developer: Dave Lloyd

Release Date: 2027

A 90s fantasy adventure epic from the creator of The Drifter- It’s your first night away from Willows Dene, and you have first watch.

Wishlist The Telwynium on Steam or play the demo here.

Thousand Hells: The Underworld Heists

Developer: A Sharp

Release Date: Fall 2026

Recruit your team, choose your path, and descend into hell. Four heroes must overcome the trials of the underworlds in tactical narrative encounters. A new systemic storybook experience blending mythology and surrealism. From the designers of King of Dragon Pass and Six Ages.

Wishlist Thousand Hells: The Underworld Heists on Steam here.

A great first showcase and will certainly be my most anticipated in the future. Keep an eye out here and on the Summer Game Fest page as I make my way through more of the demos!

Watch the full showcase here.

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Duppy Detective Tashia – Demo Impressions

The cast are as vibrant as the colourful art style.

Duppy Detective Tashia

Developer: Spritewrench

Release Date: 8 Jun 2026

Help Tashia unravel the case of a heinous murder and find her cell phone in this point & click, mystery adventure based on Caribbean folklore!

With the full game of Duppy Detective Tashia due to be 2-3 hours, this 30 minutes slice showcased a fun, bubbly detective adventure that left no space for tedium. After unfortunately and unknowingly being struck from life, Tashia has a murder to solve in the afterlife. The stylish animations and UI tie the simple investigative gameplay together in a way that never felt like it slowed down.

The game is created by a tiny Jamaican studio eager to showcase their culture and as a result, the afterlife is populated with mythical figures that I am unfamiliar with. Cultures are unique but games are universal and indie games in particular remain an incredible medium to discover people, places and stories that you may never have encountered otherwise. I hadn’t even heard the word Duppy before (it means ghost!). This game has a flavour that couldn’t be produced be anyone else and I would love to see more.

What I didn’t expect was for the game to turn in to a narrative version of Among Us. You should play yourself to understand what that means as it gave me a good chuckle when the demo wrapped up the way that it did. An easy-going easily digestible way to spend some time and solve a mystery!

Demo Length – -30 mins
At a glance
+ Colourful and stylish
+ Characters based on not your everyday myths
+/- Gameplay is simple
+/- The game feels more about the narrative than a challenging puzzle

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