Valve’s Steam Game Festival is set to return this June, the company announced on Twitter today (April 14).
The Steam Game Festival: Summer Edition runs from June 9 – which is the date that the now-cancelled E3 2020 had been scheduled to begin – until June 14. The event will shine a “spotlight on games set to be released within the next year”, according to Steam.
The Steam Game Festival returns on June 9th, celebrating amazing upcoming games through demos and live developer events!
Interested? Sign up to get a reminder when the Steam Game Festival starts!https://t.co/1jsaVhFXxG
— Steam (@Steam) April 13, 2020
During the festival, fans will be able to try out demos, connect with game developers and add games to their wishlists before release. Steam is also calling for developers to “register their interest” to showcase upcoming games to be featured in the festival. The deadline to submit entries ends on April 24.
The Steam Game Festival was introduced in December 2019 as part of the Game Awards. Its inaugural event was a first-of-its-kind show that debuted hands-on gameplay demos to fans around the world – and it was done entirely through a virtual conference and expo.
Much like the Spring edition of the Steam Game Festival, this Summer edition is held in partnership with The Game Awards producer Geoff Keighley. “For the past few months, I’ve thought a lot about new global and digital ways we could celebrate games the summer,” Keighley tweeted. “The Steam Game Festival: Summer Edition is the first preview of what’s coming together.”
For the past few months I've thought a lot about new global and digital ways we could celebrate games the summer. Today the announcement of the Steam Game Festival: Summer Edition is the first preview of what's coming together. The Festival will also expand to more platforms. pic.twitter.com/Cl2mDtRCi2
— Geoff Keighley (@geoffkeighley) April 13, 2020
E3 2020 was cancelled earlier this year due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Organisers later announced plans to shift the annual event to a full online experience for the year, but that has since been scrapped as well.
In other Valve news, a new fan-made mod for Half-Life: Alyx has been released which allows players to finish the game without the need for a VR headset.