{"id":1610546,"date":"2026-06-18T20:54:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T20:54:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/8ytSfmaMfTK5UKg2AKtKaR"},"modified":"2026-06-18T20:54:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T20:54:09","slug":"instead-of-wishlisting-its-game-the-developer-of-my-favorite-next-fest-demo-wants-you-to-play-anyone-elses-there-are-some-genuinely-great-creators-in-this-fest-who-deserve-the-attention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arcader.org\/news\/instead-of-wishlisting-its-game-the-developer-of-my-favorite-next-fest-demo-wants-you-to-play-anyone-elses-there-are-some-genuinely-great-creators-in-this-fest-who-deserve-the-attention\/","title":{"rendered":"Instead of wishlisting its game, the developer of my favorite Next Fest demo wants you to play anyone else’s: ‘There are some genuinely great creators in this fest who deserve the attention’"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Of the thousands of demos on offer during the current Next Fest, I’ve far and away been most fond of About Fishing<\/a>, The Water Museum’s downright Lynchian “fishing mystery game” of surrealist, psychological angling that’s eerie, absurd, and endearing in equal measure. My tackle box has a conspiracy board inside it, the town church has a prison ward in the basement, and I can commune with caught fish to retrieve submerged clues from waterways.<\/p>\n

It’s magnificent, and it is entirely, precisely my shit. But despite it being the traditional goal of Next Fest participants, About Fishing developer The Water Museum doesn’t seem particularly concerned about whether I wishlist the game or not.<\/p>\n

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\"Grandpa<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>

(Image credit: Playstack)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In a Steam news post<\/a> that coincided with the start of Next Fest earlier this week, Water Museum developer Kevin said it’s a great time for players to try the About Fishing demo. But then he made an unconventional ask:<\/p>\n

“After you’re done\u2014you don’t have to wishlist it,” Kevin said. “Just promise me you’ll find another demo that looks interesting and give it a go. There are some genuinely great creators in this fest who deserve the attention. Take your time with it.”<\/p>\n

Kevin continues to suggest we then turn off the computer, go outside, and maybe enjoy a nice tree. (Having gone on a lovely walk this morning, I can personally confirm the efficacy of the looking-at-tree meta.)<\/p>\n

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\"Entering<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>

(Image credit: Playstack)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Considering that wishlisting is conventionally understood as one of the most valuable things a potential customer can do ahead of a Steam launch, The Water Museum’s declaration that we should actually just find another cool game is a surprising act of developer solidarity. It probably helps, however, that About Fishing has already secured an audience of eager players: On June 11, The Water Museum announced via a Steam post that About Fishing had lured 100,000 users into wishlisting<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Get it? Lured.<\/em> Like in fishing.<\/p>\n

While The Water Museum might be too pure to tell you to wishlist its game, I urge you to try it for yourself if you think you’d enjoy seeing its unsettlingly detailed textures stretched over entirely too few polygons, doing Wanted-style bullet curving on your fishing hook mid-cast to execute hyper-precise angling, or being told by your ethereal grandfather that “the fish around here might’ve been the last witnesses to a murder.”<\/p>\n

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\"A<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>

(Image credit: Playstack)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

If not, then check out one of the 4,400 other demos<\/a>. As Kevin said, there are plenty of playtests worth your attention.<\/p>\n

About Fishing<\/a> is set to launch sometime later this year.<\/p>\n

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