Free Experimental Games on Steam
Steam currently has 1,603 Experimental games available to download and play. Explore our list of the best free games ranked by popularity and ratings. Data for this list is calculated from reviews and player counts reported directly by Steam and will be updated in real-time. Free Experimental game rankings were last updated on 12/15/2025.
Looking for more? Explore other lists such as:
- Best experimental games on Steam
- Best experimental Steam Deck games
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- Best experimental Linux games on Steam
- Free Steam games
- Most played Steam games
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1. Eternal Return
Eternal Return is a free-to-play, 2.5D perspective Battle Royale game. Search, Craft, Hunt, and Fight using a variety of characters. Plan your strategy and become the last survivor on this eternal experiment.
Eternal Return holds the #1 spot for "best free Experimental game on Steam" with a Player Score of 75. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 70,079 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 53,202 positive reviews and 16,877 negative reviews — making it "Mostly Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Eternal Return on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Release Date | 7/20/2023 |
| Developer | Nimble Neuron |
| Publishers | |
| Steam App Id | 1049590 |
2. Idle Slayer
Idle Slayer is an incremental game with idle and active playstyle mechanics, medieval pixel art visuals and retro 8-bit sounds and music.
Idle Slayer has achieved a Player Score of 83, placing it in the #2 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 9,672 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 8,257 positive reviews and 1,415 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. Valve has also verified it as playable on the Steam Deck and will run well.
| Release Date | 12/22/2020 |
| Developer | Pablo Leban |
| Publisher | Pablo Leban |
| Steam App Id | 1353300 |
3. Animaze by FaceRig
Livestream, chat, or create videos as world-class 2D and 3D avatars. Use one of the over 60 avatars provided or import your own 2D, 3D, VRM, or Ready Player Me model. Animaze is powering PuffPuff, one of the top real-time mocap virtual beings on TikTok with 4.7 million followers.
Animaze by FaceRig has achieved a Player Score of 68, placing it in the #3 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 3,524 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 2,442 positive reviews and 1,082 negative reviews — making it "Mixed" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is not possible to play or run Animaze by FaceRig on the Steam Deck.
| Release Date | 11/17/2021 |
| Developer | Holotech Studios Inc. |
| Publisher | Holotech Studios Inc. |
| Steam App Id | 1364390 |
4. Virtual Cottage
Virtual Cottage gives you a comfy place to rest and be productive without any distractions. Open the game, set yourself a goal and enjoy the atmosphere.
Virtual Cottage has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #4 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 10,778 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 10,534 positive reviews and 244 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Virtual Cottage on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
5. Magic Archery
Train a commoner to become the greatest archer in this short incremental game! Increase your stats, gather wealth from quests, buy upgrades, and infuse your arrows with magic.
Magic Archery has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #5 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 7,038 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 6,935 positive reviews and 103 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Magic Archery on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Release Date | 10/4/2024 |
| Developers | |
| Publishers | |
| Steam App Id | 2905170 |
6. Yume Nikki
This is a game in which you traverse the extremely dark world inside a dream.
Yume Nikki has achieved a Player Score of 91, placing it in the #6 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 9,479 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 8,926 positive reviews and 553 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Yume Nikki on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
7. BABBDI
Find your way out of BABBDI. A short, first person exploration experience.
BABBDI has achieved a Player Score of 94, placing it in the #7 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 7,335 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 7,169 positive reviews and 166 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems. At the moment, it is possible to play BABBDI on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Release Date | 12/22/2022 |
| Developers | |
| Publisher | Lemaitre Bros |
| Steam App Id | 2240530 |
8. Simplode Suite
Simplode Suite is a toolset which does all kinds of things. You can dynamically balance microphone and speaker volume, force borderless fullscreen, optimize your CPU power settings, take partial screenshots, create click through borderless/windowed mode overlays, and so much more.
Simplode Suite has achieved a Player Score of 61, placing it in the #8 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 52 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 34 positive reviews and 18 negative reviews — making it "Mixed" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is not possible to play or run Simplode Suite on the Steam Deck.
| Release Date | 9/29/2020 |
| Developer | Simplode LLC |
| Publisher | Simplode LLC |
| Steam App Id | 1242710 |
9. Port of Call
Imagine waking up on a small dock with no recollection of who you are or how you got there. The first person you find is a grumpy, old man who enlists you to work on his ferry boat which seems to have materialized behind you.
Port of Call has achieved a Player Score of 84, placing it in the #9 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 1,263 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 1,114 positive reviews and 149 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on both Windows and Mac systems. At the moment, there is no confirmed information regarding Steam Deck support for this game.
| Release Date | 8/28/2015 |
| Developer | Underdog Games |
| Publisher | Underdog Games |
| Steam App Id | 356520 |
10. Black Screen
This game is nothing more than a black image covering the entire screen area, without the presence of any incentives.
Black Screen has achieved a Player Score of 79, placing it in the #10 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 233 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 200 positive reviews and 33 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, it is possible to play Black Screen on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
| Release Date | 5/15/2024 |
| Developer | Dilena Udry |
| Publisher | Dilena Udry |
| Steam App Id | 2953440 |
More Free Experimental Games
Explore even more rankings for the 100 best free Experimental games available on Steam.
| Image | Name | Actions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3,239 | 7/20/2023 | 75 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 905 | 12/22/2020 | 83 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 271 | 11/17/2021 | 68 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 175 | 10/7/2020 | 95 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 46 | 10/4/2024 | 95 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 36 | 1/9/2018 | 91 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 15 | 12/22/2022 | 94 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 5 | 9/29/2020 | 61 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 5 | 8/28/2015 | 84 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 5 | 5/15/2024 | 79 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 4 | 8/31/2024 | 77 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 4 | 10/19/2023 | 88 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 9/15/2014 | 71 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 2/27/2015 | 81 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 10/23/2025 | 74 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2 | 9/22/2019 | 87 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2 | 10/8/2020 | 68 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2 | 3/28/2022 | 88 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2 | 11/14/2019 | 57 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 2 | 7/30/2021 | 88 | Free | Steam Charts |
Soures & References
Steambase has best-in-class data powered directly by Steam, our data partners, and in-house experts. Player counts and rankings are enriched, analyzed, and updated in real-time to ensure we surface the most up-to-date insights. Learn more about the Steambase approach to data collection and our review methodology.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, December 15). Steam Store. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, December 15). Eternal Return on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, November 17). Idle Slayer on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, December 12). Animaze by FaceRig on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, November 27). Virtual Cottage on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, November 22). Magic Archery on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, December 11). Yume Nikki on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, December 17). BABBDI on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, November 26). Simplode Suite on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, October 3). Port of Call on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2025, October 11). Black Screen on Steam. Steam Store.