Steam Next Fest dev describes the "weird arms race" required to stand out from the hundreds of other demos in the seasonal event
Jul. 8, 2024Tactical Breach Wizards dev Tom Francis tells GamesRadar+ what it’s like vying for your attention in Steam Next Fest
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Tactical Breach Wizards creator Tom Francis says it isn’t easy standing out inSteam Next Fest.
If Francis' name sounds familiar, that’s probably because you recognize him from certified indie darlings like Heat Signature, Gunpoint, and Floating Point. The latest project from his indie studio Suspicious Developments is a strategy game called Tactical Breach Wizards, and it’s something of a hybrid between XCOM and Into the Breach, with an acclaimed demo that debuted during the most recent Steam Next Fest event. I had the chance to catch up with Francis following the event and was curious to know what it’s like from the inside not only making a demo but marketing it so that it stands out from the hundreds of other games at Steam Next Fest.
“There’s always this weird arms race with Steam developers where they come up with algorithms and systems and metrics that they believe will will detect which games are organic and doing well, and then boost those,” Francis said. “And then developers have to sort of decipher what those tricks are, what those metrics are, and where it counts, and we have to focus on it. And then the more developers do that, and focus on it, the less of a good metric that turns out to be for organic reach.”
Only time will tell if it makes our list of thebest strategy games.
Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter
Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more
After scoring a degree in English from ASU, I worked as a copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. Now, as GamesRadar’s west coast Staff Writer, I’m responsible for managing the site’s western regional executive branch, AKA my apartment, and writing about whatever horror game I’m too afraid to finish.
The new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles strategy game kills Splinter and Shredder before a moment of gameplay happens, all so it can tell its own story
Free-to-play tactical RPG Girls’ Frontline 2: Exilium is out now on PC and mobile
