Free Experimental Games on Steam
Steam currently has 1,427 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 11/21/2024.
Looking for more? Explore other lists such as:
- Best experimental games on Steam
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- 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 78. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 61,227 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 48,684 positive reviews and 12,543 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 84, placing it in the #2 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 7,635 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 6,572 positive reviews and 1,063 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 67, placing it in the #3 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 3,093 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 2,114 positive reviews and 979 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 9,807 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 9,595 positive reviews and 212 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 2,733 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 2,708 positive reviews and 25 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on Windows systems. At the moment, there is no confirmed information regarding Steam Deck support for this game.
| Release Date | 10/4/2024 |
| Developer | BarribobDev |
| Publisher | BarribobDev |
| Steam App Id | 2905170 |
6. Juice Galaxy
Juice Galaxy is a happy place to fly around and smack things and drink juice. And explore things. And just, flip around doing stuff.
Juice Galaxy has achieved a Player Score of 95, placing it in the #6 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 6,507 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 6,419 positive reviews and 88 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 Juice Galaxy on the Steam Deck (though some functionality may be limited).
7. 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 #7 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 7,798 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 7,338 positive reviews and 460 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).
8. 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 #8 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 5,503 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 5,382 positive reviews and 121 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 |
9. The Good Time Garden
Explore a throbbing pink world full of strange naked creatures to gather food for your friend in this short, surreal experience.
The Good Time Garden has achieved a Player Score of 92, placing it in the #9 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 2,565 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 2,463 positive reviews and 102 negative reviews — making it "Overwhelmingly Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on both Windows and Mac systems. Valve has also verified it as playable on the Steam Deck and will run well.
| Release Date | 12/19/2019 |
| Developer | Coal Supper |
| Publisher | Coal Supper |
| Steam App Id | 1200860 |
10. TELEFORUM
TELEFORUM is a found-footage-styled horror game exploring the unknown side of media. You’re visiting a widow’s apartment to conduct an interview about her husband's death. But that’s not the main reason why you’re here. It’s all about the tape, isn’t it?
TELEFORUM has achieved a Player Score of 89, placing it in the #10 spot for the best free Experimental games. Its score was calculated by analyzing a total of 2,526 reviews on Steam. This breaks down to a total of 2,338 positive reviews and 188 negative reviews — making it "Very Positive" on Steam.
It can be played and ran on both Windows and Mac systems. Valve has also verified it as playable on the Steam Deck and will run well.
| Release Date | 10/19/2023 |
| Franchise | CRITICAL REFLEX |
| Developer | Monumental Collab |
| Publishers | |
| Steam App Id | 2186570 |
More Free Experimental Games
Explore even more rankings for the 100 best free Experimental games available on Steam.
| Image | Name | Actions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15,038 | 7/20/2023 | 78 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 1,565 | 12/22/2020 | 84 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 446 | 11/17/2021 | 67 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 362 | 10/7/2020 | 95 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 195 | 10/4/2024 | 95 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 40 | 11/22/2023 | 95 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 26 | 1/10/2018 | 91 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 17 | 12/22/2022 | 94 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 13 | 12/19/2019 | 92 | Free | Steam Charts | |
| 11 | 10/19/2023 | 89 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 9 | 9/17/2020 | 60 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 7 | 8/7/2020 | 76 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 5 | 12/15/2022 | 87 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 5 | 3/4/2021 | 67 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 5 | 5/15/2024 | 77 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 9/23/2019 | 87 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 4/6/2021 | 63 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 2/23/2023 | 74 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 6/19/2021 | 62 | Free | Steam Charts | |
 | 3 | 12/8/2020 | 73 | 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. (2024, November 21). Steam Store. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, November 21). Eternal Return on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, November 19). Idle Slayer on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, November 21). Animaze by FaceRig on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, October 16). Virtual Cottage on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, November 14). Magic Archery on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, November 19). Juice Galaxy on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, November 2). Yume Nikki on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, November 20). BABBDI on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, November 20). The Good Time Garden on Steam. Steam Store.
- Valve Corporation. (2024, November 16). TELEFORUM on Steam. Steam Store.