AI Slop Presents A Much Bigger Problem Than Just Flooding Steam Next Fest

Steam Next Fest is upon us, and fans agree it's the AI-sloppiest one yet. Next Fest, Steam's occasional multi-day promotion in which developers release demos of their games so players can get a preview of what's to come, has increasingly become unwieldy due to the sheer number of demos to play, but the advent of AI models and vibe-coding has exacerbated the problem. There are approximately 7,000 demos to wade through this time, almost doubling the total from the last Next Fest in July. It's an absurd, overwhelming number that makes the event, which used to be great for trying new, unexpected titles, feel practically meaningless. As bad as the flood of demos is for a promotion that was once about discovering new games, though, the situation today is actually worse. Not only is Next Fest getting an increasing number of bad slop games, it's also costing us the opportunity to play some good, promising, handcrafted games. When I saw the trailer for ReVamp, I was excited. It appears to be a clever and stylish tower defense game that puts you into the imposing leather boots of Dracula himself, as he builds his lair to withstand the onslaught of heroes aiming to defeat him. Its gameplay l…

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